“He’s probably the best shooter in the college game today.”Chris Dortch, editor of BlueRibbonInsider.com, on KSU’s Jacob Pullen, in an interview with Soren Petro, 810 AM
GH: Pullen let the nation in on just how good and clutch he is when he went viral in the NCAA tourney against Xavier last season to put his Cats in the Elite Eight. The sunrise to this college basketball season is just peaking over the shoe tops of the football season. We’re not quite ready for full-on hoops but with 5:00 PM darkness comes Big Monday. And next week the CBE brings Duke to Sprint Center. Football might have to jump in the backseat for a few nights.
“K-State is going to really miss Clemente. Already does.”
Mike DeArmond, early in the Virginia Tech/KSU game, Twitter
GH: I too am in this camp. Clemente was so integral to the success of K-State that it is difficult to imagine them being better without their speedy guard. But then I listened to the way the Wildcats ripped a top-25 Virginia Tech in the second half. Now I’m not so sure.
Mike DeArmond, early in the Virginia Tech/KSU game, Twitter
GH: I too am in this camp. Clemente was so integral to the success of K-State that it is difficult to imagine them being better without their speedy guard. But then I listened to the way the Wildcats ripped a top-25 Virginia Tech in the second half. Now I’m not so sure.
“If K-State wins the CBE next week there is a very real possibility they will be the number-one team (in the country). People are saying that K-State can’t be that good. I think there is a lot of that here locally.”
Kevin Kietzman, 810 AM
GH: If K-State wins two games at Sprint Center next week and one of them contains Coach K’s scalp (check that sucker for shoe polish while you’re at it), nobody is going to be walking around Kansas City saying K-State is overrated — not even Jayhawk and Tiger fans.
Kevin Kietzman, 810 AM
GH: If K-State wins two games at Sprint Center next week and one of them contains Coach K’s scalp (check that sucker for shoe polish while you’re at it), nobody is going to be walking around Kansas City saying K-State is overrated — not even Jayhawk and Tiger fans.
“It’s hard for me to grasp (K-State’s #3 preseason ranking). We haven’t seen this out of this program. I can’t buy into the hype. I would bet my house right now if KU and K-State played that KU would win.”
Kevin Kietzman, 810 AM
GH: KK’s got a pretty nice house. I’m guessing he had him fingers crossed on this one.
Kevin Kietzman, 810 AM
GH: KK’s got a pretty nice house. I’m guessing he had him fingers crossed on this one.
“I think Bramlage is now the toughest place to play in college basketball.”
Mike DeCourcy, when asked what he thought of KSU’s dominating win over Va Tech, 810 AM
GH: I don’t think Bramlage is the reason for Frank Martin’s success. It’s loud and looks great on TV but the Cats dropped a few games at home last season. I think the reason KSU is good is because Frank can coach and I think he’s got some studs.
Mike DeCourcy, when asked what he thought of KSU’s dominating win over Va Tech, 810 AM
GH: I don’t think Bramlage is the reason for Frank Martin’s success. It’s loud and looks great on TV but the Cats dropped a few games at home last season. I think the reason KSU is good is because Frank can coach and I think he’s got some studs.
“There are a lot of Frank Martin coaching decisions that people don’t know about that have helped Kansas State. How about staying away from Tony Mitchell? He knows Tony Mitchell! He could have gotten Tony Mitchell! He would have gotten Tony Mitchell! He stayed away. Too many red flags.”
Nick Wright, suggesting Martin passed on the high-profile recruit who is currently enrolled but not yet eligible at Mizzou, 610 AM
GH: There goes Nick Wright Left and All Around, once again making statements he (nor anyone else) can back up with any credibility or facts. How can he state the Mizzou recruit would have gone to K-State if Martin beckoned? Did Wright forget Martin came to Manhattan in the pocket of the patron saint of hoops red flags, Bob Huggins? Too suggest Martin wouldn’t dabble in recruiting sketchy talent is almost as absurd as KSU assistant coach DaLonte Hill’s $500K salary.
Nick Wright, suggesting Martin passed on the high-profile recruit who is currently enrolled but not yet eligible at Mizzou, 610 AM
GH: There goes Nick Wright Left and All Around, once again making statements he (nor anyone else) can back up with any credibility or facts. How can he state the Mizzou recruit would have gone to K-State if Martin beckoned? Did Wright forget Martin came to Manhattan in the pocket of the patron saint of hoops red flags, Bob Huggins? Too suggest Martin wouldn’t dabble in recruiting sketchy talent is almost as absurd as KSU assistant coach DaLonte Hill’s $500K salary.
