Jayhawks Continue Road Test Against No. 3 Baylor

Kansas at Baylor
Date Sunday, Feb. 1
Time 1 p.m.
Location Waco, Texas
Arena Ferrell Center
Series First Meeting
Television FSN
Radio Jayhawk Radio Network
Live Stats Baylorbears.com
Notes Kansas
Big 12
Stats at a Glance KU BU
Record 12-9, 3-5 19-1, 8-0
Rankings 3/3
Points/GM 64.1 83.8
FG% 43.8 48.1
Rebounds/GM 36.5 47.8
Assists/GM 14.6 22.1
Blocks/GM 4.1 5.6
Steals/GM 6.2 8.3

LAWRENCE, Kan. – After ending Iowa State’s 10-game winning streak at home and chalking up their third win in a row, the Jayhawks hit the road to take on No. 3 Baylor in Waco, Texas on Sunday, Feb. 1 at 1 p.m., inside the Ferrell Center. Fans can tune into FSN or the Jayhawk Radio Network for game coverage. The contest marks the second meeting between the two teams this season. The Jayhawks are looking to even the 2014-15 series with a victory over the Lady Bears.
 
ABOUT THE JAYHAWKS
Kansas is looking to extend its win streak to four after it snapped its five-game losing streak with victories over Texas Tech (1/21), West Virginia (1/24) and Iowa State (1/28). On the road against the Lady Raiders, senior guard Asia Boyd laid in the game-winning shot after helping KU regain possession of the ball by forcing a shot clock violation. Senior forward Chelsea Gardner’s historic performance of 20 points and 20 rebounds against WVU helped the Jayhawks overcome a 10-point deficit. The win against Iowa State marked the first time the Jayhawks defeated the Cyclones in Ames since the 2005-06 season. Gardner posted her 24th-career double-double and sixth double-double this season in Ames. After shooting only 33 percent in the first half, the Jayhawks came back and shot a well-above average 52 percent (13-for-25) in the second frame.
 
Gardner is averaging a team-high 16.5 points per game, the third-best average in the league, while shooting 55.9 percent from the field. Senior guard Natalie Knight has stayed consistent for the Jayhawks connecting on 39.8 percent of her shots from beyond the arc. She is second the team with 12.6 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Both Gardner and Knight have scored in double figures in all but three games this year.
 
Freshmen guards Lauren Aldridge and Chayla Cheadle are making an impact in KU’s lineup and are averaging 7.2 and 6.3 points, respectively. Aldridge has started every game this season at point and is fifth in the conference in assists per game with 4.6. She has played the most minutes (700) among the Jayhawks in 2014-15. Cheadle led the squad with 15 points at Kansas State (1/11) and is connecting on 35.2 percent of her shots from long range. Sophomore forward Jada Brown is the final member of Kansas’ starting lineup. The Las Vegas, Nevada native is grabbing 3.1 rebounds per contest, which is tied for fifth-best on the team. She is also averaging 2.1 points per game in 21 starts.
 
The Jayhawks are averaging 64.1 points per game with a +3.9 scoring margin over their opponents. KU is shooting 43.8 percent from the field, while holding its opponents to shooting 37.2 percent. Kansas has connected on 36.5 percent of its attempts from the three-point line, which is the second-best mark in the Big 12. The Jayhawks are averaging 36.5 rebounds, 14.6 assists, 6.2 steals and 4.1 blocks per game.
 
KANSAS FAST BREAKS
• Three or more Jayhawks have netted double-figure scoring performances in 15 of Kansas’ 21 games this season. KU had four reach double-digit scoring in three-straight games and in a total of seven contests. Senior forward Chelsea Gardner has scored 10 or more points in 18-of-21 games in 2014-15, while senior guard Natalie Knight has also contributed double figures in all but three games this season.
• For the first time in nearly 14 years, the Jayhawks shot 67 percent from three-point range on a minimum of 10 attempts against Incarnate Word (12/4), connecting on 8-of-12 shots from beyond the arc. It marked the highest completion rate from three since Dec. 2, 2000, when Kansas went 8-for-11 (72.7 percent) against St. Joseph in Allen Fieldhouse. KU followed that with a 7-for-11 effort from the three-point line against then-No. 10 Cal (12/7).
• KU has limited its opponents to 37.2 percent shooting from the field. The Jayhawks have held three opponents to less than 30 percent shooting, including holding the Cal Golden Bears to 25 percent from the field. Cal averaged 90 points coming into the match-up and KU kept the Bears under 40 points. KU’s defense has held seven opponents to under 50 points.
• Kansas’ all-time record is 782-559 while the program has an all-time conference record of 240-254. Head coach Bonnie Henrickson is 341-225 all-time and 183-163 at KU.
• Gardner, a Preseason All-Big 12 selection, joined the 1,000-point club after scoring 24 points in the season opener against South Dakota (11/16). Knight has 955 career points and needs 45 more to join Gardner in the 1,000-point club, which she is on pace to reach by the end of February. It would mark the first time since 2012-13 that multiple Jayhawks have reached the 1,000-point milestone in the same season.
• Rookie Lauren Aldridge is one of two freshmen in the Big 12 Conference starting at the point guard position. The Marshfield, Missouri native is fifth in the league in assists per game with 4.6 and is in the top 10 in the Big 12 in assist-to-turnover ratio (seventh, 1.6).
 
