#2/3 BAYLOR LADY BEARS (15-1, 5-0) Location: Waco, Texas   Conference: Big 12 Head Coach: Kim Mulkey (La. Tech, 1984) Roster | Stats | Game Notes	#2/3 BAYLOR (15-1, 5-0) vs #20/22 IOWA STATE (14-4, 4-2) Jan. 23, 2019 • 7 p.m. Waco, Texas • Ferrell Center (10,284) LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast WATCH: Fox Sports Southwest / Fox Sports Go Talent: John Morris (PBP), Jim Haller (Color) LISTEN: BaylorBears.com/1660 AM/92.3 FM Talent: Bruce Gietzen (PBP), Maggie Davis-Stinnett (Color) Baylor Social Media: Channel Lineup: DISH: 416 DIRECTV: 676 UVERSE: 753/1753 GRANDE: 27
	#20/22 IOWA STATE CYCLONES (14-4, 4-2) Location: Ames, Iowa Conference: Big 12 Head Coach: Bill Fennelly (Penn, 1979) Roster | Stats | Game Notes

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
           
Whether he was actually the first is debatable, but Benjamin Franklin once wrote that nothing in life is certain "except death and taxes."
           
A late addition to that list is that Bill Fennelly's Iowa State women are going to shoot 3-pointers. The No. 20/22 Cyclones (14-4, 4-2), who visit the Ferrell Center for a 7 p.m. matchup Wednesday against No. 2 Baylor (15-1, 5-0), have made more 3-pointers (161) than the Lady Bears have attempted (134) this season.
           
"I don't know that there is a bad look for his team," Baylor coach Kim Mulkey said. "They cross half-court, those are good looks for them. We understand that. We're going to have to guard them everywhere and understand that there is no place you wait for them to come to. You get out there and you defend all over the floor."
           
A two-time unanimous All-Big 12 selection, 6-1 senior guard Bridget Carleton leads the league in scoring (19.9) and steals (2.4) while also averaging 8.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists. But, the Cyclones have "a lot more help around her," Mulkey said, with 6-3 sophomore center Kristin Scott (11.8 ppg, 6.6 rebounds), 6-1 sophomore forward Madison Wise (9.4 ppg), Tennessee transfer Alexa Middleton (9.1 ppg) and freshman Ashley Joens (12.2 ppg).
           
Joens was captain of the USA U-18 women's team that won the gold medal at last summer's FIBA World Championships, a team that also included 6-1 Baylor freshman NaLyssa Smith.
           
"It's a typical (Fennelly-coached) team – shoot a lot of 3's, use up the shot clock, mix up their defenses," Mulkey said. "They've been playing a majority of man-to-man, but through the years he's done a lot of different things. So, we're going to prepare for all of it. . . . He's probably the best in the business at coming up with something to expose a weakness."
           
Other than UConn's Katie Lou Samuelson, Carleton might be the best one-on-one player the Lady Bears have seen this season. Named to the Canadian Senior Women's National Team last summer, she scored a season-high 33 points at Kansas and is averaging 23.7 in league play.
           
"Just play her tough," said Mulkey, when asked how the Lady Bears would defend her. "Man-to-man, put some different players on her when we get fatigued and make sure we know where she is at all times. Know that if she doesn't have the ball, she's fixing to get the ball – a screen, a flare, something's going to be set for her."
           
Iowa State bounced back from a 73-64 loss at West Virginia to blow out Oklahoma, 104-78, while the Lady Bears ran their Ferrell Center winning streak to 30 with a dominating 79-47 win over West Virginia.
           
All four Baylor post players scored in double figures in Sunday's game against West Virginia, led by Kalani Brown with 17. Lauren Cox added 13 points, six rebounds and four blocks, while Smith and fellow freshman Queen Egbo had 11 and 10 points, respectively.
           
"They have Theresa (Ekheler) on their team that's about 6-5, but other than her we had a big size advantage," Cox said. "I think our guards really got the ball to us. They were fronting us. But, when there wasn't any help side, they made sure we got it in there."
           
Sophomore guard Moon Ursin said it makes it "so much easier" on the guards when you have dominant post players.
           
"And they're so consistent, so it's basically every game," she said. "They create shot opportunities for us and they rack up our assists."
           