“Frank Martin walks a very fine line on the sideline. He needs to be very careful.”
Shan Shariff, on the volatile coaching style of KSU’s head guy, 610 AM
GH: Frank looks out-of-control on the court but he’s more bark than bite. His players know this far better than the audience. He’s a great sideshow to any game KSU plays but he is very aware of what he is doing. Watch Frank with the refs next game. He almost NEVER has a harsh word with them. That dude is as cool as a night in January in Ames and far more in control than he appears.
Shan Shariff, on the volatile coaching style of KSU’s head guy, 610 AM
GH: Frank looks out-of-control on the court but he’s more bark than bite. His players know this far better than the audience. He’s a great sideshow to any game KSU plays but he is very aware of what he is doing. Watch Frank with the refs next game. He almost NEVER has a harsh word with them. That dude is as cool as a night in January in Ames and far more in control than he appears.
“I think Missouri has a chance to be really special.”
Mike DeCourcy, college basketball writer for The Sporting News, when asked to pick his surprise basketball team in the Big 12 this season, Rock Chalk Sports Talk
GH: It is early but Mizzou looks unbeatable at home. If they can convince the Tiger fans that it’s okay to come inside Mizzou Arena during the winter, the Zou might be a deadly place for Cats, Hawks, Buffaloes and Bears.
Mike DeCourcy, college basketball writer for The Sporting News, when asked to pick his surprise basketball team in the Big 12 this season, Rock Chalk Sports Talk
GH: It is early but Mizzou looks unbeatable at home. If they can convince the Tiger fans that it’s okay to come inside Mizzou Arena during the winter, the Zou might be a deadly place for Cats, Hawks, Buffaloes and Bears.
“I don’t think Brady (Morningstar) is ever going to be a ‘green-light’ kinda guy.”
Bill Self, on whether the KU senior guard has the green light to shoot, Hawk Talk
GH: Brady’s outside jumper is still suffering from whatever ailed it last season. His outside shot looks like more of a wish than the theme for all those homeless commercials that pop up this time of year.
Bill Self, on whether the KU senior guard has the green light to shoot, Hawk Talk
GH: Brady’s outside jumper is still suffering from whatever ailed it last season. His outside shot looks like more of a wish than the theme for all those homeless commercials that pop up this time of year.
“Tyrel (Reed), if he’s in the game, he should shoot it every time he’s open. I think he should become more aggressive.”
Bill Self, on the senior guard from Burlington, KS, Hawk Talk
GH: I lived my entire basketball life to hear a coach say these words to me that Self said about Reed. I dreamt of hearing, “Hall, dammit! If you get the shot, I want your ass taking it!” Instead it was more like, “Hall! If that sorry sumbitch scores on your sorry ass one more time I am yanking you and burying you so far down the bench you’ll have to learn Chinese!”
Bill Self, on the senior guard from Burlington, KS, Hawk Talk
GH: I lived my entire basketball life to hear a coach say these words to me that Self said about Reed. I dreamt of hearing, “Hall, dammit! If you get the shot, I want your ass taking it!” Instead it was more like, “Hall! If that sorry sumbitch scores on your sorry ass one more time I am yanking you and burying you so far down the bench you’ll have to learn Chinese!”
“I’ll tell you right now, Kansas is deeper in the frontcourt than Duke is. I think that’s one of the reasons some people fell asleep on Kansas. I think people have forgotten who Jeff Withey is!”
Chris Dortch, on the 7-foot KU sophomore center who transferred in from Arizona, 810 AM
GH: Forgottten? Who the hell knew, knows or cares? If Withey turns into a major player for KU this season, they can go ahead and ship that big glass trophy to Lawrence tomorrow.
Chris Dortch, on the 7-foot KU sophomore center who transferred in from Arizona, 810 AM
GH: Forgottten? Who the hell knew, knows or cares? If Withey turns into a major player for KU this season, they can go ahead and ship that big glass trophy to Lawrence tomorrow.
“Wichita State. I think they’ve got a great combination of size and experience…and they’ve been through the wars.”
