02/08/2010 - Austin, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marcus Morris posted 18 points, eight rebounds and four assists, as No. 1 Kansas overcame a poor shooting performance by clamping down defensively on the 14th-ranked Longhorns to earn an 80-68 Big 12 victory.
The Jayhawks (23-1, 9-0) made up for their 40 percent shooting effort by converting 17 turnovers into 27 points for their ninth straight victory.
Xavier Henry added 15 points and five rebounds, while Sherron Collins had five assists and four steals to go with 15 points on 3-of-13 shooting for the victors.
Texas (19-5, 5-4), which was the top-ranked team in the country just three weeks ago, has lost five of its last seven games following a torrid 17-0 start to the season.
J'Covan Brown paced the Longhorns with a career-high 28 points, while Damion James chipped in 24 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks in defeat.
The hosts were down 61-44 before Brown scored seven straight points late in the second half. Brown's three-pointer made it a 10-point contest with 4 1/2 minutes remaining, though Markieff Morris bought Kansas a little more breathing room with a three-point play.
Cole Aldrich was whistled for a technical foul when he landed an elbow to James' head after pulling down a miss from Brown, who hit the two freebies prior to James converting a three-point play for a 64-56 contest.
Two Henry free throws and a Tyrel Reed make inside pumped the margin back to double digits, and the Jayhawks rolled to another big road win.
After hitting five of their first eight shots for a 14-8 lead six minutes into the game, the Longhorns missed 13 straight from the field over an 11-minute span.
Brady Morningstar, Markieff Morris, Tyshawn Taylor and Collins each hit from behind the arc on the subsequent 22-0 run, the latter a deep three from the left wing giving Kansas a 30-14 cushion with five minutes left in the half.
James, who ended with 15 first-half points to keep Texas in the game, banked in a three-ball to end the scoreless stretch, and Avery Bradley's late trey cut the hosts' deficit to 34-24 at halftime.
Kansas led by double digits through most a sloppy second half, forcing a lifeless Erwin Center crowd out of the game even further.
The Jayhawks scored the first five points of the stanza for a 15-point game three minutes in, and near the midway point, Collins stripped Dogus Balbay in Texas' end of the court, leading to a Marcus Morris dunk for a 50-34 margin.
Game Notes
Texas has never beaten the No. 1 team in the country, dropping all seven matchups...The Longhorns had won three straight home games against Kansas...Texas had just five points off 10 Kansas turnovers...Kansas is now 7-1 in true road games, while Texas fell to 12-2 at home.
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The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.
While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.
For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.
1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.
2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.
How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.
Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.
Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.
How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).
Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.
Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.
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