Kansas F/C -- Jeff Withey

[Deadlift]

In an Exhibition game against Pittsburgh State -- Withey had 18 points, 12 rebounds and 10 blocks. If he can stay healthy (which has been a problem for him), I have no doubt he can be good in the Big 12.

Now is his opportunity, as he wasn't going to get much reps when the supaman "Morris twins" were there. Fingers crossed..

 

[Deadlift]

Last night:

13 points
13 rebounds
9 blocks

The refs sometimes treat him badly, but he's getting better as the season goes along. He did look good against Duke in Maui, and that game/stage helped him a lot IMO.

 

[Deadlift]

Against Iowa State:

13 points
11 rebounds
7 blocks

 

[Deadlift]

In the dominating win over Baylor last night:

10 points
10 rebounds
3 steals
3 blocks

 

[icsept]

That's a lot of blocks. You can't teach that. It's timing and anticipation in addtion to being a 7 footer with wing-span and leaping ability.

 

[Deadlift]

8 blocks for Withey tonight against A&M!

 

[Deadlift]

RIGHT ON!

"Sneaky athlete" -- Mr. Withey -- showed himself very well against Bay-lore tonight! The one "announcer" kept hating on him.. and what happens? Withey scores a career-high 25 points and blocks 3 shots!

This is a great great feeling.. :high5:

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

"Sneaky athlete" -- Mr. Withey -- showed himself very well against Bay-lore tonight! The one "announcer" kept hating on him.. and what happens? Withey scores a career-high 25 points and blocks 3 shots!

This is a great great feeling.. :high5:

the best part of this performance, in my mind anyway, was how Withey did it. he was near-perfect when looking to score: he was 8-10 from the floor and 9-11 from the free throw line. that's a BIG improvement from his lackadaisical performance against Missouri, when he went scoreless in 23 minutes, only attempted 1 shot, and collected a mere 4 rebounds. hopefully this is a springboard to better things for the talented-but-raw big man.

the only negative from his showing was his 6 turnovers. he needs to work on that.

 

[Deadlift]

Against Oklahoma State:

18 points
20 rebounds (career-high)
7 blocks


Before this season started.. when many people didn't know who he was, I believed in him! It's very good that he hits free-throws and plays defense. He has things he offers to a Kansas team that isn't "stacked."

 

[Deadlift]

Against Kansas State:

18 points
11 rebounds
9 blocks


He literally SAVED the Jayhawks' last night! Tyshawn Taylor is hardly the "best PG in college basketball.."

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

Withey was named the Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for his performances against Ok-State and K-State. well done, sir!

the cream rises to the top ...

 

[Deadlift]

Caste-buster -- Jeff Withey -- is getting more and more attention! An earlier video, but a good one:


[video=youtube;IhPCS0mcfaM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhPCS0mcfaM[/video]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dbd1mP8yYQw

I wish it was more extensive, but it works for now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqhwtk3Osws

The fact that Kansas missed the Final Four last year with the "Morris Twins," but are in it this year.. can't be taken away.

 

[Deadlift]

I can only try to put Withey's season in perspective.. what he did, in his first year of getting significant minutes, is mind-boggling. Here's an article after Withey's 10 block game against NC State in the Tourny. He also set a Kansas record..


http://www.kansascity.com/2012/03/23/3510201/with-the-jayhawks-in-need-withey.html

In the process, Withey also set the Jayhawks’ single-season record for blocks. He upped his block total to 126, eclipsing Cole Aldrich’s mark, set in the 2009-10 season.

On Sunday, the Jayhawks will match up with No. 1 seed North Carolina, a team that features All-American candidate Tyler Zeller and lengthy big-man John Henson in the frontcourt. Once again, Withey will see players his own size — and perhaps a little bigger.

“That’s what we wanted,†Withey said. “We wanted North Carolina.â€

That Kansas record continued to grow, and he's holding another record now for a single-season.

http://www.kuathletics.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/040312aab.html

--Junior center Jeff Withey set an NCAA tournament record with 31 blocked shots in six games after swatting four shots Monday night. Florida’s Joakim Noah had the previous tournament high after blocking 29 in 2006 (six games), a mark Kentucky’s Anthony Davis matched with six blocks Monday. Withey finished the season with a KU and Big 12 Conference single-season record 140 blocks.

Blocks have been a statistic for some time now, and the Big 12 has a storied history of great big men! Kansas, by itself, has had numerous big men that were very good. Then there's Texas, Oklahoma, Baylor.. and DeAndre Jordan from Texas A&M.

Withey's huge splash this year - while getting nearly 25 MPG - exceeded everyone's expectations, even mine!! The way he willed Kansas to the title game was remarkable. Many of his blocks weren't just blocks.. but "clutch-blocks" in key/critical moments of a game. Tourny games against NC State, UNC and Ohio State are perfect examples of this.

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Withey's a defensive powerhouse with the ability to tear it up on offense as well. I'd like to see him hone his offensive game during the offseason in preparation for a stellar senior season. This kid should be a top 10 pick.