Chris Dortch, when asked by Petro to name this year’s Butler, 810 AM
GH: The Mo Valley is a fun little conference to follow. Being a Creighton fan, I have spent many years enjoying the likes of Bob Gibson to Larry Bird to Ali Farokhmanesh. How great would it be if UMKC could one day muster enough talent and respect to join this hoops heavy league?
Chris Dortch, when asked by Petro to name this year’s Butler, 810 AM
GH: The Mo Valley is a fun little conference to follow. Being a Creighton fan, I have spent many years enjoying the likes of Bob Gibson to Larry Bird to Ali Farokhmanesh. How great would it be if UMKC could one day muster enough talent and respect to join this hoops heavy league?
“Yeah, the one time we beat K-State he’s not here.”
Gary Pinkel, after his interview with Danny Clinkscale who was subbing for an absent Kevin Kietzman, 810 AM
Gary Pinkel, after his interview with Danny Clinkscale who was subbing for an absent Kevin Kietzman, 810 AM
GregHall24@yahoo.com and Twitter / greghall24
Nice Gary, Nice
Ha, love the comment from Pinkel. I love that everybody knows what an a** Kietzman is, while realizing they have to patronize him.
Quote
I think the qoute about Pullen was that he is the best GUARDED shooter in the NCAA. Meaning he is the best shooter with a hand in his face. Still a stretch if you ask me. I was surprised to hear the quote.
Mitchell
Mitchell at one point was committed to KSU. KSU backed off. There is some shady dealings in the past with Mitchell and his mom. Greg, no comment on Pellini throwing the ball up 17 with under a minute left against KU? Bukaty had quite a bit to say about it on Monday.
K-State’s Chip
Entertaining post Greg. Liked the bench/Chinese line.
I don’t think many K-Staters like their Cats being THE favorite in the Big 12. Make’s them nervous. Frank Martin loves hanging 10 on a gigantic get-no-respect, chip-on-shoulder wave. That will be very hard to sell this year…especially if they win the CBE Classic. Clemente’s fearlessness and attitude that rubbed off onto his teammates will be greatly missed, similar to how KU will miss Sherron. We won’t know much about any of our local teams until we see them get into tight jams late in games. CAN’T WAIT to see it all unfold.
Interesting read …
After a week thus far dominated by snubbed handshakes, Wizards and boxing, it was nice to have something interesting to read. Thanks.
This could well be the best college basketball season ever for local fans. Hard to believe all three are this good. I’m really looking forward to the Tigers match with G-town the week after next at Sprint.
Pelini is a very large vessel of douchebaggery.
As(s)inine proclamation of the day
[ drumroll ] In the greatest upset in sports history, the Nebraska Cornhuskers will win the Big 8 basketball Championship 2010-11 season; accomplishment will be mitigated however by the fact it is a 12 team conference [ rimshot / cymbal crash! ] ___________ NU winning both the football AND basketaball Championships afore taking their trophies & balls home forever? _________ On a ‘more’ serious note, the perpetual little brother of the league is all grown up now – just in time this year’s backboard battles: Andre Almeida, a 6’11 330 C, Christopher Neimann 6’11 275 in reserve. Names like Diaz at 6’11 245 and Ubel 6’10 240 also dot the roster. Another 6’10, 6’9 & an 6’8 lout thrown in for good measure. The smallest guy on the roster 5’11 170 (he would have been the starting C during the days Slippery Joe Cipriano.) Be afraid KSU / rest the 11, be VERY AFRAID!_________ We now return you to regular programming.
KSU "backed off" my ass!
KSU’s coaches pressured Mitchell into committing on his visit to KSU without his mother’s consent. KSU was his first visit at the time. She got pissed off, insisted he back out of that commitment and take a look at other schools and visit them. It was Mitchell’s mother who didn’t like Martin’s methods and said that KSU would be "sitting at the back of the bus" when it came to Tony’s recruitment from that point forward. KSU backed off….HAHAHA! Fact of the matter is, they got kicked to the curb by Mitchell’s mother and Frank Martin didn’t feel it was worth the effort to fight her over a kid that had alot of work to do in the classroom. Nick Wright is just a total handjob, and has NO clue what went on with Mitchell’s recruitment. Not only did KSU recruit him, they recruited him HARD. TOO hard, as it turns out.
