About a month ago I pointed out, in this fan post, that KU had won more NCAA tournament games in the last decade (20002 - 2011) than any other school. Now with the 2012 tournament completed, how does KU stand in total tourney wins during the most recent decade (2003 – 2012)?

As you might expect, with a run to the championship game, KU is still in first place in total tourney wins 2003-2012.

Here are the top 16 teams in total NCAA tourney wins over the last decade (2003-2012):

Note that this decade still includes all of the early exits to Bucknell, Bradley, Northern Iowa, and VCU. Despite all those early losses, no other team has won as many NCAA tournament games as KU over the last decade. And really, only UNC is close to KU in total tourney wins in that time period.

So when the trolls bring up Bucknell, Bradley, etc., and simply replying “Norfolk State” does not suffice, you can ask them to name another school that has won more tourney games than KU in the last 10 years. Yeah, it's a trick question but they're trolls so they deserve it.

KU, still the most successful NCAA tournament team of that last decade!!

Rock Chalk!

If anyone would like me to email them my spreadsheet with the history of NCAA tourney wins, just let me know.

Please help. I have been looking for a #13 jayhawk jesery for years! I am a huge Jeff Boschee fan since he was in high school, as I am from North Dakota. I was wondering if anybody had his jersey, in the early 2000's style or knew where to find one. I am desperate to find one and this is my last hope, minus checking ebay everyday for a very long time. Any help is greatly appreciated

Rock Chalk baby!

Photo courtesy KUSports.com

You can bet this is going on the front page, welcome back RC - Owen

This is fairly long-winded and occasionally sidetracked, and largely ignores any actual analysis of matchups or anything else involving tonight's game. I didn't want to rehash the same sort of gameplay discussions having already taken place countless places across the internet. Plus, I don't have KenPom.com, so I'd end up just being frustrated writing it. I'm fairly out of practice in terms of sports writing, but in any case, hope you enjoy and rock chalk! -- rc

In 2009-10, the Kansas Jayhawks' were a fine-tuned machine calibrated to destroy the opposition. Offensive weapons existed everywhere one could turn, from the lightning quick first step of Sherron Collins to the burly post presence of Cole Aldrich and every spot in between. The Morris twins improved every time they stepped on the floor, extending range on their jumpshot and accumulating a laundry list of available post moves stemming from their time with the Professor of the Post, Danny Manning. Enigmatic freshman Xavier Henry was the sort of precocious talent that is almost too skilled, capable of nearly everything on the basketball floor, and program-lifers like Tyrel Reed and Brady Morningstar filled in the missing gaps, serving as the oil to maintain this mechanical death machine.

After racking up a multitude of impressive blowouts and earning the #1-overall seed in the NCAA Tournament they fell, dramatically and fantastically, to the Northern Iowa Panthers in the second round, a defeat encapsulated by the stunning pull-up three of Ali Farokhmanesh. I need not rehash that miserable game, but that final, damning possession can be awfully instructive when comparing that season to the one still being played. The Jayhawks were in fine defensive position, even provided a momentary opportunity at a pilfer, and generally walked the line well between aggressively going after a steal and ensuring no whistle, preparing to hunker down for the most important possession of the season. However, once Farkohmanesh broke into the open floor he spotted an opportunity and seized it. Statistically, it was not the correct play. It would have been safer to hold the ball, draining precious seconds off of the clock, as opposed to risking a miss, providing Kansas the ball down only a point with an enormous amount of time.

The correct play had been made by the defense, and yet a single unexpected deviation from the normal end-of-game happenings promptly disposed of the favorite. Had the game been played ten times, the Panthers likely win only once or twice. They were a good team, yes, consisting of a handful of professionals (namely Adam Koch) and a whole mess of cohesion and, perhaps most importantly, unified belief. But from a talent perspective, they were no match for Kansas. Yet, there they were, celebrating a moment that will not soon be forgotten in Northern Iowa lore, while the seemingly interminable death machine slowly realized its dissolution.

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First off, I’m getting tired of the Davis hype. I’m ready for Unibrow to head off to the NBA, and leave college basketball fans alone. Yes, he’s a good player. Dookie V even told us all that he’s got room to grow as a player…and he hasn’t reached his limit. That’s good, because his college basketball career is over in less than 24 hours. And that, my son, is why he’ll never crack the list of “greatest college players ever” list in my mind. He’s a one-and-done. Playing against (mostly) SEC competition (ooooooh….ahhhhh…..I’m amazed), and sure he got better, but he’ll never be great. If I’m him, I hope he’s worth the hype, and stays away from injuries, because there’s some big boys in the NBA. Calipari has done very well with his model to recruit these players, but I’m happy we do it (mostly) a different way.

