Big 12 Tournament Primer

            This weekend is a true contradiction for me.  As an institution: I loath the conference tournament.  The weekend discredits all of the hard-fought victories of the conference season, which, as a throwback guy, I put so much emphasis upon.  As a KU fan, the wins at The Octagon of Doom, Hilton, and Gallagher-Iba Arena were as difficult and as meaningful victories as you’re going come by.  In any sport.  So, to make them relatively meaningless is a philosophical chasm for me.  Plus, Jayhawk fans have had to deal with the catcalls of the loss to Topeka YMCA, and the cries about the missed foul call on Elijah.  I don’t want all of that caterwauling to have been for naught.  And the 9 Straight.  That’s an important thing to Jayhawk fans.  Like, gutturally important.

            So, now I’ll offer you this:  I love the Big 12 Tournament.  Like, it’s my favorite sporting event of the year.  The culmination of those aforementioned games is metastasized at The Sprint Center.  All in one weekend.  We will potentially have a Friday evening primetime double feature that will include KU/ISU3 and KState/OkState3.  How could you possibly want more than that?  With TCU and WVU out of the field, we have a Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of traditional Big 12 opponents who really, really dislike one another.  And, by the way, have had some of the most closely contested conference games in all of college basketball for 2012-13.  I’m all geeked up over it.

            The Big 12 Tournament does offer us a picture of what to expect over the next month, though.  NCAA Tournament is really a collection of 3 consecutive 2-game tournaments.  The rounds of 64 and 32 will very much resemble Thursday’s contest; half-empty arena, heavy with KU fans, against a team with very little chance of scratching The Hawks.  The Sweet 16 and Elite 8 will very closely resemble Friday’s atmosphere; impassioned fans and lots of TV timeouts.  So if we’re trying to measure what’s in store for this version of Self’s Jayhawks, there’s no better measuring stick than this weekend.

            But let’s be real.  All we really care about is this:  who can beat Kansas?  It is, as usual for the Big 12 Tournament, Kansas versus The Field.  And, based upon trends, Kansas is a safer bet than The Field.  But maybe not this year.  Every sports writer in America seems to be jumping on Marcus Smart and Oklahoma State.  We’ll see…

            We start on Thursday with Texas Tech, so that’s where I’ll start:

            How the Red Raiders beat KU: They don’t.  I mean, if KU comes out like they did on Senior Night, a game which ended 79-42, this is going to be Tyler’s first Big 12 Tournament action.  Even in that game, the Red Raiders held KU to 13-10 for 10 minutes.  But 4 Jayhawks went for double-digits, Elijah had 12 assists, and KU out-rebounded Tech by 22.  At one point KU led by forty.  So, if that iteration of the 2012-13 Hawks appears, the limited number of Tech fans (and the vast number of KU haters) will have a very, very short day. 

            However, if they can simulate the game in Lubbock, it won’t be as ugly.  There the Red Raiders held KU scoreless for over 11 minutes in the first half, and only allowed 27 total first half KU points.  Unfortunately for them, Tech only scored 25 points of their own, and Jaye Crockett only accounted for 3 points, for the night.  In order for this team to test Kansas, they have to work the perimeter, create transition baskets and limit second chance opportunities.  Coordinately, they have to not allow Kansas to control the paint or the tempo.  Either of those scenarios will be fatal for Tech.  And, with the team that they field, they aren’t up to that task.  Sorry. 

            Prediction:  Chants of “We want Tyler”, and a much extended version of The Rock Chalk Chant around 4pm CDT.

            Where to watch:  I would say, ideally, in The Sprint Center.  It is a very nice arena.  But, I’m not a huge live sporting event guy.  It will be $15 for a CAN of mass-produced beer.  The wifi is sketchy, and there will be a ton of empty seats for the early Thursday session.  It will not be the best environment.

            The next best bet is Power & Light across the street.  The Alumni Association watch party and pep rallies will be at Z-Strike, formerly Lucky Strike.  I went last year, and the seating is really limited.  A bunch of JoCo codgers from the 70’s drinking Chardonnay.  Meh.  But, the pep rallies are fun, and there is a nice KU Bookstore remote kiosk set up for buying gear.  Just down the street is Johnny’s, which is a favorite for Lawrence transplants.  Great place to watch a game, and great KU crowd.  Plus, the pizza is damned good.  But, it’ll be full, early.  So good luck.  Another great option is The Cashew, down past The Crossroads at 19^th and Grand.  Good KU crowd, good environment, and good drinks.  But, for me, the Power & Light experience begins, and ends, at The Flying Saucer.  Get there early enough and you can sit on the couch.  The food is good, they have hundreds of beers on tap, and the Beer Knerd staff is dressed as Catholic schoolgirls.  ‘Nuff said.  Plus, on Friday, when it is 70 degrees, they’ll roll up the garage doors.  Do it.

            Of course, many of us won’t want to leave Johnson County.  If that’s the case, I’d recommend the Johnny’s in Olathe.  For all of the reasons that I recommended it at P&L, plus it’s neither in the congestion of P&L nor in North Lawrence.  Really a great place.  Or you could just do what I’ll do: a Casey’s pizza, a 6 of Shiner, Centurylink wifi and DirecTV HD on a Samsung HDTV.  The beer is cheaper, the picture is perfect, and the company is great!!!  Rock Chalk, Jayhawks.