Waco, TX– No. 7-ranked Kansas against No. 15-ranked Baylor at the new Mark and Paul Hurd arena which just opened up in January. There was a packed crowd, with fans excited for a possible upset against a top ten team. On one of the first possessions for Baylor, Yves Missi went to set a screen for RayJ Dennis and once he rolled, he became wide open for a dunk which got Baylor the opening basket. The first half of the basketball game went back-and-forth with Baylor getting as much as a seven-point lead before it eventually got cut to one going into the half at 35–34. Throughout the first half, Missi did a great job of attacking Kansas’s big men by constantly trying to pound it inside and draw fouls or finish at the rim. In the second half at one point Baylor looked like they would run away with the game by going up by as many as 13 points before Kansas eventually cut into the lead but they eventually would lose 82–74.
7’2” senior Hunter Dickinson was a constant for the Jayhawks throughout the game. Whether the Baylor Bears played the 1-3-1 zone or briefly went man-to man he was a safety net. He ended the game with a stat line of 20 points and six rebounds on 9–12 from the field, 1-2 from the arc, and made it a tough night for the Baylor bigs. 6’7” senior Kevin McCullar Jr. was another spark for the Jayhawks and when Baylor played the 1–3–1 zone he took advantage by posting up the player at the bottom of the zone to get easy baskets at the rim. He ended the game with 20 points, and five rebounds on 9–19 from the field. The one-two punch of Dickinson and McCullar is what allowed the Jayhawks to make the game competitive along with point guard Dajuan Harris Jr. adding 12 points and hitting timely floaters when the team needed the most.
Baylor had four players score in double digits which gave them the edge and led to them winning the game. Missi was consistent energy for the Bears and showed his ability to do some things off the dribble when given the opportunity from the elbow. Missi ended the game with a 17 points and five rebounds on 7–12 shooting. In the second half of the game, Baylor took advantage of the one-two punch with 6’2” RayJ Dennis and 6’4” Jayden Nunn who both were perfect from the field in the second half of the game.
Nunn was a constant throughout both halves of the game knocking down timely three-point shots and being able to get to the mid-range and pull up over defenders. He ended the game with 18 points and five rebounds on 7–8 from the field and 3–3 from the three-point line. The difference he made throughout the game was going after 50/50 rebounds and being able to either secure them himself or save them from out-of-bounds for a teammate to secure. Dennis is a perfect complement to Dunn with his ability to lead the team and fill in the gap with what they need at each moment. He did a great job of making the right decision off of the screen and seemed as if he always hit the right teammate in the right spot. Throughout the game, Kansas would try to go on some type of run and Dennis would hit them with one of those Patton floaters in the lane to send a message to Kansas that we got this. He ended the game with a double-double and led the team in scoring with 19 points and 10 assists, 7–8 shooting from the field, on 4–5 from the free throw line.
Ja’Kobe Walter struggled to find his shot but always seemed to lend a helping hand and knocked down a shot in spots when they tried to pay more attention defensively to one of his other three teammates. Although his shot wasn’t falling consistently, he made up for it by grabbing eight rebounds and showing that he can impact the game in more ways than just putting the ball in the basket. Walter ended the game with 11 points to help Baylor get the win. The biggest difference in the basketball game was the spread in fastbreak points with Baylor winning that area 15-7.
This article was written by Chivas Miller, a correspondent and scout for NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.
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