Kansas Fans Show Some Respect For Baylor

The Kansas Jayhawks were at home, coming off a tough loss to Tennessee that knocked them from the number one spot in the AP Poll. They were undoubtedly motivated to make a statement against upstart Baylor.

Kansas did win, but Baylor made them work the full 40 minutes to put them away. They played hard and smart and nearly got a huge road win. For that effort, even Kansas fans at SB Nation’s Rock Chalk Talk were impressed.

Coming into tonight, the Vegas line was set at 16.5 points. For a game that never got anywhere close to that spread, I never got too worried. A bit worried, yes. But, not to the point of saying, “we’re going to lose.” It was said on Monday and in every thread leading up to this game – Baylor is good, and it will not be an easy game. Not many people (myself included) had seen much of the Bears to this point this year, but after watching the Jayhawks struggle to put them away, even after extending to a ten point lead with about six minutes to go, they have to be considered the fourth best team in the Big 12. Sure, Kansas didn’t play to their potential, but a lot of that can be attributed to the talent of Baylor.

Baylor is now 14-3 this season, with wins over Arizona State, Arkansas, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Xavier. It appears the program is finally on the upswing six years after the embarrassing Patrick Dennehy scandal.