#1/1 BAYLOR LADY BEARS (24-1, 14-0) Location: Waco, Texas Conference: Big 12 Head Coach: Kim Mulkey (La. Tech, 1984) Roster | Stats | Game Notes	#1/1 BAYLOR (24-1, 14-0) at #20/21 Iowa State (20-6, 10-4) Feb. 23, 2019 • 3 p.m. Ames, Iowa • Hilton Coliseum (14,350) LIVE STATS: Stat Broadcast WATCH: Fox Sports Go Talent: Ron Thulin (PBP), Brenda VanLengen (Color) LISTEN: BaylorBears.com/1660 AM/92.3 FM Talent: Bruce Gietzen (PBP), Maggie Davis-Stinnett (Color) Baylor Social Media: Channel Lineup: DISH: 444/9514 DIRECTV: 676-1 UVERSE: 754/1754 GRANDE: 134
	IOWA STATE CYCLONES (20-6, 10-4) Location: Ames, Iowa Conference: Big 12 Head Coach: Bill Fennelly (Penn, 1979) Roster | Stats | Game Notes

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
            Unlike the NFL, where coaches can rest their starters for the playoffs once their seeding is decided, Baylor coach Kim Mulkey can't rest her starters even if that's what she really wanted to do. And she doesn't. 
            With a share of their ninth consecutive Big 12 regular-season championship already decided by Wednesday's 80-40 rout of Kansas, the top-ranked Lady Bears (24-1, 14-0) can win it outright by beating No. 20/21 Iowa State (20-6, 10-4) at 3 p.m. Saturday at Hilton Coliseum in Ames. 
            "You don't want to share a title, you want to win it outright," said Mulkey, whose team has won 37 straight conference regular-season games, 35 consecutive Big 12 games on the road and 16 in a row overall. "We only have to win one to win it outright, but I want to win every game that's remaining. And (the players) do, too."
            This is a driven team that won't settle for anything but another clean sweep of the Big 12 and a trip to Tampa, Fla., for the Final Four. The TTT on the Lady Bears' wrist bands stands for Together to Tampa. 
            "I think you can become complacent, lose your focus and feel like you're entitled," Mulkey said. "I want to play the tough teams. I don't want to have to rest kids if we don't have to. It's nice to rest them, but sometimes when you're late in the year we need to be challenged some."
            Baylor has been dominant in league play, winning all but two of its 14 games by double digits. In the first matchup with Iowa State, the Cyclones trailed by just six at the break before getting outscored, 25-12, in the third quarter. 
            Bridget Carleton, averaging a Big 12-best 21.5 points per game, scored 16 of her game-high 28 points in the first quarter. But, she hit just one of her last five shots and scored four points in the second half. 
            "You go over what you did before, but you also anticipate if they make changes," Mulkey said of Baylor's defensive plan against Carleton. "We started (6-4 junior Lauren) Cox on Carleton last time and thought her height might bother her, but it didn't. So, we moved DiDi (Richards) to her quickly, and those kids are our defensive stoppers."
            Against a team that ranks in the top 20 in 3-pointers made per game at 9.1, Baylor held the Cyclones to just 7-of-25 from outside the arc. Madison Wise didn't score a point and missed all six of her shots, while Kristin Scott was 4-of-12 overall and 3-of-9 from 3-point range. 
            "I tend to think sometimes it's our defense," said Mulkey, whose team is first in the nation in field goal percentage defense (31.5) and blocked shots (7.0) and top 15 in scoring defense (55.2 ppg). "You need to break it down and look at how we're defending the 3-ball. If you look at the Big 12 stats, maybe NCAA stats, we're defending the 3-ball better. It's because that's what we see every night."
            Led by 6-7 senior All-American Kalani Brown (15.8 ppg, 7.8 rebounds) and Cox (12.4 ppg, 7.8 rebounds, 2.4 blocks), four of Baylor's five starters are averaging double-digit points. Guards Chloe Jackson and Juicy Landrum contribute 11.1 and 11.0 points, respectively, while Richards is averaging 6.6 points, 4.0 assists and 3.8 rebounds. 
            While she would like nothing better than to rest her starters and give extended minutes to her five freshmen, Mulkey said she doesn't get caught up in that during the game. 
            "You want to give them as much game experience as you can, but not at the expense of costing you a game," she said. "When you're on a roll, you think, 'OK, we've got a big lead, let's go in there.' And then if the cut it, that's not good. You want them to have success. If everybody can play every game, I'm OK with that. But, I don't think about going into a game, 'Gosh, I need to make sure those freshmen get minutes.' It would be great, but that's pretty much a flow-of-a-game decision."
            Saturday's game will be broadcast by FOX Sports Southwest-Plus, with Ron Thulin and Brenda VanLengen calling the action. 
            In a quick turnaround, Baylor hosts 19^th-ranked Texas (20-6, 10-4) at 6 p.m. Monday at the Ferrell Center. The Longhorns are coming off a 69-60 home-court loss to Kansas State and host Texas Tech on Satrurday before coming to Waco. 