While Iowa State is predominantly a perimeter attack, Baylor has better inside-out balance with five players averaging at least 9.6 points per game. Brown leads the way with 15.3 points and 7.0 rebounds, followed by Cox (11.7 ppg, 6.5 rebounds, 2.5 blocks), Smith (11.1 ppg, 6.6 rebounds) and senior point guard Chloe Jackson (10. 8 ppg, 6.4 assists).
           
Baylor leads the nation in field goal percentage defense (30.5) and has limited its five conference opponents to just 55.2 points per game.
           
"I think we're just really playing together, helping each other, helping the other," said Cox, who leads the Big 12 and ranks 17^th nationally with her 2.5 blocks per game. "We're doing a good job keeping people in front of us so that we're not having to help as much and leaving open shooters. That's a big part of why we're winning this season."
           
After Wednesday's game, Baylor goes back on the road for its next two, facing Oklahoma (5-12, 1-5) at 2 p.m. Sunday in Norman and Oklahoma State (12-4, 3-2) at 7 p.m. next Wednesday, Jan. 30, in Stillwater.
 

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BAYLOR EARNS LOP-SIDED VICTORY VS. WEST VIRGINIA AT HOME TO MOVE TO 5-0 IN BIG 12 PLAY
   Baylor's 79-47 victory over West Virginia at home was the largest margin of victory (32) over a Big 12 opponent this season for the Lady Bears, and BU extended its home win streak at the Ferrell Center to 30 games. In addition, Baylor's Big 12 win streak overall reached 27 in the regular season. Baylor shot an even 50 percent from the field to improve to 209-1 all-time under head coach Kim Mulkey when shooting 50 percent or better from the floor. Five players scored in double figures with Kalani Brown's 17 leading the way while Chloe Jackson dished a career-high 10 assists.
 
ISU IN SHORT
   The Cyclones come to town ranked No. 20 in the AP poll and No. 19 in the WBCA Coach's poll. ISU had an early-season Top 25 win over No. 24 Miami at home Nov. 18 (75-52) and narrow losses at No. 16 Iowa (73-70, Dec. 5) and vs. No. 11 Texas (64-62, Jan. 12). The Cyclones are 4-2 in Big 12 play, coming off a 104-78 win vs. Oklahoma Saturday at home. Bill Fennelly leads ISU in his 24^th season compiling a 494-257 (.657) record at the helm, and the Cyclones boast one of the best players in the league in senior Bridget Carleton, who averages 19.9 points, 8.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists per contests.
 
LIMITING TURNOVERS
   Through the first 10 games of the season Baylor compiled 154 turnovers, averaging 15.4 points per contest. With No. 1 UConn coming to town Jan. 3, the team set a goal to have single-digit turnovers vs. the Huskies, a team known for among many things, taking care of the ball. In the 12-point win over UConn, the Lady Bears limited themselves to just five turnovers. And, other than a hiccup at Texas Tech where BU suffered 16, Baylor has had 10 or less in its last six games, averaging 9.3 over that span. The Lady Bears are also climbing the nation's rankings for assists-to-turnover ratio at second, trailing only Oregon for the top spot at 1.77:1.
 
POUND THE PAINT, CLEAN THE GLASS, D-UP: LADY BEARS AMONG NATION'S BEST IN REBOUNDING, SCORING EFFICIENCY, DEFENSE
   In 12 statistical categories, the Lady Bears rank in the top 10 nationally. But, the Lady Bears (thru games Jan. 20) rank tops in the nation in defensive rebounds per game (35.0), rebound margin (+18.4) and field goal percentage defense (.305) while ranking fourth in field goal percentage (.515). Kalani Brown ranks 14th in the nation in field goal percentage at a .613 clip. In addition to the nation's best defensive field goal percentage, the Lady Bears rank tops in the nation in blocked shots per game (7.2), led by Lauren Cox's 2.5 per contest. Baylor's rebounding is a staple of the program, and the Lady Bears have out-rebounded all 16 opponents this season, Baylor won the rebounding battle in 34 of 35 contests last year, and in 85 of the last 88 contests, BU has had the upper hand on the boards.
 
