No. 1 Kansas Takes on No. 22 Baylor in Big 12 Semifinals

Notes Links Kansas Postseason Information
Notes Links Kansas Game Notes (.pdf)
Notes Links Baylor Game Notes (.pdf)
Notes Links Big 12 Game Notes (.pdf)

2016 PHILLIPS 66 BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP
No. 1 Kansas (28-4, 15-3) advanced to the semifinal of the 2016 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship with an 85-63 win against Sunflower Showdown rival Kansas State, March 10. The Jayhawks will face No. 22/20 Baylor (22-10, 10-8) in the semifinals, Friday, March 11, at 6 p.m. on ESPN2. Baylor advanced to the semifinals with a 75-61 win against No. 23/22 Texas, Thursday. Kansas is the No. 1 seed of the event for the 13th time in the 20-year history of the Conference. Baylor is the No. 5 seed for the 2016 event.

Kansas has advanced to its 36th all-time semifinal in a league postseason tournament, including its 18th in the 20-year history of the Big 12. The only times KU did not advance to the semifinals was 2000 and 2009. KU is 11-6 in Big 12 Championship semifinals, including 7-4 under head coach Bill Self.

ABOUT KANSAS
Kansas averages 81.9 points per game and has +14.3 scoring margin. The Jayhawks shoot 49.5 from the field, including 42.7 from 3-point range. KU is among the Big 12 leaders in field goal percentage defense at 39.6 percent. The Jayhawks pull down an average of 37.9 rebounds per game and have a +5.0 rebound margin. Kansas also averages 16.0 assists, 6.7 steals and 4.2 blocked shots per contest.

Senior F Perry Ellis leads Kansas in scoring (16.6 ppg) and has scored 20 or more points in each of his last three games, including 21 points in the Big 12 quarterfinal against Kansas State (3/10). Ellis has 12 games of 20-plus points with nine of those against Big 12 competition. He is second on the team in rebounding at 6.0 rpg. Ellis averaged 17.7 points and 5.8 rebounds during Big 12 play. Junior G Frank Mason III is coming off a 16-point performance against Kansas State (3/30) where he was 6-for-8 from the field. Mason is shooting 65.9 percent from the field in his last five games, including 62.5 percent (10-16) from 3-point range. He is averaging 13.5 points for the season. Mason has 35 assists and seven turnovers in his last seven contests. Mason leads KU with 4.7 assists per contest and is tied for the team high with 43 steals. Junior G Wayne Selden Jr., is a starter who scores 13.1 points per game and leads KU with 66 3-pointers this season. Sophomore G Devonte’ Graham is tied with Mason with a team-high 43 steals. He is second on the team in assists (118) and 3-point field goals made (60). He is scoring 11.2 points per game. Graham and Mason each have a team-best 2.5 assist-to-turnover ratio. Junior F Landen Lucas rounds out the KU starters. He leads Kansas in rebounding at 6.2 boards per game and has averaged 9.0 boards in his last nine games. Lucas averages 5.3 points per game.

Junior G Brannen Greene is a regular who has made 30 3-pointers this season and scores 6.0 points per game off the bench. Sophomore G Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk was 2-for-2 from 3-point range against Kansas State (3/10) in scoring six points. Mykhailiuk averages 5.5 points and has made 33 3-pointers this season. Freshman F Carlton Bragg Jr. is averaging 3.9 ppg and 2.3 rpg, after his career-high 12 points, on 5-of-6 shooting, 2-for-2 from 3-point range, against Kansas State (3/10). Senior F Jamari Traylor leads KU with 27 blocked shots after his two swats, to go along with six points against KSU (3/10). Traylor has scored six or more points in each of his last three games and is averaging 3.4 points and 3.3 rebounds for the season. Freshman Cheick Diallo missed the Kansas State game due to a mouth injury suffered in practice. Diallo averages 2.9 points and 2.6 rebounds per contest. His 22 blocked shots are tied for second on the team with senior F Hunter Mickelson, who has started 10 games this season, and is averaging 2.4 points and 2.4 rebounds. 

