WACO, Texas — Kansas blowing the biggest lead in a loss in the storied program’s history didn’t cost coach Bill Self his sense of humor.
“I honestly believe that the oranges that we ate at halftime that Baylor provided was probably the reason why we [were bad] in the second half,” Self said after the No. 11 Jayhawks couldn’t protect a 21-point lead from late in the first half in an 81-70 loss to the Bears on Saturday.
The stunning reversal topped the 20-point lead Kansas blew to Arizona, which was No. 1, at Allen Fieldhouse on Jan. 27, 2003.
Interestingly, both times the Jayhawks have led by at least 20 points and lost, it was a double-digit setback. In a 91-74 victory 22 years ago, the Wildcats stormed back from a 44-24 deficit.
Another reason for Self to be more subdued than irate was the scene in the locker room.
“I really didn’t say much,” Self said. “I don’t think in situations like that there’s really a lot to be said. Any type of pick-’em-up talk isn’t going to be heard. And there’s no reason to get on anybody.”
Freshman Robert Wright III scored 20 of his 24 points for the Bears (14-7, 6-4 Big 12) after the break, when Kansas led 40-21 after going ahead 38-17 in the final minutes of the first half.
Baylor opened the second half on a 26-6 run, capped by Wright’s free throws for a 47-46 lead, sparking one of several deafening roars from the sellout crowd at Foster Pavilion.
The Jayhawks (15-6, 6-4) got the lead back to 10 and were still up eight with six minutes to go, when Baylor finished on a 26-7 run to cap a 60-point second half.
Jalen Celestine’s tiebreaking 3-pointer put the Bears up for good 66-63 with four minutes remaining.
Baylor completed the rally without VJ Edgecombe, the team’s leading scorer in Big 12 games. The Bears were in the middle of the big comeback when the freshman, who had 14 points, limped to the locker room due to an injury. He didn’t return.
“If you don’t believe in miracles, that second half, such a limited bench and against a Hall of Fame coach and a great team that don’t beat themselves,” Baylor coach Scott Drew said. “I think our crowd deserves a lot of credit. We only had 11 assists, but I think the crowd gets 10 of them.”
The collapse by the Jayhawks came a week after sixth-ranked Houston pulled off improbable rallies in the final seconds of regulation and the first overtime in a double-OT win at Allen Fieldhouse.
“Yeah, there’s some concern,” Self said. “It was two different type games. The way the [Baylor] game ended was indicative of how the entire second half went. It wasn’t just a closeout.”
The Jayhawks had a 20-0 edge in bench scoring at the break, but Celestine helped to close that gap by going 4-of-6 on 3-pointers after halftime. The final bench scoring margin was 28-12.
Kansas had three fewer turnovers (14) than Baylor, but was outscored 24-11 in points off turnovers. The Bears scored 15 of those points after the break, and the Jayhawks shot 36% in the second half.
Hunter Dickinson scored 20 points for the Jayhawks, who didn’t get consistent scoring from anyone else.
“They were as good as we were the first half, plus,” Self said of the second half. “And we were as bad as they were the first half, plus.”