LADY BEARS ON THE RUN
   Baylor has 16 runs this season of at least 10 unanswered points including one in four of the first five Big 12 contests. In 11 of 16 games this season, the Lady Bears have had at least one such run, and Baylor has also put together four runs of 20 or more points. Against TCU Jan. 12, Baylor held TCU without a field goal for 14:53 from near the end of the first quarter to early in the third quarter, outscoring the Horned Frogs 27-3 in that span, including a 21-0 run. In addition, Baylor is out-scoring opponents 178-52 on the fast break this season.
 
SHARING IS CARING: BAYLOR LEADS NATION IN ASSISTS PER GAME
   Baylor's 23.2 assists per contest ranks best in the nation led by Chloe Jackson's 6.4 assists per contest (ranks 9th nationally) while Lauren Cox's assists-to-turnover ratio of 2.94:1 ranks 12th nationally, Jackson (2.71:1) ranks 18th, Juicy Landrum is 22^nd (2.62:1), and DiDi Richards (2.54:1) ranks 25th. In fact, out of Baylor's 533 made field goals this season, the Lady Bears have assisted on 371 marking 69.6 percent of the team's buckets coming on an assist from a teammate.
 
50 IS THE MAGIC NUMBER: BAYLOR NEARLY UNBEATABLE WHEN HITTING HALF ITS SHOTS
   In just one occurrence since Kim Mulkey's arrival at Baylor in the 2000-01 season have the Lady Bears lost a game when shooting 50 percent or better. Baylor's record under Mulkey when shooting 50 percent or better is 209-1, and the Lady Bears are 34-0 when shooting 60 percent or better. The lone loss came in the 2017 NCAA Tournament when Baylor fell to Mississippi State in the Elite 8, 94-85 on March 26 despite shooting 53.3 percent from the floor.
 
TOUGH ON THE ROAD: LADY BEARS ON RECORD-SETTING CONFERENCE STREAK
   Baylor's win at Jan. 16 gave the Lady Bears 29 consecutive Big 12 road wins in the regular season, a league record passing its own mark of 22 set from Feb. 27, 2011-Jan. 8, 2014. In fact, since 1999-2000, Baylor's 29-straight road wins in league play is the second-best active streak and fifth-best all-time. UConn's current streak of 46-straight road wins in the AAC dates back to Jan. 1, 2014, and Stanford holds the all-time record with 48 consecutive Pac-12 wins from Jan. 22, 2009 to Feb. 7, 2014.
 
JACKSON, LANDRUM THRIVING AT POINT GUARD OUT OF POSITION
   Head Coach Kim Mulkey said at the Big 12 Women's Basketball Tipoff Oct. 16 that she had never entered a season without knowing who her point guard would be. Despite that fact, Baylor has had no trouble distributing or sharing the ball through 16 games this season. Through Jan. 20, Baylor ranked tops in the nation in assists per game (23.2) and No. 2 in assists-to-turnover ratio (1.77:1).
   Chloe Jackson and Juicy Landrum, true-two guards, are the Lady Bears' primary point guards this season and both have met the challenge thus far with success. Jackson ranks 9th in nation in assists per game (6.4) while Landrum ranks 24th in the country in assists-to-turnover ratio at 2.62:1. Landrum is tied for second on the team with 68 assists (4.3 p/g), and DiDi Richards (4.1) is third.
 
BROWN AND COX NAMED TO WOODEN TROPHY AWARD MIDSEASON TOP 25 WATCH LIST
   Both Kalani Brown and Lauren Cox collected numerous postseason accolades after the 2017-18 season, which resulted in a multitude of 2018-19 preseason honors. Jan. 9, the post duo earned spots on the John Wooden Trophy Award Midseason Top 25 watch list. Last season, Brown was recognized as a top-five finalist for the award.
 
BAYLOR PLAYERS PAY FOR MULKEY'S 550-WINS TRIBUTE
   The Baylor players took it upon themselves to congratulate Kim Mulkey in a pre-game presentation Wednesday for her 550th career victory achieved Sunday at Texas Tech. Senior Kalani Brown took the PA microphone and addressed the crowd an Mulkey prior to the K-State game Jan. 9, and the Lady Bears chipped in their own money for three easels of roses shaped in the numbers 5-5-0. Mulkey was told postgame that CONTINUED ON PAGE 7 ...  the players paid for the flowers and later in the postgame press conference said "My players bought those 550-numbered roses. [Out of their pocket] Wow. That's the kind of kids I get to coach. I didn't know that until the game was over, and I thought wow, my players are buying that."
 
