Baylor vs. Kansas: 2019-20 college basketball preview, TV schedule

It’s the biggest regular season game of the 2019-20 season, as the No. 1 Baylor Bears host the No. 3 Kansas Jayhawks on Saturday afternoon.

TV Schedule: Saturday, February 22, 2020 at 12:00 PM ET, ESPN

Location: Ferrell Center, Waco, Texas

In the regular season, it doesn’t get any bigger than this.

With just a few weeks to sort out resumes ahead of Selection Sunday, the top-ranked team in the nation is hosting the third-ranked team in the nation, with conference supremacy and a potential top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament on the line.

Baylor has been preparing all season for a moment like this.

The Bears – who despite being ranked No. 1 in the AP poll, remains without proper respect – haven’t lost since their second game of the season. They’ve now won 23 straight games, a Big 12 record. Teams haven’t even come close to beating them, with Baylor’s most recent one-possession result coming back on December 10 over Butler.

Baylor’s defense, in particular, has played lights out recently. The Bears have held their opponents under 60 points in five of their last seven games, including holding Texas to just 45 points in Austin. They’re surrendering just 58.2 points per game, tied with San Diego State for third-best in the country.

Baylor isn’t the only team who has looked unstoppable as of late, however, with the Kansas Jayhawks breathing down their necks in every race left to run.

Kansas hasn’t lost since they hosted Baylor several weeks ago, a 67-55 defeat that remains the Jayhawks’ only blemish in Big 12 play. Since then, they have reeled off 11 straight victories, each seemingly more dominant than the next. Four of their last five wins have come by double digits, with the exception being a nine-point win at a hostile Morgantown environment against West Virginia.

Devon Dotson and Marcus Garrett have become one of the most feared guard duos in the nation. Dotson was already a certified Wooden Award candidate, averaging 18.4 points per game during his sophomore season and averaging at least four rebounds and four assists per game, to boot. But Garrett has shown an ability to be explosive, recently dropping 24 against Oklahoma. Then again, he can disappear too, following up that performance with just five points against Iowa State (and a recent oh-fer to his name as well).

Both of these teams are better than the last time they met, but it’s still worthwhile to look back at that 12-point Baylor victory. The Bears dominated the first half, entering the break with a 13-point they never relinquished – one key for Kansas will be to show more energy when the game starts, which could be a challenge with the 11:00 AM local tip.

Kansas also needs to limit turnovers. They coughed the ball up to Baylor 14 times during their last meeting, while the Bears turned the ball over just five times. Protecting the ball better should help the Jayhawks.

All eyes will be on the status of Baylor guard MaCio Teague, who has missed the last two games with a wrist injury. He’s the team’s second-leading scorer at 14.4 points per game and one of Scott Drew’s most important perimeter weapons. If he’s forced to miss a third game, that might be enough to turn the tide in Kansas’ favor.

Prediction: Kansas 66, Baylor 64