Baylor Bears Defeat Kansas State Wildcats

The Baylor Bears defended their homecourt on Saturday by knocking off #25 Kansas State in the Ferrell Center. Big performances by Wildcats Michael Beasley and Bill Walker were not enough as Baylor won the game 92-86.

It was a night that saw Kansas State (18-8, 8-4) freshman sensation Michael Beasley score 44 points, and fellow Wildcat teammate Bill Walker pour in 31 points. However, the dynamic Wildcats duo could not overcome the display of team effort demonstrated by the Baylor Bears (18-8, 6-6), as the Bears won the game, 92-86.

The Baylor Bears looked no further than star point guard Curtis Jerrells. Jerrells dropped in 24 points in the Bears victory none larger than a 3 point shot in the final two minutes as the shot clock expired. Jerrells added 7 assists and hauled in 3 rebounds as he led his Baylor Bears to another victory.

Beasley, who showed why he is an NBA lottery pick next year, hit 15-15 from the charity stripe, and was 14-25 from the field. Beasley recorded yet another double double on the season as he recorded 13 rebounds. Teammate Bill Walker also recorded a double double scoring 31 points in 38 minutes of play and grabbing 11 rebounds.

Baylor trailed at halftime 44-38, yet came out with a flurry as junior guard Henry Dugat scored the half's first four points. Eventually, the lead was cut to one on a Tweety Carter 3 pointer before the 15 minute mark in the second half. The Bears relied on solid contributions from freshman guard Lacedarius Dunn and senior guard Aaron Bruce to balance the scoring, as they scored 16 and 11, respectively.

With Baylor junior Kevin Rogers recording another double double of his own, 18 points and 10 rebounds, the Bears relied on team defense to try and contain the rest of the Kansas State Wildcat attack. The plan worked. While Beasley and Walker each came away from the game with an impressive statline, things were not so for the other Kansas State players. The other 7 players, sans Beasley and Walker) only contributed 11 points on the night on 3-19 shooting from the field.

The Bears sealed the win in the final minute of the game as Curtis Jerrells and Aaron Bruce each hit a pair of free throws to lead the Bears to a 92-86 victory.

The Baylor Bears next play at Colorado while the Kansas State Wildcats face the Texas Longhorns.