Three-minute preview: Kansas men’s basketball vs. Baylor
No. 9 Kansas vs. No. 16 Baylor
P | No. | Kansas | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 31 | Jamari Traylor | 6-8 | Jr. | 5.0 |
F | 34 | Perry Ellis | 6-8 | Jr. | 14.2 |
G | 12 | Kelly Oubre | 6-7 | Fr. | 9.5 |
G | 1 | Wayne Selden | 6-5 | So. | 9.0 |
G | 0 | Frank Mason | 5-11 | So. | 12.4 |
P | No. | Baylor | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 00 | Royce O’Neale | 6-6 | Sr. | 10.0 |
F | 2 | Rico Gathers | 6-8 | Jr. | 11.6 |
G | 35 | Johnathan Motley | 6-9 | Fr. | 7.8 |
G | 11 | Lester Medford | 5-10 | Jr. | 7.7 |
G | 1 | Kenny Chery | 5-11 | Sr. | 11.3 |
▪ WHEN/WHERE: 6 p.m. Friday at the Sprint Center
▪ TV/RADIO: ESPN2; KCSP (610 AM)
▪ ABOUT KANSAS (25-7): Kansas freshman wing Svi Mykhailiuk, who played minimal minutes during Big 12 play, was a factor in the first half of the Jayhawks’ 64-59 victory over TCU on Thursday. Mykhailiuk was active on offense, handing out two assists and scoring a bucket, and coach Bill Self praised his defensive positioning. Mykhailiuk, who finished with two points in 15 minutes, could see more court time if Kansas uses more of its four-guard lineup. But the return of junior forward Perry Ellis (knee sprain) could limit his opportunities. The Jayhawks were also hampered by turnovers on Thursday, racking up 17 against TCU. They should expect to do better on Friday when they face Baylor’s zone. The Bears are just about average among college basketball teams in forcing turnovers.
▪ ABOUT BAYLOR (24-8): Junior swingman Taurean Prince was the Big 12’s sixth man of the year and a second-team All-Big 12 selection while leading the Bears with 14 points per game. But for now, he’s still coming off the bench. Prince had 18 points on just nine shots in No. 4 seed Baylor’s 80-70 victory over West Virginia on Thursday afternoon. The Bears will now get a third shot at Kansas. Baylor suffered a 56-55 home loss to KU way back on Jan. 7, and they fell 74-64 at Allen Fieldhouse on Feb. 14. The Jayhawks’ big men could have their hands full without freshman forward Cliff Alexander, a solid defensive rebounder. Baylor ranks as the nation’s best offensive rebounding team, according to KenPom.com. The Bears grab an offensive rebound on 42.2 percent of their missed shot attempts, and junior forward Rico Gathers (more than 11 rebounds per game) can be a beast on the glass.
| Rustin Dodd, rdodd@kcstar.com
This story was originally published March 12, 2015 at 8:51 PM with the headline "Three-minute preview: Kansas men’s basketball vs. Baylor."