By Wendell Barnhouse | wendell@big12sports.com Big12Sports.com Correspondent
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Familiarity, they say, breeds contempt. That word is a bit strong when discussing the first-round match ups Wednesday in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men's Championship.
But for at least three of the games at the Sprint Center in Round One, there's a definite feeling of "You again?"
The 14th edition of the Championship will start off with No. 8 seed Colorado facing No. 9 seed Texas Tech at 11:30 a.m. That will be followed by No. 5 Missouri playing No. 12 Nebraska at 2 p.m. The evening session tips off with No. 7 Oklahoma State against No. 10 Oklahoma at 6 p.m. followed by No. 6 Texas and No. 11 Iowa State.
Here's why there's a familiar feeling with three of these games.
Colorado vs. Texas Tech The winner of this game enhances its chances for an NIT berth. The Buffs are 15-15 overall and their 6-10 league record was good for eighth place. NIT teams must be .500 or better so CU faces a must-win situation.
Last Saturday in Boulder, Colorado shot 58.8 percent and rolled to a 101-90 victory over Texas Tech. The Red Raiders come into the championship on a seven-game losing streak but have history on their side.
This will be the fifth time that teams who met in the regular-season finale meet in an opening-round game. The previous four times, the loser of the regular-season game turned the tables and won in the Championship. It happened last year when Nebraska defeated Baylor to end the season but the Bears turned around and beat the Cornhuskers on Day One.
"It reminds me of the NBA playoffs," said CU coach Jeff Bzdelik, who coached the Denver Nuggets for two-plus seasons, said of playing the same foe in such a short time span. "You make adjustments, and sometimes you make adjustments for the better, and sometimes you're sitting there and thinking, 'Boy, am I an idiot.'"
Texas Tech (16-14, 4-12) is searching for an edge.
"The one thing about losing is that I think it`s easier to prepare if you have to play someone again because you are ticked off," Texas Tech coach Pat Knight said. "You did something to lose, so now you can try to correct that."
Both teams will try to correct defensive flaws. Saturday's game turned into a back-and-forth, we-score, you-score affair. Shoot outs are a rarity in the Championship. Only once has a team topped 100 points and the 90-point barrier has been broken just seven other times (once in double overtime).
"We have to stop somebody," said Colorado's Cory Higgins, who scored 30 against the Red Raiders Saturday. "We gave up 90 points. They were getting too many easy buckets, and it`s the same old thing: rebounds. We can`t let them score 90 points again and expect we are going to score 100 because that doesn`t happen."
Missouri vs. Nebraska There have been 142 Big 12 Championship games in the previous 13 years and 61 have involved teams meeting for the third time in the same season. Because of how the Big 12 schedule is set up, that only happens between teams from the same division. A three-game sweep has been achieved 30 times.
That's the challenge the fifth-seeded Tigers face. They have defeated the Cornhuskers twice by scores of 70-53 and 74-59.
There's a theory that one of the most-difficult missions to accomplish is beating the same team three times in the same season. Missouri coach Mike Anderson isn't much on theory.
"It's just tough to beat any team in this league," he said. "It's a new season for us and a new season for Nebraska. We're in the 'survive and advance' mode. Everybody knows everything about everybody. That's what makes it interesting. . You'll see some teams go down. You'd better bring it."
Nebraska finished 2-14 in Big 12 play. That's the most conference losses in school history. Huskers coach Doc Sadler admits his team is lacking confidence.
"We're a vulnerable basketball team right now," Sadler said after Saturday's loss at Oklahoma State. "When things don't go well and the other team makes a little bit of a run early, we probably lose a little confidence or hope or whatever the word is you want to use.
"We're 2-14. They're frustrated. They don't have a lot of confidence."
Missouri won the Big 12 Championship last year. A repeat will require winning four games in four days - a feat that has never been pulled off at this event.
Oklahoma State vs. Oklahoma Welcome to Bedlam, Kansas City edition.
When the Cowboys and the Sooners hook up in any sport it's called Bedlam because of the fervor it stirs up in the state. And it doesn't matter if the competition doesn't take place in Stillwater or Norman. Bedlam is Bedlam.
When No. 7 Oklahoma State meets No. 10 Oklahoma hook up Wednesday, it will be a game matching two teams headed in opposite directions. The Cowboys are 21-9, 9-7 and more than likely have locked up an NCAA Tournament bid.
The Sooners are 13-17 (4-12 in conference) and have lost eight consecutive games. Barring some sort of post-season miracle, OU is headed for its first losing season since 1980-81.
But ... Bedlam is Bedlam. "I've got a lot of respect for OU and a lot of respect for (coach) Jeff Capel," Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford said. "You can throw everything out the door when these two teams play. It's going to be battle, that's for sure. ... I'm sure the (Bedlam) fans are enjoying it right now."
Last year, Oklahoma State stunned second-seeded Oklahoma in the quarterfinals. That victory helped the Cowboys earn an at-large spot in the 2009 NCAA Tournament.
This season has been a train wreck for the Sooners. Pre-season All-Big 12 first-team selection Willie Warren missed the second half of conference play with an ankle injury. His absence plus a lack of chemistry has led to sporadic and inconsistent performances.
"You never sign a team," Capel said. "You sign individuals, and you hope they can become a team. That's something that we've struggled with all year."
Texas vs. Iowa State This game isn't much about familiarity. The Longhorns and the Cyclones met in Ames on Jan. 13. That Texas team is hardly recognizable now. After reaching the No. 1 ranking, in mid-January, UT is 6-8.
Coach Rick Barnes doesn't think his team is lacking confidence as it hopes for a reversal of fortune in the post-season.
"I don't think at any point we've lacked confidence," he said. "Where we're getting beat, it's not a lack of confidence. We get beat Saturday (at Baylor, 92-77) because we didn't defend. Our three freshmen were on the floor a lot and they had trouble on the defensive end. The biggest thing has been inconsistency. And then we're not as resilient as we need to be."
After winning its first 17 games to start the season, Texas has won consecutive games just once over its last 14 contests.
Iowa State has gone over two months without consecutive victories. But after stunning Kansas State in overtime Saturday in Manhattan, the Cyclones are in position to win back-to-back games.
"We've played some pretty good basketball of late," coach Greg McDermott said. "We're two and four in our last six but those four losses were all by five points or less. I give credit to my team. They've stuck with this through difficult times and a lot of adversity."