Chris Dortch
GH, you gotta mention that Petro did that Dortch interview on Tuesday, though it was recorded on Monday, and Petro spent considerable effort trying to convince his audience that the interview was live. DOrtch at one time referred to the 24-hours of Madness on ESPN as starting "at midnight tonight" when it started the previous evening. He also referred to knowing something about KState "when they play VaTech tomorrow." Why not just admit it was recorded? Why go to all the effort ("thanks for holding on through the break Chris, we’re live at the 810 Zone with Chris Dortch on the line") to lie to your audience?
Mitchell….
KSU offered a scholarship to Mitchell which he verbally accepted. Then backed out and signed with MU. The rumor on recruiting message boards was that his Mom wanted him to play for a black coach. His final 3 schools were MU, G’Town and North Texas???, all schools with a black coach. I obviously can’t say if that’s true or BS, but it’s rumor I’ve read in two different places.
Is KSU the third best team in country? Probably not, but they are a Top 10 team. If they can develop Judge, Asprilla or JHR to be a dependable inside scorer to pair with Kelly, they could be elite 8 or final 4. They just beat a Top 25 team by 16 at home with two all Big XII preseason guys not playing (Kelly) or limited (Pullen, 2 mins in first half, 14 for the game). They’ll lose 2-3 non-con games which is fine, I’d almost rather them be ranked 8-14 and off the radar like they were most of last year.
Yes losing Clemente will hurt, but not as much as MU losing Tiller and Taylor. Once Frank gets a rotation set they’ll be fine. A little too much PG by committee now and might cost them in some non-con games, but I think they’ll sort it out.
PS Enough gushing about Bill Self. We know, he can coach. But please, I would have at least one NCAA title with the talent he’s coached in Lawrence.
Morningstar
I thought you were gonna say he is more wish than swish. That woule have been money!
Dortch / Petro interview
GH: Pt, I didn’t get the feeling at all that Petro was trying to fool his audience and sell as his interview with Dortch as being live. As a matter of fact, it was mentioned on the show by Doug Stewart or Kurtis that Petro was speaking to the Mizzou Tiger Club at the same time and out of the studio. … I can understand him trying to fit the taped interview around the show’s live breaks. If he did mention they were "live" at the 810 Zone, I would agree that’s more window dressing than we needed.
Allen West
I love people talking about how tough Bramledge is. KU has only won about 25 of the last 26 they’ve played there. The only KSU win vs. KU in bram? 2008. KU would make that deal every year.
Nick Wrong
… Nick wasn’t given the nickname ‘Wrong"… he got it the old school way … he EARNED it.
Taylor and Tiller …
I loved them both for their leadership and gritty play. But I say this with the utmost respect toward both, they will not be missed very much. From a talent standpoint, there’s no comparison between them and those who are taking their place.
Good for a while to come
KU is working on signing a couple of foreign players, AlJackitt Forrutusee, from The Sudan, and Vippen Macockout, from Russia. I’m sure they’ll be elevated to starters before long.
What’s right about Wright?
With sundown, I lost the signal to WHB the other day during the late afternoon and reluctantly switched to 610 and Nick Wright. Brutal. The kid hasn’t a clue, and every time I listen to him it sounds as though he’s trying to clone Jim Rome (and rather unsuccessfully). I mean, how many times can he a talk-show host use the phrase "I understand that …" without a listener concluding that he doesn’t understand that at all? I reiterate: Wright needs a veteran sidemike to offset his adenoidal voice and adolescent takes, and it better be soon because the kid’s only getting worse riding solo.
Wichita State
I think the Wichita State-San Diego State game on December 3 is going to be a doozy. SDSU can play.
Wright Redux
Again tried Wright in the post-dark afternoon, thinking maybe I had caught him on a bad day. This time, Wright’s interviewing Tyler Thigpen’s agent, and pissing him off by continually referring to his client as "Thig-bone." Aw, shades of Rome circa 1980 and his calling then-Rams QB Jim Everette "Chrissy Evert." Wright disingenuously told the agent, in order to keep him on the phone, that it was a term of affection for Thigpen — IOW completely bullshit, since it is really nothing more than a talk host trying to provoke with a term of smart-assery. Intentionally mangling someone’s name is hardly clever, but lame and immature. Wright’s proving to be worth a listen only for the trainwreck value, but it takes a pretty infantile mind to find him clever or amusing. And he’s going to be the guy to take on KK? Now, that’s amusing.