After back-to-back road games and three straight losses by an average of 15 points, the K-State men’s basketball team returned home to face the No. 23 Baylor Bears on Wednesday night.
Even playing in the friendly confines of Bramlage Coliseum could not cure the ailing Wildcats as they lost to the Bears, 83-65.
Both teams started the game slowly. Baylor freshman forward Quincy Acy scored the first two points at 17:49 in the first half. K-State would get its first basket and tie the score at 2-2 more than a full minute later.
The Bears then proceeded to go on an eight-point run and extend their lead to 10-2, a lead the Wildcats would never recover from.
“Well, we knew coming in that this is a tough place to play,” said Baylor head coach Scott Drew. “I felt we matched their intensity early on and felt like it gave us a chance to get a lead.”
With 4:33 left in the first half, Baylor was up 27-16 over the Wildcats, when Baylor guard LaceDarius Dunn went on his own 9-3 scoring run, in which he hit three straight 3-pointers.
Wednesday’s game marks the 23rd consecutive game in which Dunn has made a 3-pointer. It’s the third longest streak in Baylor history and he has made at least one 3-pointer in 47 of his 49 career games.
“I have to give a lot of credit to our guards,” Dunn said. “They found the open spots and it was my responsibility to knock down the shots.”
K-State scored the final four points of the half to trail 36-23 at halftime.
“They just went on another run that we couldn’t get out of,” K-State senior forward Darren Kent said. “Teams have been digging holes in our defense and we’ve been having trouble getting out of them.”
During the second half, the Wildcats shot the ball more efficiently. But Baylor had an answer for every Wildcat run and never allowed K-State to get within 12 points in the second half.
“That’s how they play,” said head coach Frank Martin. “They are very aggressive offensively and they get a lead and then Curtis Jerrells controls the game and he gets guys open shots.”
Dunn led all scorers with 33 points, shooting 75 percent from behind the 3-point line. Jerrells had 18 points, while Kevin Rogers and Acy each had 12 points.
The Bears as a team shot 56 percent from the field and 59.1 percent from behind the arc.
Leading the way for K-State was junior guard Denis Clemente with 17 points. Dominique Sutton had 12 points and Kent had 11 points for the Wildcats.
K-State (11-7, 0-4 Big 12 Conference) travels to Boulder, Colo., on Saturday to play the Colorado Buffalos. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m.