THE BAYLOR SERIES
The Kansas-Baylor series dates back to 1951 with the Jayhawks leading 26-4. Kansas has won seven straight in the series and holds an 12-2 advantage in the last 14 meetings. Baylor’s two wins in that stretch came March 9, 2013 in Waco and March 9, 2012 at the Big 12 Championship semifinals at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Since the inception of the Big 12, KU is 25-4 against Baylor — 24-2 in regular-season play and 1-2 in the Big 12 Championship. This is the second straight year KU and BU are meeting in the Big 12 Championship with Kansas winning 62-52 in last year’s semifinals. BU won the two previous Big 12 Championship meetings – 81-72 in the 2012 semifinals and 71-64 in the 2009 quarterfinals. KU was No. 1 seed in all three of those meetings. Kansas head coach Bill Self is 18-4 all-time against Baylor, including a 18-3 mark while at Kansas, while Baylor’s Scott Drew is 3-18 versus Kansas.

KU swept the regular season contests against Baylor, winning 102-74 in Lawrence and 66-60 in Waco.

A KANSAS WIN WOULD…
Make Kansas 29-4, extending its winning streak to 13 games… Make KU 12-4 in games away from Allen Fieldhouse (7-3 in true road games and 5-1 on neutral floors)… Make Kansas 12-6 in Big 12 Championship semifinal games and 20-16 in all-time league tournament semifinals… Advance KU to the conference tourney championship for the 12th time in Big 12 history and 20th time overall… Improve Kansas to 70-26 in league tournament play, 40-10 at the Big 12 Championship… Make Kansas 30-6 all-time in Sprint Center, including 3-0 this season… Give Kansas its eighth-straight win against Baylor, making the series 27-4 in favor of the Jayhawks… Make Bill Self 381-82 while at Kansas, 588-187 all-time and 35-11 in conference tournament play, 26-6 while at Kansas in the Big 12 Championship… Make Kansas 2,182-835 all-time.

A KANSAS LOSS WOULD…
Drop Kansas to 28-5 on the season, ending a 12-game winning streak… Make Kansas 11-5 in games away from Allen Fieldhouse this season (7-3 in true road games and 4-2 on neutral courts)… Make Kansas 12-6 in Big 12 tourney semifinal action… Drop Kansas to 69-27 in league tournament play overall, including 39-11 in Big 12 Championship play… Make Kansas 2-1 in Sprint Center this season… Make Kansas 29-7 all-time in Sprint Center… End a seven-game Kansas winning streak against Baylor, making the series 26-5 in favor of KU… Make Bill Self 379-83 while at Kansas, 587-188 all-time and 34-12 in conference tournament play, 25-7 while at Kansas in the Big 12 Championship… Make Kansas 2,181-836 all-time.

KANSAS STATE LEFTOVERS
• Kansas improved to 18-2 in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship and 39-10 overall. The Jayhawks are now 9-0 against Kansas State in the Championship and 26-6 as the No. 1 seed.
• Senior F Perry Ellis poured in 21 points, giving him his third-straight 20+ point performance and 12th of the season. He led the team in scoring and rebounding for the eighth time this year, pulling down six rebounds.
• Junior G Frank Mason III set his career-high for points in Big 12 Championship play with 16.
• Mason’s 16 points moved him into 44th place on KU’s all-time scoring list, passing Otto Schnellbacher and Rex Walters. He has 1,075 career points. His seven assists moved him to 16th place on the all-time assists list, passing Steve Woodberry.
• Sophomore G Devonte’ Graham led the Jayhawks in assists for the 15th time this year, with a total of eight dishes for the game.
• Freshman F Carlton Bragg Jr. scored a career-high 12 points in 11 minutes. Bragg made his first 3-pointer since Jan. 12 at West Virginia and finished 2-for-2 from beyond the arc.

