Feb 16, 2002

Box Score

By DOUG TUCKER
AP Sports Writer

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) - Even an under-the-weather Drew Gooden is still good for a double-double.

The 6-foot-10 junior, who sat out Thursday's practice with the flu, scored just four points in the first half but wound up with 11 points and 14 rebounds as the No. 2 Jayhawks beat Baylor 87-72 to remain unbeaten in the Big 12.

It was Gooden's 19th double-double of the season.

"I guess I was about 75 percent. Before the game I thought I'd just concentrate on getting rebounds," said Gooden, the Big 12's leading scorer and rebounder.

He was clearly winded in the first half.

"I can be sick as a dog and rebound," Gooden said. "I was a question mark as far as me running up and down the court and getting my shots up. I got them up, but they just didn't go in for me today."

Kansas coach Roy Williams, alarmed that Gooden's illness might spread, has the entire team taking antibiotics.

"Sometimes you have to get by with playing ugly," he said.

Nick Collison had 22 points as the Jayhawks (23-2, 12-0 Big 12) overcame early lethargy and sloppy ball-handling for their 10th win in a row.

"It was obviously not the same Drew we've seen," said Collison, who scored Kansas' last eight points.

"His health had a little bit to do with that. But we were real sloppy. It wasn't pretty like some games where we're really passing the ball and running."

The Bears (14-11, 4-8) came in as 22-point underdogs but led by as many as 3 points during the first half and trailed by only two about six minutes into the second half.

"We wanted to make them compete and I think we did," said Baylor guard John Lucas. "We left our hearts out on the court."

The Jayhawks' offense, which had scored over 100 points four of the previous five games, was never able to get in high gear against the more deliberate attack of the Bears.

"I'm not sure we slowed anything down," said Baylor coach Dave Bliss, who dropped to 5-16 against Kansas.

"Kansas is just a terrific basketball team."

Collison hit the last two buckets in a 10-2 run that put the Jayhawks on top 83-68 with 2:32 left.

"We tried," Kansas guard Kirk Hinrich said. "We were just real sluggish, real complacent. Fortunately, we were able to pull away late for the win. Drew still did some good things for us, but he wasn't the same."

Baylor's Wendell Greenleaf, who'd been averaging 14 points, was just 1-of-10 for 2 points.

Outshot and outrebounded, the Jayhawks trailed much of the first half while Gooden and Hinrich struggled.

Jeff Boschee's 3-pointer at the buzzer gave Kansas a 4-point halftime lead and Baylor never regained the lead. Kansas led 53-51 when Keith Langford hit a 12-foot jumper and triggered a 9-2 run that finally gave Kansas a semi-comfortable lead.

Boschee, who had 15 points at halftime, finished with 21 as the Jayhawks won their 10th in a row and dropped the Bears' road record to 0-9. Since spraining his left thumb two games ago, Boschee has hit 12 3-pointers. Hinrich, who had been averaging almost 19 points during the winning streak, wound up with 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting.

Lawrence Roberts had 21 for Baylor while Lucas had 16, mostly on off-balance jumpers and runners.

Now four wins away from being the first Big 12 team to go unbeaten through the conference, the Jayhawks can clinch at least a tie for the title by beating Iowa State on Monday night.

"We'll be up for that game," Gooden said.