🏀 Jayhawks Take Down No. 2 Baylor, 71-58, on Senior Night
LAWRENCE, Kan. – The No. 17 Kansas Jayhawks took down No. 2 Baylor, 71-58, Saturday night in Allen Fieldhouse, extending Kansas’ streak to 38 consecutive wins on senior day.
The Jayhawks improve to 18-8 overall and finish the regular season 12-6 in conference play, while handing Baylor (18-1, 10-1 Big 12) its first loss of the season.
The Jayhawks came out strong and started with David McCormack going 4-for-4 from the floor, giving the Jayhawks their first eight points.
Just before the 10-minute mark in the first half, Baylor was able to tie Kansas at 13, and pull ahead with a Mitchell 3-pointer. The first half was a back-and-forth affair, but KU claimed the lead again at 22-20 with 6:22 to go until the break.
The lead continued to change, but with just under a minute left in the half, sophomore Christian Braun picked up a foul from Macio Teague on a layup for the and one, putting the Jayhawks ahead 31-30. With 27 seconds left in the first, senior Marcus Garrett had a layup to secure the 33-30 lead going into the locker room on his senior night.
Kansas led the entirety of the second half, only allowing Baylor to come within one possession after Teague got the and one after a foul from Ochai Agbaji to make the score 42-45. Dajuan Harris Jr., answered with a layup and a free throw on back-to-back Kansas possessions to bring the Jayhawks ahead by seven.
The Jayhawks continued to dominate, shooting 52.2% (12-23) from the field in the second half and grabbing 25 rebounds.
In the last five minutes of play, the Jayhawks attempted 13 free throws and successfully made 10 of them. The last point of the game was Garrett closing out his senior night with a free throw to tie the Jayhawks’ largest lead of the game and secure the 71-58 win against the Bears.
STAT OF THE GAME
38 – The win over the Bears marked the 38th-consecutive Kansas victory on a senior night, which started in the 1983-84 season.
MOMENT OF THE GAME
Just under the 12-minute mark in the second half, senior Mitch Lightfoot had a defensive rebound for Kansas. On the offensive side of the court, the Jayhawks were able to get the ball to Harris and set him up for a 3-point jumper which gave the team the momentum to push through and secure the win.
NOTES
- Kansas improved to 18-8 overall and 12-6 in Big 12 play, giving KU 12 league wins for the 21st consecutive season beginning in 2000-01.
- Made Kansas 9-1 against top-five teams at home under head coach Bill Self.
- Made the Kansas-Baylor series 34-7 in favor of KU, including a 18-1 mark in Lawrence, 17-1 in Allen Fieldhouse.
- KU has now won seven games against ranked opponents this season, the most in Division I.
- KU won the rebounding battle 48-28, making this the 16th time winning the rebounding battle this season, improving to 14-3 this season in such games.
- McCormack’s 20 points marks the fourth time he has scored at least 20 points in a game this season and the fifth time in his career.
- Marcus Garrett finished with 14 points on Senior Night, his 11th double-figure game this season and 35th in his career.
- Garrett finished with seven rebounds, his most since he had seven in a win against TCU January 28th.
- Christian Braun finished with 11 points, his eighth time scoring in double figures in the last nine games.
- Jalen Wilson finished with 14 rebounds, his 11th time this season in double digits and sixth in his last seven games.
- Ochai Agbaji finished with four assists, tying his career high.
- Mitch Lightfoot took his 14th charge of the season which leads the team.
UP NEXT
The Jayhawks have concluded their regular season conference play, but picked up a game against UTEP to stay fresh as they head into the Big 12 tournament. The UTEP matchup will take place on Thursday, March 4 at 7 p.m. in Allen Fieldhouse.
