Personable, outgoing, flamboyant J.R. Giddens, who has been known to do some talking on the basketball court, has been listening a lot this season, too.

“I notice every time I run downcourt, near the opponent’s bench. I’ll hear the coach yell, ‘Shooter, shooter,’ or, ‘Go help, off,'” said Giddens, the Jayhawks’ 6-foot-5 sharpshooter from Oklahoma City.

Shadowed by the opposition, Giddens has worked hard for each of his three-pointers this season. He has cashed 15 of 35 for 42.5 percent in six games; he made 74 of 182 last year for 40.7 percent.

“Teams are scouting me, so I’ve been trying to change it up, be more aggressive,” said Giddens, who escaped for a season-high four threes in eight tries in Saturday’s 96-51 rout of Louisiana-Lafayette.

“I’m starting to set up my man a little better, run the floor better, run off transition, move without the ball in practice, try to run them (opponents) into the ground.”

Giddens, who averages 11.0 points a game off 49 percent shooting, isn’t stressing about the attention he’s receiving from foes.

He just is trying to improve his overall game.

Against Louisiana-Lafayette, Giddens received an earful from KU coach Bill Self after missing a rebound opportunity.

“Coach did what any coach would do: get on me about not rebounding the ball,” Giddens said. “I’ve got to work on all parts of my game, rebounding, shooting, mid-range, everything.”

Through six games this season, Giddens has been productive in some ways but not in others. He has three offensive rebounds and 17 defensive caroms to go with six assists, seven turnovers and nine steals.

Kansas University sophomore guard J.R. Giddens is a flamboyant player, but he has adopted a newfound commitment to improving his nonshooting skills, including rebounding. Jayhawk coach Bill Self says he's confident Giddens can become a multifaceted player.

He’s gone to the free-throw line just twice, hitting one.

“He’s done several extracurricular activities to remind him to go to the glass,” Self said Monday when asked about Giddens’ boardwork on his weekly Hawk Talk radio show. “He could average between two and three offensive rebounds a game and get three or four more points a game off that.

“If you go to the glass, you’ll get fouled. He’s not shooting any free throws. When you rebound, you create fouls, contact. J.R. has gotten better in many ways, but rebounding is one thing we all have to work on, not just J.R.”

Giddens was enthused about KU’s overall offensive performance in the rout of Lafayette. KU hit 12 of 23 threes.

“Everybody shot pretty well, Keith (Langford, 8-of-11 overall), myself, Alex (Galindo, 3-of-3), Wayne (Simien, 5-of-6), Jeff Hawkins (2-of-2),” Giddens said. “My teammates were giving me the ball, and I hit some shots.

“I like when guys are hitting whether we’re playing one of the most highly ranked teams in the nation or not. You’ve still got to hit ’em.”

The Jayhawks, who are in the midst of final exams, will meet South Carolina at 7 p.m. Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse.

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Big 12 faring well: The Big 12 is the only conference with four undefeated teams thus far: KU, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M and Kansas State.

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KU coach Self isn’t surprised.

“From what I can tell, I think our league is better than last year,” Self said Tuesday on the Big 12 coaches teleconference. “Last year we had four teams (in NCAAs). I don’t see it as the case this year.

“Oklahoma is a top 25 team, maybe better; Texas a top-ten team. Oklahoma State, I believe, is as good as any team in America. These games are going to go a long way in how this conference is perceived.

“Our league last year had some bad nonconference losses, and we contributed to that losing to Richmond and Nevada, though as it played out they had outstanding teams.”

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TCU player out for year: TCU junior Chudi Chinweze, who suffered a left knee injury in Thursday’s loss at KU, is out for the season. The school did not disclose the type of knee injury.

“It’s unfortunate for Chudi, first because he was playing really well this season,” coach Neil Dougherty, a former KU assistant coach, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “It’s certainly not good for us. We’re not expecting one player to fill his role, and we’ll still use a bunch of different guys inside.”

Chinweze averaged 11.1 points and 6.9 boards a game. He cannot receive a medical red-shirt season because he has played in more than 20 percent of the team’s games this season.