Kansas plans hoops party

Kansas University’s athletic department will hold a 110 Years of Jayhawk Men’s Basketball Celebration on Feb. 16 at Allen Fieldhouse.

Letters have been mailed to former players and coaches inviting all to the KU-Colorado game, which is set for a 12:30 p.m. tipoff.

KU’s NBA players will be able to attend : at least those not in the All-Star game. The anniversary coincides with NBA All-Star weekend in New Orleans.

“We are pleased to be able to celebrate not only our 110th year of KU basketball, but 20th anniversary of the 1988 national championship,” KU associate athletic director Jim Marchiony said Monday.

Indeed, special emphasis will be placed on honoring Larry Brown’s ’88 NCAA champs.

“We’re excited about the prospect of having a lot of former players come back. This has been done every five years in the past. It’s always been a great weekend.”

Additional details will be released as the event draws near.

¢ Campus visit revisited: Mario Little, a 6-foot-5 small forward from Chipola (Fla.) Junior College who orally committed to KU on Saturday night and made his decision public Sunday, said one of the highlights of his campus visit was a pick-up game with KU’s players.

Asked to name KU’s most impressive player, he said: “I don’t know. They’re all good. Russell (Robinson) was blowing past me. I’ve got some work to do on defense. Four years of playing at Kansas has helped him a lot. He’s really good.”

Here’s a closer look at Little’s first season at Chipola: The former Chicago Washington player averaged 8.9 points, fifth-best mark on the team. He also hit 56.7 percent of his floor shots (127 of 224) and 74.6 percent of his free throws (50 of 76). He made eight of 26 three-pointers for 30.8 percent. Little, who was first man off the bench on the national runner-up, also averaged 5.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and had 22 steals in 35 contests.

¢ Fan from afar: KU will have a fan this year in Little, who will be watching as many games as possible at Chipola JC, which is located in Marianna, Fla.

“They have a fair chance,” Little said, asked if KU could win the national title. “We have Brandon (Rush). He could have gone (pro) last year. Sherron (Collins), Mario (Chalmers), Darrell (Arthur) : obviously, they will be very good. I think they can make it. I will root for them.”

¢ First peek at Late Night: KU coaches Bill Self and Bonnie Henrickson will have recruits in the stands, so they hope Allen Fieldhouse will be filled to capacity for Friday’s Late Night in the Phog, which actually will take place during prime time again this year.

Doors open at 6 p.m., with festivities to start at 6:45. Admission is free.

Out-of-staters this year will be able to get in on the fun. Live streaming video of Late Night will be available at www.kuathletics.com. Jayhawk AT&T All-Access will allow fans to watch the entertainment portion of the evening, as well as scrimmages by the men’s and women’s teams.

Twins Marcus and Markieff Morris, 6-7, 215 pounds, and 6-8, 226-pound forwards from Pennsauken (N.J) APEX Academies, confirmed to Rivals.com on Monday they will be in attendance. They are considering KU, Villanova and St. John’s.

¢ ‘Bama trip complete: J’Mison Morgan, a 6-10, 275-pound pivot from South Oak Cliff High in Dallas, visited Alabama last weekend.

“As of now, I’m still looking at everyone evenly. I want to compare everyone after I finish my visits and just figure out where the best team for me is,” Morgan told Rivals.com. “I’m looking to see which school is best for me on and off the court. I’m thinking about taking a final visit in two weekends, but I’m not sure if I need to. I’m going to talk to everyone and then make a decision.”

Morgan, who has visited KU, ‘Bama, LSU and UCLA, also has seriously considered Kentucky, Baylor and Louisville. He will pick a college on his birthday, Nov. 2.

“Everyone still has a chance,” he said.