Its annual Superhero Day inside Allen Fieldhouse when the Jayhawks take on Baylor on Sunday, Jan. 15, at 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast on the ESPNU with Roy Philpott (play-by-play) and Brooke Weisbrod (analyst) calling the action. Live audio is also available on the Baylor Sports Network, IMG College and ESPN 1660 AM in Waco. Rick May (play-by-play) and Lori Fogelman (analyst) are on the call.
Children under 13 that attend the game dressed as their favorite superhero will receive $3 admission. Superheroes of all ages can enjoy the fun zone and the Batmobile will be on site for photos and tours, weather permitting. For more information on Superhero Day, log on to KUAthletics.com.
With an ice storm warning in effect until midnight tonight for Lawrence, KS, the No. 2 Baylor Lady Bears head into Allen Fieldhouse where the Jayhawks will be looking to serve up some ice cold revenge after having been crushed by the Lady Bears in Waco 90-43 on New Years Day.
In the previous meeting, Baylor poured in 50 points in the paint and out rebounded the Jayhawks, 58-30, inside. Four Lady Bears scored in double figures for Baylor, including Nina Davis (16), Alexis Jones (16), Beatrice Mompremier (15) and Kalani Brown (11). Mompremier added 10 rebounds for a double-double and led the Lady Bears with a team-high four blocks.
In Baylor’s game against TCU last Wednesday, the Horned Frogs countered Baylor’s inside presence by packing the paint. You might say that they were somewhat successful because they limited Baylor’s margin of victory for the 1st time in Big XII play to less than 30 points, the Lady Bears defeating TCU by only 23 points, 77-54.
Look for the Lady Bears to try and put more perimeter pressure on Jayhawk redshirt junior guard Jessica Washington. Washington burned Baylor in the previous matchup for 18 points and led all scorers in four of five Big 12 contests in 2017. Washington leads the league in scoring in Big 12 only games with 19.6 points per contest and is ranked sixth in the conference in all games with 15.2 points per game.
Named in honor the late Dr. F.C. "Phog" Allen, the Jayhawks' head coach for 39 years, Allen Fieldhouse is labeled by many as one of the best places in America to watch a college basketball game. This astounding basketball monument has been home to Jayhawk basketball for 63 years, including the inaugural year of KU women's basketball (1969). In 48 seasons playing inside Allen Fieldhouse, Kansas women's basketball has amassed a 415-181 (.696) record when playing in front of a home crowd.
Kansas is among the top five in several Big 12 Conference statistical categories with league play just underway. The Jayhawks have forced the most turnovers per game this season in the Big 12 after averaging 19.5 per contest. KU is third in the league in steals per game (9.5) and offensive rebounds (14.2). Individually, redshirt junior Jessica Washington recorded the most made free throws in a single game after converting all 12 attempts from the charity stripe against UC Riverside (12/21). Washington's 14.1 points per game ranks No. 11 in the Big 12 in scoring per contest.
After opening Big 12 Conference action with five-straight victories, Baylor extended its win streak to 14 games. The Lady Bears are 16-1 on the season and their only loss of the year was a 72-61 decision at No. 1 UConn (11/17).
The Lady Bears lead the league in points per game with 92.6 and have a +42.2 scoring margin. Baylor is the only team in the conference shooting above 50 percent after converting 50.0 percent of its attempts from the floor. Additionally, the Lady Bears are connecting on 39.6 percent of their shots from long range. Defensively, BU is averaging 54.3 rebounds, 7.6 steals and 8.9 blocks per game.
Redshirt senior guard Alexis Jones leads BU's offense with 15.8 points per game, while shooting 43.2 percent from the field and dishing out 74 assists. Sophomore Kalani Brown is averaging 13.6 points and is connecting on 67.4 percent of her attempts. Brown also leads the team with 8.6 boards and 2.3 blocks per game. Three more Lady Bears are averaging double figures this season: senior forward Nina Davis (11.4), redshirt senior guard Alexis Prince (11.0) and sophomore forward Beatrice Mompremier (10.3).
Kansas looks to even the series with Baylor today with a victory, its first inside Allen Fieldhouse against the Lady Bears since 2014. A win today for the Jayhawks would snap a five-game losing skid. After Wednesday's loss at Kansas State (1/11), KU dropped to 6-10 on the season and 0-5 in league play.
The Jayhawks are averaging 63.4 points per game with a scoring margin of -7.1. KU is making 34.3 percent of its shots from the field, while converting 28.6 percent of its attempts from the 3-point line. Kansas is averaging 41.4 boards per game. The Jayhawks have also swiped 9.5 steals per contest, good for the third-most by any team in the conference.
Sophomore guard Kylee Kopatich is third on the Jayhawks squad with 9.2 points per game and has recorded double-digit scoring performances in her last three starts. Junior forward Cayla Cheadle is grabbing a team-best 5.5 boards per game, leading the squad in offensive (27) and defensive (61) rebounds.
The most recent lineup of redshirt senior Alexis Jones, junior Kristy Wallace, redshirt senior Alexis Prince, senior Nina Davis and sophomore Kalani Brown is 5-0, leading the Lady Bears to a dominant start in their Big 12 Conference slate.
Baylor Athletics Preview Video - Lady Bears at Kansas Jayhawks.
In Baylor’s New Year’s game against Kansas, the Jawhawks made a game out it for the first seven and a half minutes. They were only down by 2 points but they were done for the day. By the half Baylor was up by 24. Five and half minutes into the 3rd period, Baylor was up by 40. (From Our Daily Bears dot com.)
Look for the Jayhawks to be more competitive today at home.
In the previous matchup, Kansas leading scorer McKenzie Calvert was guarded 1 on 1 by 6-foot-2 Alexis Prince on the perimeter and went 1-10, for 2 points, and that came late in the third quarter. Coach Kim Mulkey might have Alexis Prince guarding Washington more today which could open the door for Jayhawk redshirt sophomore guard McKenzie Calvert.