big 12 tournament: Heat turned up for Big 12 tournament

The Big 12 tournament is always about last gasps, favorites defending and bubbles bursting. Or not.

The 2009 edition that begins for the men Wednesday in Oklahoma City is even more so.

“No disrespect to other years, but I didn’t feel like you had to play great all three nights to win,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “I think we’ll have to play really well every game to have a chance to win it.”

If anybody should know it, it is the Jayhawks, who have won three straight tournaments, tucked nicely inside their five Big 12 championships.

A Big 12 bracket with plenty of subplots took shape when the regular season closed Saturday. At the top is Kansas, which will await the Nebraska-Baylor rematch after the Cornhuskers won that matchup Saturday.

The Jayhawks are among the top-level teams fighting for NCAA Tournament seeding. Today, Kansas is likely a No. 3 seed. Oklahoma would be seeded higher than the Jayhawks even though the Sooners finished a game behind them and lost to Kansas, but the outcome came with standout Blake Griffin watching in street clothes while recovering from a concussion.

The Division I men’s basketball committee, which seeds the tournament, would take that snapshot into account when comparing Kansas with Oklahoma.

A Kansas victory over Oklahoma in the tournament title game would likely elevate the Jayhawks’ status, and improve their chances of opening the tournament at the Sprint Center. Geographic preference goes to better-seeded teams.

Kansas State could be one of the most scrutinized teams for the selection panel. The Wildcats are No. 4 in the Big 12, but the fifth (Texas), sixth (Texas A&M) and seventh (Oklahoma State) teams have better indicators of strength used by the committee, namely Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) and schedule strength.

The Wildcats will need at least two victories in Oklahoma City, and they must be over Texas and Kansas, to reach the field.

“This is a big week,” K-State guard Jacob Pullen said. “This week decides if we play in the NCAA or the NIT.”

Who else belongs in the NCAA Tournament?

Texas A&M and Oklahoma State did exactly what fence-sitting teams need to accomplish. Both played well down the stretch. The Aggies, who knocked off Missouri on Saturday for their best RPI victory of the season. Sixth-seeded A&M takes a six-game winning streak into Wednesday’s game against No. 11 Texas Tech.

Seventh-seeded Oklahoma State fell short of an upset bid at Oklahoma but the Cowboys had won their previous six games and has the best strength of schedule in the Big 12. They take on 10th-seeded Iowa State in the first game.

“As the league went on this year,” Self said, “we found out there were a lot better teams in middle of the pack than we thought there were.”

Which is why Martin will be looking for the complaint box if half of the Big 12 isn’t dancing when the tournament is announced next Sunday.

“If our league doesn’t get six teams in it’s an absolute joke,” Martin said.

To reach Blair Kerkhoff, college sports reporter for The Star, call 816-234-4730 or send e-mail to bkerkhoff@kcstar.com



Source: kansascity.com