KANSAS NOTABLES
• Kansas was the only team in the Big 12 with an undefeated league record at home (9-0) in 2015-16.
• Kansas’ 81.9 scoring average is the best in the Bill Self era (81.6 in 2009-10) which is the highest since a 90.9 scoring average in 2001-02.
• Out of its 28 victories this season, Kansas has won by 10 or more points in 17 of those wins, including six of the last 11 games. Six KU wins have been by 30 points or more, including 86-56 at Texas (2/29).
• KU has out-shot 28 of 32 opponents, including each of their last 11 opponents. KU is shooting 51.6 percent from the field in its last 11 games, including 57.1 percent against Kansas State (3/10).
• Kansas has shot 50 percent or better in eight of its last 11 games and 16 times overall this season.
• The Jayhawks have out-rebounded 23 of 32 foes, including nine of the last 13 contests. KU had a +18 rebound advantage against Oklahoma State (2/15), +21 at TCU (2/6) and +11 (42-31) versus Kentucky (1/30).
• Kansas has shot 40 percent or better from 3-point range in 22 of its 32 games, including seven of the last nine contests.
• The KU bench has outscored its opponents’ bench in 22 of 32 games this season and is 21-1 in those contests. With it being Senior Day, KU’s bench outscored Iowa State’s bench 46-10 on March 5.
• KU has made seven or more 3-pointers in 25 of 32 games this season, including 11 of the last 12 battles. KU has made 10 or more 3-pointers 11 times, including 15 threes vs. No. Colorado (11/13) and Chaminade (11/23), which were one off the school record.
• When guards Frank Mason III, Wayne Selden Jr. and Devonte’ Graham each score 10-plus points in the same game, KU is 13-0, including 7-0 in Big 12 league play.
• Senior F Perry Ellis is averaging 21.0 points and shooting 63.4 percent (26-for-41) in his last three games.
• Ellis has pulled down nine or more rebounds in eight games this season.
• Ellis led KU in scoring in nine of 18 Big 12 games, averaging 17.7 points per Big 12 contest (16.3 ppg overall).
• Sophomore G Devonte’ Graham has made three or more 3-pointers in three of his last five games and nine times this season.
• Junior G Frank Mason III is shooting 65.9 percent from the field in his last five games, including 10-for-16 (62.5 percent) from 3-point range. Mason averages 14.5 ppg in that span.

KANSAS IN THE PHILLIPS 66 BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP
Here are some Kansas notes heading into the conference postseason championship:
• Kansas has won more Big 12 Championships than any other school with nine. Oklahoma and Iowa State are next with three each. KU won the first three events in 1997-98-99, then the 2006-07-08-10-11-13 titles. KU is 9-2 in tourney title games having only lost the 2002 title to Oklahoma and the 2015 title to Iowa State.
• Kansas is the only team to have won at least 30 games in the Big 12 Championship. The Jayhawks are 39-10 (80.0 percent) in the event, while Oklahoma State (23-18) and Texas (23-20) are second with 23 wins each.
• With a 25-6 (80.6 percent) record, KU head coach Bill Self has the highest winning percentage in Big 12 Championship history with more than one tournament (Frank Haith went 3-0 at Missouri in 2012).
• Kansas has been the No. 1 seed 13 times (1997-98-2002-03-07-09-10-11-12-13-14-15-16), No. 2 seed four times (2001-05-06-08), No. 3 seed twice (1999-2004), and the No. 5 seed in 2000.
• Kansas has won 19 of its 20 first games in the Big 12 Championship with the 2009 loss to Baylor being its only blemish. The Jayhawks are 1-0 in opening-round games and 18-2 in quarterfinal contests. In 2000 KU was the No. 5 seed, won its first game and lost in the quarterfinals. All of KU’s other first games were in the quarterfinals.
• KU has reached the semifinals in 18 of the 20 Big 12 Championships. The Jayhawks did not reach the 2000 or 2009 semis.
• Kansas has won six of its nine Big 12 titles as the No. 1 seed – 1997, 1998, 2007, 2010, 2011 and 2013. KU was the No. 3 seed in its 1999 title run and the No. 2 seed in 2006 and 2008. The lowest seed to win the event was a No. 3 seed: Kansas in 1999, Oklahoma in 2003 and Oklahoma State in 2005.
• Kansas has had 42 conference championship all-tournament selections, including 25 in the 18-year history of the Big 12 Championship. Current Jayhawk senior F Perry Ellis was an all-tournament selection in 2013 and junior G Wayne Selden Jr. was a 2015 all-tourney honoree.
• Of the 42 conference championship all-tournament selections, 11 were named the event’s most outstanding player, including eight in the Big 12 era.

