Wednesday was a mixed bag for Kansas basketball fans.
Many watched the No. 3-ranked KU men’s basketball team lose a tough matchup on the road at unranked Central Florida, while some Jayhawk fans were able to witness one of the biggest regular season wins in recent history for the KU women’s basketball team.
The Jayhawks beat the No. 4-ranked Baylor Bears 87-66 to earn their first Big 12 win of the season. It was also KU’s first win against Baylor since 2014 and first win against a top-five team since 2009.
The Jayhawks were led by a sensational performance from super-senior Taiyanna Jackson who finished with a career-high 27 points and a season-high 19 rebounds.
Jackson’s 27 points helped her eclipse the 1,000-point scoring mark in her KU career – making her the 32nd player in school history to do so. She also recorded her 35th career double-double, which is fourth in school history, and she now sits seventh in school history in total rebounds with 849.
1K for THE Stallion 🔥
— Kansas Women's Basketball (@KUWBball) January 11, 2024
Career night for #TW1N with 27 PTS 👏 #RockChalk | @tai_jackson11 pic.twitter.com/kXAa5kvMjQ
Freshman S’Mya Nichols continued her impressive season by adding 22 points and 6 rebounds. Super-senior Holly Kersgieter also contributed 19 points and 6 rebounds.
The trio of Jackson, Nichols, and Kersgieter were able to outscore the entire Baylor team combined in what was a much-needed win for a KU program that has had a very disappointing year thus far.
The Jayhawks have a trio of super-seniors who returned from last year's WNIT Championship squad and added the talent of Nichols to boost. Yet, the Jayhawks sit at 1-3 in Big 12 play and 8-7 overall.
In his postgame press conference, head coach Brandon Schneider called the win a turning point for the team.
“We talked about how this presented the opportunity to be a turning point moment for us,” said Schneider. “Win or lose, we have got to have more fun, and I thought we had some outstanding individual performances that needed to be celebrated.”
The Jayhawks will look to continue their winning ways on Saturday when they host Oklahoma State. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. CT and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.