Kansas State 81, Baylor 61
MANHATTAN, Kan. -- No. 10 Kansas State used the long ball, making 11-of-25 3-pointers, to defeat Baylor 81-61 on Saturday night at Bramlage Coliseum.
Kansas State, the Big 12 Conference's second-best 3-point shooting team, used long spurts of nothing but treys to pull away from the Bears (16-9, 7-5).
Particularly effective from long range was Shane Southwell, who made 6 of 9 3-pointers.
The Wildcats (20-5, 9-3) were led by Angel Rodriguez with 22 points. Also in double-figures were Southwell (18 points), Rodney McGruder (10) and Jordan Henriquez (10). Henriquez had a double-double with 10 rebounds.
Baylor was led by A.J. Walton with 14 points, Isaiah Austin with 13 and Brady Heslip with 12.
K-State started the second half with a 5-0 run to open up its largest lead of the game to that point at 43-29, but Baylor answered with a 12-0 run to cut the lead to just two points. Heslip hit three 3-pointers in the run, and Rico Gathers scored a traditional three-point play. The foul, with 13:23 left, was McGruder's third.
But K-State responded with a 16-4 run of its own. Rodriguez, Southwell (two) and Martavious Irving hit 3-pointers, answered only by Walton's fade-away jumper and two free throws by Austin to help build a double-digit cushion. Henriquez slammed one in off an alley-oop from Irving, then Thomas Gipson made a layup and the Wildcats once again held a 14-point edge.
Kansas State used a 9-0 run late in the half to open up a 12-point cushion at 36-24, and finished the first half up 38-29.
After a back-and-forth start, Baylor used a 10-2 run to grab a 16-12 lead midway through the half. But a quick 11-0 run, keyed by a 3-pointer by Rodriguez and two by Southwell, helped the Wildcats assume the lead. The Wildcats made 6-of-12 3-pointers in the half.
The outside shooting was critical for Kansas State as the Wildcats hit just 9 of 22 inside the arc.
K-State was led by Rodriguez with 10 points and Southwell with 9 (all on 3-point shots). Baylor was led by Walton with 7, though his 0 for 3 from the foul line prevented him from scoring more.
The first half was relatively foul free. Kansas State was called for just seven fouls while Baylor was whistled for just three.
NOTES: Baylor was seeking multiple road wins versus ranked teams in the same season for the first time in program history. ... Baylor has held three Big 12 opponents under 50 points this season, after compiling three such efforts in the first 16 years in the conference. ... Kansas State entered the game with the best assist-to-turnover ratio in the Big 12 at 2.5. ... The Wildcats have averaged a league-low 11.9 turnovers per game coming into tonight's action.
