Three Keys: Jayhawks can't help Bears in Waco
The Kansas Jayhawks are looking to avoid dropping two games in a row for the first time this season. The only problem is that their most recent loss came at home, meaning that they need to go on the road and get a difficult victory if they are going to keep that from happening. And the opponent is one that will be highly motivated to avoid a season sweep: The Baylor Bears.
Baylor has been nearly as up and down this season as the Jayhawks have been. Both teams are still technically in the race for the Big 12 regular season title, and a win today will be an important step in trying to lock up a double-bye in the Big 12 tournament.
If Kansas is going to pull off their biggest victory on the road this season, here are three keys that will go a long way in getting that win.
Turnovers
The Bears struggle at holding onto the ball, especially in conference play. And while the Jayhawks haven't shown the ability to consistently take advantage of teams that turn the ball over, they blew up any sense of ball security in the last matchup between these two teams. While I definitely expect those numbers to even out a bit in Waco, Kansas has the capability of putting up a defensive performance against Baylor that can win them this game, but they can't afford to let the turnover gap shrink too much.
Perimeter Defense
Baylor is one of the best three-point shooting teams in the country, and the Jayhawks have had some issues closing out on three-point shooters. But Bill Self has been hinting that Kevin McCullar has a decent chance to return in this game, and the Jayhawks could really use him. The perimeter defense really struggled against BYU, with Hunter Dickinson frequently having to play on the perimeter.
And if you really look at what the Jayhawks have done defensively in the absence of McCullar, they should be able to slow down the Bears enough to keep the game within reach.
Shooting in the Paint
To put it simply, the Jayhawks shot themselves in the foot in the last few games. The inside shooting that had been so good at the beginning of conference play has consistently been subpar in the last few weeks. There is a good chance that it is fatigue-related, but whatever the reason, Kansas can't afford to have both Dickinson and KJ Adams struggle to shoot from inside the paint.