SCOUTING THE LADY BEARS
No. 3 Baylor heads into Sunday’s match up with an 18-game win streak and boasts a 19-1 record overall. The Lady Bears currently sit atop the Big 12 leaderboard with an undefeated 8-0 conference mark. BU was selected to finish second in the conference behind Texas. Baylor’s only loss came early in the season to nationally-ranked Kentucky on Nov. 17. The Lady Bears have since won 18 games in a row.
 
Baylor comes into Sunday’s contest averaging 83.8 points per game with a +27.0 scoring margin over opponents, while connecting 48.1 percent of its shots taken, both of which are the highest in the league. BU is converting on 34.5 percent of shots beyond the arc with Kristy Wallace netting 39.0 percent of attempts. This season, the Lady Bears are averaging 47.8 rebounds and 22.1 assists per contest. Baylor has limited its opponents to a 33.1 shooting percentage throughout the 2014-15 campaign.
 
Three Lady Bears are averaging double figures in their 20 games thus far. Sophomore forward Nina Davis leads the way with 21.3 points per game, which is first in the league. She is shooting 56.6 percent from field goal range and snags an average of 8.9 rebounds per game. Khadijiah Cave and Imani Wright post averages of 12.6 and 10.0 points per game, respectively. Cave is converting a team-best 60.5 percent of shots taken.
 
SERIES BREAKDOWN
Record
Baylor leads the all-time series against Kansas, 22-9. In Waco, the Lady Bears are 10-2 over the Jayhawks.
 
Overview
Kansas opened the series in 1978 with a 75-62 win over BU and won six of the first eight meetings. KU had a 1-2 mark against Baylor last season, highlighted by the 76-60 victory over Baylor in Allen Fieldhouse in the second meeting of the 2014 conference slate.
 
Last Time Out
Compared to 62 percent shooting in the first half, the Kansas defense held Baylor to a 33 percent mark in the second half, the lowest by the Lady Bears in a single half since they fell to Kentucky on Nov. 17. The senior class led Kansas’ efforts with Chelsea Gardner and Natalie Knight posting their 15th games in double figures by chalking up 17 and 11 points, respectively. Despite outscoring the Lady Bears in the second half, the Jayhawks were unable to overcome Baylor’s advantage and fell 71-63.
 
AND THE AWARD GOES TO…
Freshman guard Lauren Aldridge was the first Jayhawk to earn Big 12 weekly honors in 2014- 15. She was named Big 12 Freshman of the Week for the week of Dec. 8 after helping KU to a pair of victories. Kansas swept the weekly accolades for the week of Dec. 29 after Natalie Knight earned player of the week honors and Terriell Bradley was named the freshman of the week. It’s the first weekly honor for Bradley and second of Knight’s career. Senior forward Chelsea Gardner brought home Big 12 Honors for the week of Jan. 26, as she was named Player of the Week.
 
JAYHAWKS AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS
Kansas’ match-up with Notre Dame was the first time this season that KU faced a ranked opponent. It was also the first time that the Jayhawks squared off with the No. 1 team in the nation since 2012-13 when Kansas hosted Baylor in Allen Fieldhouse. The last time KU defeated a nationally-ranked foe was against Cal, 62-39, Sunday (12/7). KU is 1-2 against nationally-ranked opponents this season. Since 2004, KU is 14-64 against opponents in the national polls and 4-29 against foes ranked in the top 10. KU has defeated at least one top-10 foe in the past two seasons and taken down a ranked opponent at least once the last four seasons.
 
DEFENSIVELY SOUND
Head coach Bonnie Henrickson stresses the importance of defense and the Jayhawks are taking that to heart in 2014-15. On the season, Kansas has held its opponents to 37.2 percent shooting. The Jayhawks have held three opponents to under 30 percent shooting including then-No. 10 Cal, who has one of the most potent offenses in the country. The Golden Bears were averaging 90 points coming into the match-up and Kansas’ defense held Cal to 39 points and 24 percent shooting from the field. On the season, Kansas has held seven opponents under 50 points.
 
THAT 70’S SHOW
Kansas’ success during the Bonnie Henrickson-era has been pretty much based on 70 points. When the Jayhawks score 70 or more points, Kansas owns a 114-19 record (.869) during her tenure. When KU opponents score less than 70 points, the Jayhawks are 147-74 (.503) during that span.
 
UP NEXT
The Jayhawks return home to Allen Fieldhouse after a two-game road stretch to face   Texas Tech for the second time this season on Wednesday, Feb. 4 at 7 p.m., on the Jayhawk Television Network/ESPN 3. Fans can also tune into the Jayhawk Radio Network.
 
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