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Kansas State bounces Baylor in Big 12 play
Published 2/17/2013 in Sports
By ARNE GREENSpecial to The Telegram
MANHATTAN — Every time the Baylor Bears bared their teeth and showed signs of life, Kansas State sent them back into hibernation.
Though the No. 10-ranked Wildcats led from midway through the opening half, it was their response to a 12-point Baylor run in the second period that truly showed their mettle as they rolled to an 81-61 victory Saturday night at Bramlage Coliseum.
"Obviously it was a good win against a very good team," said K-State coach Bruce Weber, whose Wildcats improved to 20-5 and kept pace in the race for the top of the Big 12 standings at 9-3.
K-State, Oklahoma State and Kansas all won at home Saturday to remain in a three-way tie for first place.
K-State did it by taking Baylor's best shot and turning it into a laugher. Point guard Angel Rodriguez and post Jordan Henriquez both had double-doubles and Shane Southwell knocked down six 3-pointers to lead the Wildcats.
Rodriguez had career highs of 22 points and 10 assists with just two turnovers while Henriquez busted loose for 10 points, 10 rebounds and five blocked shots. Southwell finished with 18 points and held Baylor big man Isaiah Austin in check defensively.
Baylor made its only serious second-half run behind the perimeter shooting of Brady Heslip, who knocked down three 3-pointers in three minutes, the last one cutting K-State's lead to 43-41 with 12:40 left.
The Wildcats called time and promptly hit four threes of their own. Rodriguez started it from the top of the arc and Southwell hit two, sandwiched around one from Martavious Irving, to make it 55-45 at the 9:05 mark.
"Right when we got in the (timeout) huddle, the first thing we said was, 'They punched us, we've got to punch them back,' " Rodriguez said. "We responded as a team and started getting shutouts and making positive plays at the opposite end.
"That got us going. It's hard when you punch somebody and then they punch your back – it kind of brings you down. We got them down and they weren't able to make another run."
The Wildcats remained in control the rest of the way by dominating in all facets. They outrebounded the taller Bears, 33-30, with a 16-8 advantage on the offensive boards, plus forced 19 Baylor turnover while giving it up just six times themselves.
"I thought Kansas State showed why they're the 10th-ranked team in the nation," said Baylor coach Scott Drew, whose Bears slipped to 16-9 with a 7-5 league record. "They really dominated and imposed their will.
"We've done a much better job taking care of the ball the last couple of games and we're a veteran backcourt. To force us into 19 turnovers, hats off to their defense – we've got to get better – and the second thing was the offensive rebounding."
Weber was more impressed with the defensive effort than anything.
"I know we scored 81, but to hold them to 61 is still a pretty positive stat," he said. "That's got to be the thing, when we don't score, we've got to be able to shut people down."
The Wildcats shot 45.5 percent to 45.7 for Baylor, but thanks to offensive rebounding and turnovers had 20 more field goal attempts than the Bears.
For Henriquez, it was his first double-double of the season. It also was his first time scoring in double figures.
"It just feels good to play well and be prepared to go against a really talented Baylor team," said Henriquez, a 6-foot-11 senior, who has been inconsistent all year.
While Henriquez was a defensive presence underneath, the 6-6 Southwell had to guard 7-foot freshman Austin and Rodriguez drew league scoring and assists leader Pierre Jackson.
Austin finished with 13 points, but did not get going until it was too late, while Jackson was 2 of 8 from the field and finished with seven points, nine assists and five turnovers. Guard A.J. Walton led the Bears with 14 points and Heslip had 12.
K-State now has a quick turnaround before playing host to West Virginia and former Wildcat coach Bob Huggins at 8 Monday night.
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