Via Kansas Athletics
LAWRENCE, Kan. ā The Kansas Jayhawks opened Big 12 Conference play with an 86-66 setback at the hands of the Baylor Bears on Saturday afternoon at Allen Fieldhouse.
S’Mya Nichols led the Jayhawks with 25 points and five assists while Elle Evans added 13 points and six rebounds. Sania Copeland had a team-high seven rebounds, while Regan Williams and Laia Conesa chipped in nine points apiece.
The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for Kansas and dropped the Jayhawks 10-2 (0-1 Big 12) on the season, while Baylor is now 11-2 (1-0 Big 12) on the year.
“We didn’t lose the league today and Baylor didn’t win the league today, so we’ve got to bounce back after the holiday break and get ready for what’s a really difficult schedule,” Kansas coach Brandon Schneider said postgame. “It was nice to give our newcomers a look at what the conference is like, and they answered like they have several times this season. I can see them really benefiting from this game.”
In the early minutes of the first quarter, Kansas and Baylor traded the first four points before the Bears built a 15-6 lead. Kansas started to chip away at the lead with a Regan Williams layup and Laia Conesa free throw putting the Jayhawks just within six. Kansas entered the second quarter down 16-9.
Baylor continued to carry momentum in the second quarter, but Kansas worked to stay within striking distance. Elle Evans sparked the Jayhawks by hitting their first three-pointer of the game and a second-chance layup earned by Nadira Eltayeb cut the Baylor lead to 40-23. With only four seconds left in the second quarter, Conesa intercepted an inbounds pass and quickly dished it to Evans, who drained a clutch three-pointer from the corner at the buzzer. The shot provided a crucial boost for the Jayhawks, trimming the deficit to 40-27 heading into halftime.
Kansas began the third quarter with sturdy momentum, as Williams scored a layup and Conesa followed with a three-pointer, cutting the Bears’ lead to 16. However, Baylor continued to respond and carried a 69-43 lead going into the last quarter.
Nichols scored the first nine points for the Jayhawks to start the fourth, which ignited a 9-1 run for Kansas. Second-chance opportunities helped Kansas trim the deficit to under 20 points, then a steal by the Kansas defense and a contested fast-break layup by Williams forced Baylor to call a timeout. Out of the timeout, Kansas was unable to close the gap any further and ultimately fell to Baylor, 86-66.
Up Next
Following 10 days off, Kansas returns to action on Wednesday, Jan. 1, with a visit to Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa to face Iowa State in a game tipping off at 2 p.m. CT on ESPN+.
Postgame Notes
Team
– Kansas made a season-high 23 free throws. That is the most since Dec. 4, 2022 vs. Southeast Missouri State (24) and the most in a conference game since Feb. 9, 2022 at West Virginia (23).