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Debate Class, take 2!-

5 Statements to debate from the second weekend of MADNESS! Once again, keep in mind that there are not necessarily the my own views, simply points to debate. Post your comments now to be cooler than other fans!

1: For the sake of argument, let’s call KU a defensive-oriented team and UNC an offensive-oriented team. When KU played UNC in the first half, they played UNC’s style of play, and hung with them. If KU were to switch styles and philosophy, they’d attract higher-rated prospects, while still winning.

2: Frank Martin’s replacement for the Kittycats will sustain/have more success than Frank did (ie, Frank left the cupboard stocked, and changed the culture enough that they’re set up for success)

3: In the initial meeting between KU and tOSU, AFH played a bigger factor than Sullinger’s absence in the result.

4: The difference in the game between KU and UNC was the switch to the Triangle-and-Two D.

5: What’s the best Domestic Non-Micro Brew? Regional brews allowed, but to put it in basketball terms, no mid-majors…stick with the Power Conferences for this one.

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For me it was when Self was struggling to not smile. That was honestly the most enjoyable part of the game yesterday. Self was just crouching there, and you could see him fighting to hold back that smile in the last minute and a half. Does anyone have a link to a video or a .gif of that moment in the game? Absolutely loved it. ROCK CHALK FINAL FOUR!!!

What was your favorite/most enjoyable moment?

What if?

I’m reading about this a LOT these days.

What if Kendall Marshall had never been hurt? Would UNC have won yesterday?

What if Sullinger had played in KU/tOSU 1, would OSU have won in Dec?

What if Missery hadn’t lost that one tall guy they had this year…would they have won the conference?

This is one more reason why I love this KU team so much. It’s not a “what if” team. It’s a team that goes out, does what it does, and we all (here on RCT at least) accept that. (I don’t account for people that post on ESPN, etc, because basically, they need to shut those boards down. I skim them at times while I wait for recaps, and it’s…horrid. Embarrassing for everyone there who posts).

No, this KU team has done stuff, and is doing stuff, and there’s no “what if” involved. Since the start of games this year (pre-season is a free-pass where everyone can and should discuss at will anything), I can count on one hand how many times I’ve read where people have said, “What if Ben and Jamari were eligible”? What if even Markieff had forgone the draft (looks like that might have been a mistake to stay now…but a year ago, we all wondered)? What if Selby had come back to raise his draft stock? What if…what if…?

What if Withey had never transferred? What if TRob decided he needed the money after last year, and bolted (Yeah, we might have said it was a questionable move, but no one would have blamed him.) Here’s what might have happened IF some of those things had occurred:

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Good evening friends, and welcome to the Final Four, of course, you need no welcoming from me, as you guys are pretty used to this whole "Final Four" business. Anyway, I'm a junior here at Ohio State who will be driving his dumbass 13 hours to New Orleans to watch his Buckeyes play in their 11th FF and I couldn't be more excited about anything in the whole world right now. I'm here to answer any questions you guys might have about the Buckeyes, I know we played this year already so you have some idea of what we like to do, but that was years ago it seems, and we were without one of the best 5 players in college basketball. So ask away, I'll do my best to answer anything. Good luck Saturday.

In a recent fan post I pointed out that KU has won more NCAA Tourney games in the last decade (2002 - 2011) than any other school. I have been updating the wins with this year's tourney results and this is just a quick update of where we will stand in total wins when the last decade becomes 2003 - 2012. Right now KU is in 2nd place in total tourney wins 2003 - 2012, one win behind, guess who? Yep, UNC, our next opponent!

3rd through 5th place are held by teams that are already out of the tourney. Kentucky is in 7th place and even if they win out and we lose Sunday, they can't catch us. Only UNC can end with more wins than KU. If we beat UNC Sunday, we will be tied for first place in most total tourney wins 2003 - 2012.

Pretty cool, huh?


Rock Chalk!

Sorry, don't have a lot to put here, but I didn't see anything for discussion on the Women's game, but they are taking it to Delaware in the 2nd half. I'm ashamed to say I haven't tried very hard to watch the women this year, and now I'm sorry I didn't try harder during the year. As of posting, we are up 53-43 with just over 12 minutes left.