Collins Leads No. 3 Kansas To 81-75 Victory Against No. 25 Baylor
Jan. 20, 2010
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LAWRENCE, Kan. – Sherron Collins scored 21 of his 28 points in the second half to lead No. 3 Kansas to an 81-75 victory against No. 25 Baylor in men’s basketball action late Wednesday night.
After making just three of nine shots in the first half, Collins was unstoppable in the final 20 minutes. The senior connected on six of seven shots in the second half as he willed the Jayhawks to the hard-fought victory.
Marcus Morris scored 14 of his 22 points in the second half for the Jayhawks as he continued his recent scoring streak. The sophomore has scored 19, 20 and 22 points in the last three games, while shooting a combined 22 of 29 from the field.
Kansas improved to 17-1 overall and 3-0 in Big 12 Conference play, while extending the nation’s longest home court winning streak to 53 consecutive games. The win was KU’s 200th Big 12 victory, making the Jayhawks the first league team to win 200 conference games.
Baylor, which dropped to 14-3 overall and 2-2 in the Big 12, was led by LaceDarius Dunn, who finished with a team-high 27 points, nine rebounds and four steals. Tweety Carter added 17 points for the visitors.
In a game spent with no more than a four-point margin for the majority of the first 30 minutes, Kansas appeared to gain control when it went on a 12-4 run to pull ahead 60-50 with seven minutes remaining.
The Jayhawks led 65-55 with six minutes left, but Baylor went on a 10-0 run to tie the game at 65 with 3:34 on the clock.
With the score tied at 67, Collins drained a shot and Morris hit a pair of free throws to give KU a 71-67 advantage. After a Baylor basket cut it to 71-69, Collins hit a three-pointer as the Jayhawks finished the game strong.
Baylor shot 52.1 percent from the field, stopping a Kansas streak of 91 consecutive games of holding the opponent to less than 50 percent shooting. The Bears also drained 10 of 21 three-point attempts.
KU connected on 43.5 percent of its shots, including eight of 21 from three-point range. The Jayhawks committed just seven turnovers, while forcing 20 Baylor miscues.
Xavier Henry registered seven steals for the Jayhawks, two shy of the school record set by Aaron Miles vs. Iowa State in 2003 and the most by a Jayhawk since Russell Robinson had eight vs. Yale in the 2008 season.
Henry added 12 points, while Cole Aldrich was the fourth Jayhawk to reach double-figure points in the game with 10. Morris pulled down a team-high eight rebounds, while Tyshawn Taylor, who did not score in 15 minutes of play, handed out a team-best five assists
The first half was a back and forth battle as the teams were tied six times and the lead changed five times. KU held the largest lead at 9-4 as the teams remained within four points of each other the rest of the period.
Baylor scored seven straight points late in the half to turn a 24-20 deficit into a 27-24 lead. However Aldrich and Collins both hit baskets and Markieff Morris had a follow dunk at the buzzer as KU sent the teams into the locker room knotted at 30.
Kansas will travel to Iowa State on Saturday. Tipoff for the game, which will be televised on ESPN, is set for 1 p.m. Central. KU will then host another ESPN-televised game when the Jayhawks return to Allen Fieldhouse to face Missouri on Monday at 8 p.m.
