Vitale impressed
ESPN's Dick Vitale, who watched KU's shootaround Tuesday afternoon, sensed the Jayhawks would be ready.
"I could tell they were going to play well. They were so focused," said Vitale, who knew the Jayhawks wanted to bounce back from a narrow seven-point season opening win over Vermont.
"People don't realize Vermont has a good team. They lost to UCLA last year by a point in their first or second game. They were able to win that game and move on," Vitale said.
Vitale spoke to the Jayhawks before Tuesday's game.
"I told them to never take for granted playing at a place like Kansas. I used Danny Manning as an example. What a great player and ambassador for college basketball. This is one of the great places for college basketball. I was really impressed with those kids. They were really attentive, they thanked me. Those are good kids.
"I like the seniors, of course. (Wayne) Simien played great. I think the freshmen are all going to help."
¢This, that
Freshman Alex Galindo scored four points. ... Simien had 11 rebounds in the first half for the second straight game. ... Jeff Hawkins was the only player to dress and not play. Self said it was a coach's decision, and the player was not injured or being red-shirted, and he could play in upcoming games. ... Michael Lee's four steals marked a career high. ... Dwayne Jones' 10 first-half rebounds were most by a KU foe since John Turek pulled down 10 in the second half for Nebraska in February of 2002.
¢Phelps to blame
Could Digger Phelps be the reason KU's basketball team dropped from 1 to 2 in the Associated Press poll and the ESPN/USA Today poll this week?
After the Washburn game and before KU's regular-season opener versus Vermont, Phelps, an analyst for ESPN, called the Jayhawks the most overrated team in the country.
Voila ... KU dropped to 2 this week.
"What's Digger Phelps do, is he an analyst? OK, then that's his job. He makes statements. I'm not worried about Digger Phelps," senior Aaron Miles said. "Digger Phelps is not going to help this team win the national championship, or stop us from winning the national championship."
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