KANSAS 75, BAYLOR 65

Game Over

Sherron Collins sensed that his team needed a jolt, so he refused to pass.

With five minutes left Collins attacked the rim, drew a foul and hit two free throws. The next possession he did the exact same thing, and that's where the game was won.

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Kansas Basketball vs. Baylor

The Jayhawks eeked out another victory Monday night, beating the Baylor Bears 75-65 in Waco.

Marcus Morris started the second half with a bang, but it was Kansas' go-to guy who got it done once again.

The Jayhawks didn't play a great first half, but the Bears left the door open and Kansas stormed through it in the second half. For the fourth time in a row, Baylor can only wonder what could have been.

KANSAS 50, BAYLOR 47

11:54 left in the second half

Morris & Morris are open for business.

Marcus scored six points less than two minutes into the second half while Markieff drilled a three-pointer from the top of the key. It's just his third trey of the season.

Both teams have heated up but Baylor is having a hard time accounting for all of Kansas' playmakers.

The Morris twins, Collins and Taylor are all looking great, but as I write this Baylor dropped another three-pointer to pull within four.

Curtis Jerrells still hasn't scored but he has started dishing out assists more often. I said at halftime that he has to start doing one of those and it seems he's chosen to pass.

KANSAS 30, BAYLOR 28

Halftime

Despite playing better for the entire first half, Baylor actually trails by two at halftime.

The Bears' top scorer, Curtis Jerrells, hasn't scored and he only has one assists. Coach Scott Drew can handle him failing in one area but both is inexcusable.

After a sluggish start, Sherron Collins made his last couple of baskets to finish with six points, including a buzzer-beater in the lane. The only way for him to work out of this funk is to keep shooting, so expect him to keep firing shots until they drop.

Aldrich was just starting to get comfortable so if the Jays keep feeding him, he'll continue to eat up points and rebounds in the paint.

The Bears should be ahead, but they're not. Kansas is playing with house money in the second half and that's a dangerous thing if you're a Baylor fan.

BAYLOR 26, KANSAS 21

3:19 left in the first half

Aldrich didn't look comfortable early. Now he looks like his usual dominant self.

The Jays keep feeding him and Aldrich has responded with an array of shots, including hooks in the lane and a couple of easy layups.

However, Kansas can't stay on Henry Dugat and he's making the Jays pay for it. Dugat has 10 points and he's 2-for-3 beyond the arc. Curtis Jerrells has yet to make a basket but it hasn't made one difference because Dugat has stepped into his role.

BAYLOR 18, KANSAS 15

7:41 left in the first half

Neither team has taken control yet, though Baylor has definitely looked better thus far.

The Bears are hitting more than 40 percent and they have four blocks. Two Baylor defenders victimized Markieff Morris in one brutal sequence.

The worst news for Kansas is that Sherron Collins still hasn't made a shot. He played poorly on Saturday but was expected to rebound today. So far, not so much.

BAYLOR 11, KANSAS 9

11:26 left in the first half

Brady Morningstar is hot beyond the three-point line, but he's about the only Jay making shots right now.

The other four starters are a combined 0-for-7. Kansas' defense, though, it hounding Baylor and the Bears haven't faired too much better.

Dugat and Kevin Rogers both have a couple of baskets, but Rogers doesn't look too comfortable under the basket with Aldrich standing in the way.

BAYLOR 6, KANSAS 3

15:22 left in the first half

Kansas needed a quick start tonight, but it's stuck in neutral.

The Jays haven't played terribly — and the Bears haven't played great — but Baylor is getting after Kansas defensively and it hasn't been able to offer a counter.

Also, Cole Aldrich looks very uneasy underneath the basket. If it continues, I don't expect him to keep his mask on for the entire game.

8 p.m.

I've been waiting for a real game. A real test from a team that could match Kansas' athleticism.

That game is about to tipoff and I don't think Kansas is ready. The Jays still don't play too well on the road and as I said, the Bears are desperate. Maybe that means that they'll fall all over themselves, but more likely it means they will rise up and play their best game since mid-December.

Kansas needs to come out firing and, if it can get a lead, learn from the Colorado game and keep the pressure on Baylor. The Jays should have coasted on Saturday. Instead they survived a dog fight.

This time I think the Bears are coming in with bigger claws.

Prediction: Baylor 83, Kansas 78.

7:55 p.m.

Can Curtis Jerrells recover from his worst game of the season? That's the most important question for Baylor tonight.

Jerrells, the Bears' point guard and leading scorer, shot two-of-10 against Missouri and committed seven turnovers. If he does that tonight Kansas will win going away.

But I don't think that will happen. Jerrells has had a couple of slip-ups like that this season, but never two in a row. And he's never done it at home.

Jerrells and sixth man LaceDarius Dunn both need to be on top of their games to hang tough. Dunn could start for any team in the conference but Drew brings him in as a spark plug off the bench. That could be another key to watch in tonight's game: can Kansas' bench match or at least contain Baylor's?

Don't count on it.

7:45 p.m.

No. 21 Kansas, ranked for the first time since December, opened today as 1-point favorite. The line has now swung and Baylor is a 1.5-point favorite. I think the latter is more indicative of what we'll see tonight.

It could definitely go either way, but the Bears absolutely need a win tonight and that's why I give them the edge. Desperation can bring the best out of a team and coach Scott Drew better hope that's the case tonight.

Cole Aldrich is still wearing the mask to protect his broken nose, even though he said it got in the way against Colorado. He didn't seem to have any problems in the early-goings on Saturday, but it started to fog up in the second half. If that happens again he may lose the mask because doctors said he only needs it as long as he feels it's necessary.