KANSAS IN KANSAS CITY
Kansas City has been a second home of sorts for Kansas over the years. KU’s first-ever game — a 16-5 loss to Kansas City YMCA on Feb. 3, 1899 — was played in Kansas City. The 2016 Big 12 Championship semifinal will mark KU’s 295th game played all-time in Kansas City, and its 36th in Sprint Center. KU is 29-6 in Sprint Center including winning the 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2013 Big 12 Championships in the venue and the 2012 CBE Classic.

Kansas played 106 games in Kemper Arena with an 81-25 record. KU is 214-80 in games played in Kansas City. 

• Kansas went 26-4 in Kemper Arena from 1997 until 2006, when it played its last game in the venue. Included in that run were Big 12 Championship titles in 1997, 1998 and 1999.
• Kemper Arena was the host of the 1988 NCAA Final Four when the Jayhawks won the national championship.
• Kansas has played at least one regular-season game in Kansas City in 26 of the last 28 seasons, including every year Sprint Center has existed.
• Kansas has won a mind-boggling 26 conference tournaments (13 holiday conference tourneys and 13 postseason league titles) with 24 of those in Kansas City. The lone two titles not in KC were in 2006 in Dallas and 2007 in Oklahoma City.

IN THE POLLS
In the most recent national rankings released on March 7, Kansas is No. 1 both the Associated Press Top 25 and USA Today Coaches’ Poll. Kansas holds the longest active streak for consecutive weeks in the AP Top 25 (142) after Duke fell out of the poll for the first time in eight seasons, ending a 167-week streak, on Feb. 1.

KANSAS vs. RANKED TEAMS
With its 85-78 win against No. 21/20 Iowa State (3/5), Kansas improved to 9-3 against nationally-ranked opponents in 2015-16, including 3-0 versus top-10 foes. Nine of those 12 contests have been versus Big 12 members with KU having a 7-2 record. In the Bill Self era, Kansas is 73-37 against ranked opponents and has had a winning record against ranked foes each of the last 11 seasons. In 2014-15 KU played an all-time high 16 games vs. ranked foes and its 10 wins last year were also a season best.

THIS DAY IN KANSAS BASKETBALL HISTORY
Kansas is 11-7 all-time on March 11
March 11, 2007: An incredible 22-point comeback was capped off by an 88-84 overtime victory as Kansas captured the 2007 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship over Texas at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City. Kansas’ Julian Wright and Brandon Rush were named to the all-tournament team. With Kansas up 4-2, Texas went on a 19-2 run and led 21-6 with 13:11 left in the first half. Behind Kevin Durant’s 22 first-half points, the Longhorns picked up their biggest lead of 22 at the 8:10 mark by a score of 32-10. The Jayhawks clawed back, outscoring UT 24-7 over the final eight minutes, and trailed Texas 39-34 at halftime. Kansas cut the Texas lead to one three times in the second half before completing the 22-point comeback when Mario Chalmers sank two free throws to make the score 61-60 with 7:51 to play. Both teams traded big baskets down the stretch and the game went into overtime tied at 79. Freshman Sherron Collins scored 20 points to lead four Jayhawks in double figures. Wright added 19 points and eight boards, Rush chipped in 19 points and seven rebounds and Chalmers finished with 17 points.

UP NEXT
Should Kansas advance March 11, it would be making its 12th Big 12 championship appearance and 20th overall league tournament title game. The Big 12 title game will be Saturday, March 12, at 5 p.m. (Central) on ESPN.

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