Posted by Adam Rittenberg
MINNEAPOLIS -- Can Kansas advance in the NCAA tournament if
Sherron Collins has an off game?
"I can have an OK night," Collins said, smiling. "Not an off night."
Kansas probably wouldn't be here anymore if Collins hadn't shown up from the opening tip Friday against hard-charging North Dakota State. The Jayhawks junior facilitated the flow for all 38 minutes he was on the court, scoring 32 points to go along with eight assists and four rebounds.
Collins hasn't had many off nights this season, scoring 10 or more points in all but two games and distributing four or more assists in all but eight contests. But he has shot below 40 percent in six of Kansas' six losses and recorded three of his four worst shooting performances in losses, including a 3-for-19 stinker March 4 against Texas Tech.
"It's a lot tougher for us," KU assistant Kurtis Townsend said. "In the seven games we've lost, it's been because he hasn't shot the ball well."
No player shapes Kansas' fate more than Collins, and many regard the youthful Jayhawks as essentially a two-man team, with Collins and blossoming sophomore center Cole Aldrich.
Aldrich on Sunday called Collins "the pulse of our team."
"We've seen over the course of the year, when Sherron and I don't quite play as good as we're capable of playing, we struggle as a team," Aldrich said.
Kansas coach Bill Self admits the "percentage play" calls for Collins and Aldrich to perform as expected, but he doesn't place the entire burden on their backs.
"What if [Collins] is off? Am I telling the team it's over?" Self said. "That's not it at all. I'm not buying into that theory. Our supporting cast around Sherron and Cole has gotten better."
Dayton still will gear its defense toward stopping No. 4, and hopes to counter Kansas' speed with a man nicknamed "The Jacksonville Jet." Jacksonville native London Warren has faced some of the game's better point guards -- Marquette's Dominic James, Pittsburgh's Levance Fields -- and understands the challenge that lies ahead of him.
"Sherron, he's one of the best point guards in the country," Warren said. "Honestly, I don't know what the key is to get him to have an off game. I've just got to keep my chest in front and try to harass him as best as I can."
Dayton is the type of defense-oriented team that can thwart Kansas' high-octane offense. Warren and defensive specialist Marcus Johnson should give Collins all he can handle, and the Flyers are, fittingly, strongest at the wing spots with Chris Wright and Charles Little.
Coach Brian Gregory also draws insight from a man whose team handed Kansas one of its worst losses of the season Jan. 10.
Gregory spoke to Michigan State coach Tom Izzo "probably three times" after their teams prevailed in first-round matchups at the Metrodome. Their final conversation took place around 3 a.m., as Izzo and former Michigan State coach Jud Heathcote were breaking down film at the team hotel.
Gregory doesn't need to be reminded about the importance of slowing Kansas' transition game.
"We're going to have to try to get them where we can play some half-court defense," he said. "Usually at this time of year, that's what it comes down to -- execution in the half court."
No. 2 Michigan State (27-6) vs. No. 10 USC (22-12)
Michigan State is still trying to reach the lofty ceiling pundits placed on it before the season. USC appears to be reaching its ceiling at the perfect time.
USC is healthy again and starting to build depth at key positions. Michigan State is one of the deepest teams in the tournament.
Will the hotter team or the deeper team prevail? We'll find out Sunday.
"Their confidence is extremely high right now," Spartans forward Raymar Morgan said. "They're rolling. If we won six in a row, I think we would become the same way. It's all about confidence."
The Trojans are undoubtedly a confident team, having not lost since Feb. 28. Freshman forward DeMar DeRozan has sizzled during the win streak, averaging 19.3 points and 7.2 rebounds, and forward Taj Gibson is boosting the team both on and off the court.
Despite USC's three-week renaissance, point guard Daniel Hackett feels a kinship with Michigan State.
"We can say the same thing: we haven't played to our highest potential," Hackett said. "But we're doing things to win games, and that's crucial in March."
How much they have left could loom large against Michigan State.
Three Trojans starters -- Hackett, DeRozan and guard Dwight Lewis -- played all 40 minutes Friday against Boston College, and Gibson played 36 minutes despite foul trouble. Those four all entered the tournament averaging more than 33 minutes a game.
Michigan State, conversely, had no player log more than 25 minutes against Robert Morris. Nine Spartans played 15 or more minutes, and only one, point guard Kalin Lucas, averaged more than 30 during the regular season.
"You would prefer to go as deep as they go," USC coach Tim Floyd said. "That's just not who we've been, and we probably don't have the same depth that they have. We do recognize that you can't go play these guys, all three of them, 40 minutes like we did [Friday] night."
That means USC will lean more on reserves Leonard Washington, Marcus Johnson and Nikola Vucevic, especially against the Spartans' well-stocked frontcourt. If Michigan State can get Gibson in foul trouble, it should open up inside scoring opportunities for Morgan, Goran Suton, Delvon Roe and Draymond Green, who comes off a career-high 16-point effort Friday.
"They have been playing their best basketball the last four, five, six games, and I'm not sure we're there yet, to be very honest," Izzo said. "But it's exciting to think that maybe we could get there."
