No. 24 Bears Belittle Birds, 69-61

The Jayhawks have not won a game in Waco since January 19, 2000. That streak is alive and well after tonight’s eight-point victory of Kansas. 

Dre’Una Edwards led the Bears in scoring tonight, putting up 20 points and matching her season-high (20 pts vs. Southern, 11/6/23); this is Edwards’ 20th game to score in the double-figures this season. Jana Van Gytenbeek and Darianna Littlepage-Buggs also scored in the double-figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively. 

Baylor demolished Kansas off the boards tonight, outrebounding them 41-29. Littlepage-Buggs led the Bears in rebounds with nine. 

Baylor’s bench outscored the Kansas bench 35-0! The previous season-low for an opponent’s bench belongs to Oregon, who was held to just three points on December 3, 2023. The all-time record is unknown, but obviously, this would tie it. 

The Bears hit the road for two games ( at West Virginia and at Cincinnati) before returning to Foster on March 3 against Oklahoma State at 11:00 a.m. to close out the regular season. 

How it happened: 

The Bears got off to a slow start tonight, starting the game off with more turnovers than points. It wasn’t until 4:11 remaining in the first quarter that they dropped that stat. Dre’Una Edwards entered the game after the under-five media timeout and put up points in back-to-back possessions to spark the Bear’s offensive efforts. Baylor proceeded to go on an 11-6 run to close out the quarter, emerging with a one-point lead after the first 10:00 thanks to Aijha Blackwell being fouled with 0.7 seconds left on the clock; she proceeded to go 2-3 from the line, giving BU the 16-15 lead. 

Kansas briefly regained the lead to start the second quarter, but Baylor re-took it with a three-pointer from Edwards and protected the lead with a fast break jumper from Jada Walker. After Bella Fontleroy nailed a three, KU called a timeout, hoping to disrupt the Bear’s 8-0 run. The Jayhawk timeout proved to slow down the Bear’s momentum, with the following points not being scored for over two minutes after the timeout. However, the Bears still scored the following points, and the run improved to 10-0 when Fontleroy swiped the ball from KU and ran the ball back for a fast-break layup. Kansas ended the run with a layup from Taiyanna Jackson, bringing the score to 28-21. After 3:00 of sloppy play from both sides, the teams took it to the locker rooms, with the Bears holding a nine-point lead. This was down from a game-high lead of 10 after Baylor sent Holly Kersgieter to the line, where she went 1-2 for Kansas. 

The Jayhawks showed a spark of life in the third quarter, outscoring the Bears for most of the period. Baylor maintained the lead, though it was reduced to as low as two points at 2:30. BU managed to stretch the lead back up to nine thanks to a 9-2 run in the last 2:30. Fontleroy went down hard at 4:51 and was on the ground for several minutes. She eventually left the court under her power but was using team staff for balance as she went to get checked out. She returned to the bench shortly after the beginning of the fourth quarter. 

The fourth quarter proved to be just as uneventful as the third, with a scoring differential of one between the two teams.