With Roy Williams retiring, ranking the highs and the lows from his 15 years at KU
Here are five of the biggest victories and five of the most crushing defeats during Hall of Fame coach Roy Williams’ 15 seasons at Kansas. He announced his retirement on Thursday at the age of 70 following 33 years as a head coach, the last 18 at North Carolina.
Five of Roy’s biggest victories at KU
1.) Kansas 150, Kentucky 95, Dec. 9, 1989, Lawrence: It was a signature victory, perhaps a sign of good things to come for KU, during just the second season of the Williams era.
KU went 19-12 and had an eight-game losing streak in Big Eight play during Williams’ first season (1988-89) in Lawrence — a season in which KU was ineligible for the NCAA Tournament because of probation incurred because of violations committed in the Larry Brown era.
KU opened the 1989-90 season 8-0 heading into a home game against a young, rebuilding Kentucky team. The Jayhawks had been the surprise team of November 1989 after beating No. 2-ranked LSU, No. 1 UNLV and No. 25 St. John’s in the Preseason NIT.
Terry Brown hit seven threes and scored 31 points, while Mark Randall had 19 points and 12 boards for the Jayhawks, who erupted for the most points in a half (80) and in a game (150) in school history.
This was the game first-year Kentucky coach Rick Pitino made an obscene gesture in the direction of Williams, who had asked UK’s coach if he wanted him to call a time out in the second half to give his pressing Wildcats a breather.
2.) Kansas 83, Indiana 65, March 21, 1991, followed immediately by Kansas 93, Arkansas 81, March 23, 1991, Charlotte, North Carolina: These victories, in the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight, propelled KU into the Final Four in Williams’ third season at KU. Arkansas, coached by Nolan Richardson, was a No. 1 seed and Indiana, coached by Bob Knight, a No. 2. The Jayhawks were seeded third in that Southeast Regional.
Brown scored 23 points, Sean Tunstall 15 and Alonzo Jamison 14 against Indiana. Calbert Cheaney had 23 and Damon Bailey 20 points apiece for the Hoosiers. KU rallied from a 12-point second-half deficit to down Arkansas. KU hit 26 of 33 attempts from the free-throw line, including 17 of 20 in the last 5:20. Alonzo Jamison scored 26 points, including 16 in the second half. Adonis Jordan added 14 points and Terry Brown 11 had for Kansas, making its first trip to the Final Four since winning the title in 1988.
3.) Kansas 79, North Carolina 73, March 30, 1991, Indianapolis: Williams’ Jayhawks defeated Dean Smith’s Tar Heels in a Final Four semifinal. Smith, who was Williams’ mentor and former boss at UNC for 10 seasons, was tagged with two technical fouls and was ejected late in the game. He walked down to shake hands with Williams and congratulate the Jayhawks prior to leaving the floor. KU outrebounded North Carolina, 51-42, including 21-19 on the offensive boards. Randall had 16 points and 11 rebounds for KU. Hubert Davis scored 25 points for Carolina.
4.) Kansas 104, Oregon 86, March 24, 2002, Madison, Wisconsin: The Jayhawks survived a 32-point outing from Fred Jones to claim the Elite Eight victory, sending Williams back to the Final Four for the first time since 1993. Five KU players scored in double figures. Nick Collison led the way with 25 points, while Keith Langford had 20, Drew Gooden 18 and Kirk Hinrich 14 with five steals and nine rebounds. Jeff Boschee scored 10 points for KU, which lost to Maryland in the NCAA semis.
5.) Kansas 94, Marquette 61, April 5, 2003, New Orleans: KU fans were giddy after this rare blowout in a Final Four semifinal. Langford scored 23 points, while Hinrich and Aaron Miles scored 18 apiece. Collison had 12 points and 15 rebounds and Michael Lee 13 points. Dwyane Wade scored 19 points for Marquette. The Jayhawks went on to lose to Syracuse in the NCAA title game.
KU obviously had many other big victories during the Williams era, including including an 86-83 home win over Knight’s Indiana Hoosiers on Dec. 22, 1993. That’s the game in which Jacque Vaughn knocked down a game-winning three to beat the overtime buzzer. Another big one was an 85-70 win over UCLA on Dec. 2, 1995. KU trailed in that home game by 15 at halftime, ultimately winning by 15.
Five crushing losses in Williams era at KU
1.) Arizona 85, Kansas 82, March 21, 1997, Birmingham, Alabama: Kansas entered the Sweet 16 contest ranked No. 1 and with a 34-1 record. The Jayhawks were 10 1/2 point favorites against an Arizona squad that had nine losses in the regular season.
The Wildcats, who went on to win the NCAA title, were led by Mike Bibby and Michael Dickerson, who scored 21 and 20 points respectively. Miles Simon chipped in 17 points. KU was led by Paul Pierce, who had 27 points. Raef LaFrentz and Ryan Robertson scored 14 points and Billy Thomas 13. Some folks believe that KU team was one of the best if not the best in school history.
2.) Syracuse 81, Kansas 78, April 7, 2003, New Orleans: This loss in the national title game came in the final game of Williams’ 15-year career at KU. The Jayhawks converted 12 of 30 free throws, lending some to wonder if the Jayhawks were distracted entering the game with North Carolina determined to hire Williams as coach as soon as the Jayhawks’ season came to an end. Carmelo Anthony scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Gerry McNamara hit six threes for the Orange.
3.) Maryland 97, Kansas 88, March 30, 2002, Atlanta: Juan Dixon scored 33 points and Chris Wilcox added 18 as Maryland overcame an early 13-2 deficit to defeat the Jayhawks in the national semifinals. Collison scored 21 points, Jeff Boschee 17 and Gooden 15 for KU.
4.) UTEP 66, Kansas 60, March 22, 1992, Dayton, Ohio: KU, which had reached the national title game the year before, entered the second-round NCAA Tournament game as a No. 1 seed. KU, which was down by eight points with 3:19 left, sent Johnny Melvin to the line down two with 13 seconds to play. Melvin hit both free throws to ice the victory. The shocking loss denied KU a spot in the Sweet 16 in close-to-home Kemper Arena, The Jayhawks, one of the best shooting teams in the country, shot 42.6%. David Van Dyke blocked five shots and altered several others as point guard Adonis Jordan was held to a season-low two points. Melvin scored a game-high 18 points.
5.) Virginia 67, Kansas 58, March 24, 1995, Kansas City: KU, a No. 1-seed, fizzed offensively against No. 4-seed Virginia in the Sweet 16 in KC’s Kemper Arena KU was 2-of-21 from three and overall hit just 33.9% of its shots. Harold Deane scored 22 points, while Junior Burrough had 18 points and 12 boards and Curtis Staples 18 points for Virginia. Jacque Vaughn, who was a sophomore, had 13 points, seven assists and five rebounds to lead KU.
