Crystal and Christian Collapse

Between the consecutive Kansas men’s basketball team losses to Kansas State on Saturday and Missouri on Monday, I witnessed Kansas’ women’s team lose to Texas A&M in on Sunday in Lawrence.

And just as Christian Moody failed to win Monday night’s game at the free throw line, Crystal Kemp missed two free throws at a pivotal moment late in her game Sunday. Unlike Moody, Kemp was the best player on the court. She’s a big gal with a legitimate shot at playing professionally.

The Lady Jayhawks are a fascinating assortment of players. In addition to Kemp, there’s sharp-shooting Oklahoman Kaylee Brown, Slavic freshmen Marija Zinic and Ivana Catic and underrated Taylor McIntosh from Wichita. Even when they lose, they’re fun to watch.

Instead of bemoaning the women’s poor ball handling skills or Moody’s inability to knock down a free throw, I’ll assign blame to Kansas’ drought on the brand new scoreboard at Allen Fieldhouse. Like all such modern additions, it shows replays, pans the spectators during timeouts and of course, blares advertising. It distracts fans and players alike, and consequently diminishes the essence of the game.