Big 12 Tourney: MU IN; KU & NU OUT; Mike Anderson OUT

8th-seed Missouri begins the Big 12 Tournament by playing #1 Texas on Wednesday at 12:30 PM.

NOTE: Tournament game times are always subject to change. The MU-UT game is the 2nd game that day, following OSU-BU at 9 AM. If Game #1 goes long, MU's game will be delayed. But, I'm sure the Tigers would rather be delayed from 12:30 than have to play at 9 in the morning!

Detailed tournament schedule below.

■ Anderson fired (Husker Extra)

No more wondering if change is coming to the Husker baseball program. Tom Osborne supplied the answer to that Sunday afternoon, firing Mike Anderson and the staff.

Anderson had been a coach in the Husker program for the past 17 years, including the past nine as the head coach.

“I appreciate the efforts of Mike Anderson and his coaching staff, but I have made the decision to change the direction of our baseball program,” Osborne said in a statement.

■ Bitter end: K-State sweeps KU to end Jayhawks' year (KUSport.com)

Kansas University’s baseball team needed two victories Sunday to keep its season alive and got none.

Sunday at Hoglund Ballpark, KU fell, 13-9 in the completion of Saturday’s weather-delayed game, and, 10-6, in the nightcap that meant nothing in terms of conference standings but everything in the hearts and minds of the KU players.
. . .
Sunday night, as the Jayhawks left the field for the final time, some were saddled with the tough task of balancing the joys of graduation with the heartbreak of the end of the season, and others were left to reflect on what went wrong. A little more than a month ago, qualifying for the postseason was not much of a question for KU.

“We were 9-9, in fourth place, and I think we were the story of the Big 12 Conference at that time,” Price said. “That team had overachieved as much as any team I’ve ever coached. If you would’ve told me after we were 9-9 that we wouldn’t make the Big 12 tournament, I wouldn’t have believed you.

■ Double-elimination bracket is back at Big 12 Baseball Tournament (NewsOK.com)

The pool play format of the past five years has been abandoned, ditched after complaints of games rendered meaningless by a tiebreaker system that went to the higher-seeded teams. In some instances, clubs were eliminated from title contention after playing but one game.

Not now.
. . .
Unlike the NCAA Regional and CWS, the must-win mentality doesn't exist for all. Clubs with a secure place in the postseason often aren't interested in grinding through the loser's bracket, tearing through pitching along the way.

“I guarantee it, we are not going to sacrifice regional play for the Big 12 Conference championship,” said Texas coach Augie Garrido. “If we win it, we win it.
“Our mission at the University of Texas is to win in Omaha. We're not giving the tournament away, either. I mean no disrespect. But let's get our priorities straight.”
. . .
“The teams that need to win at the tournament are the teams that otherwise aren't going to get in,” Garrido said. “That's what the tournament's set up for. That's why the tournament's important to the coaches; it gives us a chance to get another team in that otherwise wouldn't.”

■ 2011 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship Schedule

Wednesday, May 25
Game 1 No. 4 Oklahoma State vs. No. 5 Baylor [Big12Sports.com] 9:00 a.m.
Game 2 No. 1 Texas vs. No. 8 Missouri [Big12Sports.com] 12:30 p.m.
Game 3 No. 2 Texas A&M vs. No. 7 Texas Tech [Big12Sports.com] 4:00 p.m.
Game 4 No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 6 Kansas State [Big12Sports.com] 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, May 26
Game 5 Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser [Big12Sports.com] 9:00 a.m.
Game 6 Game 3 Loser vs. Game 4 Loser [Big12Sports.com] 12:30 p.m.
Game 7 Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner [Big12Sports.com] 4:00 p.m.
Game 8 Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Winner [Big12Sports.com] 7:30 p.m.

Friday, May 27
Game 9 Game 7 Loser vs. Game 5 Winner [Big12Sports.com] 3:15 p.m.
Game 10 Game 8 Loser vs. Game 6 Winner [Big12Sports.com] 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 28
Game 11 Game 7 Winner vs. Game 9 Winner [Big12Sports.com] 9:00 a.m.
Game 12 Game 8 Winner vs. Game 10 Winner [Big12Sports.com] 12:30 p.m.
Game 13* If necessary Game 7 Winner vs. Game 11 Winner [Big12Sports.com] 4:00 p.m.
Game 14** If necessary Game 8 Winner vs. Game 12 Winner [Big12Sports.com] 7:30 p.m.***

Sunday, May 29
Game 15 Championship Game [FSN] 1:00 p.m.

*Game 13 will be necessary if the winner of Game 9 also wins Game 11
**Game 14 will be necessary if the winner of Game 10 also wins Game 12
***If Game 13 is unnecessary, Game 14 will be played at 4 p.m rather than at 7:30 p.m.