ABOUT BAYLOR'S HISTORIC WIN OVER NO. 1 UCONN
   Two elite programs met in Waco Jan. 3, and for the first time in school history (previously 0-14) the Baylor Lady Bears knocked off a No. 1-ranked team with UConn falling 68-57 at a sold-out Ferrell Center on ESPN. Not only did Baylor win the game, the Lady Bears put an end to a long line of streaks set by the Huskies, who are the standard for women's basketball with 11 NCAA Championships. Baylor's victory ended a streak of 126 consecutive regular season games for the Huskies and a streak of 55 consecutive regular season road wins. UConn had won 209 straight games in regulation; it's last loss in regulation also came to No. 1 Baylor Dec. 18, 2011.
   The Lady Bears' 11-point win was the largest margin of victory for a team vs. UConn since Feb. 27, 2012 when UConn fell to Notre Dame 72-59. In addition, Baylor's defense held UConn to just a 29.4 shooting percentage, its lowest in any game the past 20 seasons.
   Baylor became the third Big 12 school to ever defeat a No. 1 team joining Texas Tech who accomplished the feat twice and Texas, and just the second time that a Big 12 team has beaten a No. 1 in a non-conference matchup.
   BU's big win kept an overall home win streak at the Ferrell Center alive at 28 games while extending its non-conference home win streak to 47 games.
 
BROWN PICKS UP ESPNW NATIONAL HONOR AFTER LEADING BAYLOR TO WIN OVER NO. 1 UCONN
   Kalani Brown didn't shy away from the spotlight when the lights came on Jan. 3 vs. No. 1 UConn. In front of a sold-out crowd at the Ferrell Center and nationally televised on ESPN, the senior post put up 22 points and a season-high 17 rebounds. She was 11-for-17 from the floor in 36 minutes of play. Her games that week also included performances vs. UTRGV and at Texas Tech, but ESPNW.com singled out her performance against the No. 1 Huskies and tabbed her National Player of the Week on Jan. 7.
 
BAYLOR SIGNS TOP-10 PROSPECT OLIVER AS LONE ADDITION TO 2019 SIGNING CLASS
   A year after signing five players and accepting a graduate transfer, Jordyn Oliver gets all the Lady Bears' attention this season as the No. 10-ranked national prospect (Collegiate Girls Basketball Report) signed with Baylor. Oliver, a Prosper, Texas native is a 3-time TABC All-State selection, and was also ranked No. 11 by ESPN Hoopgurlz.
 
MULKEY'S MIDAS TOUCH: 1,100 WINS
   Everything head coach Kim Mulkey touches doesn't necessarily turn to gold, but if it has to do with college basketball, nearly everything she touches results in a win. Baylor's win vs. Nicholls (Nov. 6) gave Mulkey 1,100 wins combined as a collegiate player (130, La. Tech), assistant coach (430, La. Tech) & head coach (540, Baylor). In those capacities, Mulkey's teams are a combined 1,100-192 for an astounding .851 winning percentage.
 
FIERCE FIVE: FISH EAGER TO MAKE MARK AFTER SELECTION AS NO. 1 RECRUITING CLASS
   For the second time in program history, the Baylor women's basketball team signed the nation's top recruiting class and the "Fierce Five" freshmen are three games deep into 2018-19. Caitlin Bickle, Aquira DeCosta, Queen Egbo, Honesty Scott-Grayson and NaLyssa Smith all signed with the Lady Bears and all were ranked in the Top 30 overall by ESPN Hoopgurlz and boasted a five-star rating. Smith is shining brightest through the first 15 games averaging 11.1 points and 6.6 rebounds per contest, which ranks fourth and second, respectively on the team in both categories while picking up the Big 12 Co-Freshman of the Week award Nov 12.
 
CAPPING ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL NON-CONFERENCE SLATE
   The Lady Bears completed another successful, tough, non-conference schedule. Baylor went 10-1 with a 3-1 record vs. Top 25 teams, including the program's first-ever win over a No. 1 team when the Lady Bears beat UConn Jan. 3. Baylor is 147-3 all-time vs.non-conference opponents at the Ferrell Center, including 47-straight wins at home.