No. 17 Kansas defeated No. 2 Baylor, 71-58, on Saturday to hand the Bears their first loss of the season. Jayhawks forward David McCormack, who made his first six field-goal attempts, led all scorers with 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting while adding three rebounds and one assist.
The loss is Baylor's first since March 7, 2020 to West Virginia.
This was Baylor's second game back following a three-week layoff, and it showed. Kansas dominated the interior all night. The Jayhawks outscored the Bears 42-32 in the paint and won the battle on the glass 48-28. They also shot 51 percent from the floor and held the Bears to 34.8 percent. Kansas (18-8 overall, 12-6 Big 12) has also won seven of its last seven games.
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Baylor (18-1, 10-1) entered the contest with the nation's top 3-point field-goal percentage at 43.2. But that didn't matter on Saturday, as the Bears shot 6-of-26 from beyond the arc — only 23.1 percent. The Bears also missed 10 of their 16 free throw attempts.
MaCio Teague posted 18 points (7-for-20), eight rebounds and one assist to lead the Bears. Star forward Jared Butler struggled, and didn't score until midway through the second half on a layup. He finished with 5 points on 2-of-9 shooting before fouling out late in the game.
It was also Senior Night in Lawrence, Kan. Marcus Garrett, who was honored before tipoff, finished with a stat line of 14 points, seven rebounds and two assists. The Jayhawks have now won 38 straight on Senior Night.
The Bears will next visit West Virginia on Tuesday, March 2. Kansas will conclude its regular season with a home game against UTEP on Thursday, March 4.