BAYLOR HAS SHARE, CAN CLINCH OUTRIGHT REGULAR SEASON TITLE FOR 10^TH TIME SATURDAY
   The No. 1-ranked Baylor Lady Bears cut down the nets and celebrated with fans in Waco following an 80-40 victory over Kansas Wednesday that clinched at least a share of Baylor's ninth-consecutive Big 12 regular-season title and 10^th overall. Saturday in Ames, Baylor could clinch the outright title as the Lady Bears carry a 14-0 league mark with four games to spare.
   The No. 20-ranked Cyclones are tied with Texas and West Virginia with a 10-4 league record, a three-way tie for second place that, for now, stands in the way of Baylor sharing the title with no one else.
 
BROWN ACHIEVES 2,000 CAREER POINTS & 1,000 CAREER REBOUNDS MILESTONES IN SAME GAME
   Senior Kalani Brown entered Wednesday's game with Kansas at 11 points shy of 2,000 career points and two rebounds short of 1,000. Brown grabbed No. 1,000 on a missed KU free throw in the first quarter and scored seven points in the fourth quarter to reach exactly 11 for the game and 2,000 for her career.
   Brown became the seventh player to reach 2,000 points, and the seventh player to reach 1,000 rebounds in BU history, but is just the sixth to reach both milestones joining a distinguished class that includes Suzie Snider-Eppers, Brittney Griner, Sophia Young, Nina Davis and Maggie Davis-Stinnett.
 
BAYLOR LOOKS TO IMPROVE ON THREE IMPRESSIVE WIN STREAKS SATURDAY
   A Baylor win at Iowa State Saturday would mark the 38th-straight win over a Big 12 opponent in the regular season for the Lady Bears. The only streak longer in Big 12 history was when the Lady Bears won 44-straight from 2011-14. Baylor will also gun for its 36^th-straight Big 12 road win in the regular season, which is the third-longest streak of all-time and second-longest active streak next to UConn's 49 (AAC).
    Finally, Baylor's 16-game overall winning streak is the longest active streak in the nation through Feb. 20.
 
LADY BEARS ARE NO. 1 FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2013, BUT BAYLOR HASN'T GONE ANYWHERE
     Much was made when Baylor returned as No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 Jan. 28. However, Baylor has ranked in the top 10 in the AP poll for 88 consecutive weeks with high-rankings of two with the lowest being 13 since the 2013-14 season prior to regaining the top spot. Those 88-straight weeks mark the third-longest active streak in the nation next to UConn and Notre Dame. In fact, Baylor holds the second-longest active streak of ranking in the AP Top 25 at 295 weeks.
 
COX & BROWN EACH NAMED FINALISTS FOR NATIONAL POSITION AWARDS; SEMIFINALIST FOR NATIONAL DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
   Feb. 14 Lauren Cox was named a finalist for the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame's Katrina McClain Award, honoring the nation's top power forward for the second-straight year, while Brown was named a finalist for the Lisa Leslie Award, honoring the nation's top center for the second-consecutive season Feb. 15.
   In addition, both players were named semifinalist for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year award, and the post duo is still up for consideration for the Wade Trophy and the John Wooden Award.
 
ISU IN SHORT
   The Cyclones enter Saturday's contest ranked No. 20 in the AP and No. 21 in the WBCA Coach's poll, and ISU is winners in six of its last seven games. The Cyclones are 1-3 vs. the Top 25 this season and are in a three-way tie for second-place in the Big 12 standings with a 10-4 record. Bridget Carleton, one of the best all-around player in the league, leads ISU with 21.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per contest. Longtime Cyclones coach Bill Fennelly enters the contest with 499 wins at the helm at ISU.
 
INTERIOR DEFENSE DOMINANT
   While some may look at the fact that Baylor has surrendered 199 3-point field goals this season (most by a Big 12 school) as a negative, take into account that only 530 of 1,379 points given up by Baylor this season have come on two-point field goals. That' s just 265 two-pointers in 25 games, which averages 10.6 2-point field goals per game or 21.2 points per game given up inside the 3-point arc this season.
 
DEFENSE BEGINS WITH DIDI
   DiDi Richards, a sophomore guard/forward is consistently asked to guard the top perimeter player on Baylor's opposing team. For example, she held Katie Lou Samuelson of UConn to 12 points on 4-of-16 shooting Jan. 3, and she held OSU's Vivian Gray to a dozen on 5-of-16 from the floor Jan. 30. Both those players rank in the top 50 nationally in points per game. Richards' numbers aren't flashy, but respectable, she's averaging 1.3 steals per game for the year and 1.5 in Big 12 play, but she's anchoring the defensive unit that is leading the nation for the third-straight year in field goal percentage defense.
 
BALANCED EFFORT LEADING BAYLOR IN 2018-19
   Despite having the No. 1 team in the country and in the Big 12, Baylor has taken home just one weekly Big 12 Player of the Week and Freshman of the Week award. Juicy Landrum and NaLyssa Smith earned those honors, respectively, sharing with another Big 12 player in each case. This result is partly due to the offensive balance that the Lady Bears have shown all season. Four players average in double figures for Baylor led by All-Americans Kalani Brown (15.7 ppg) and Lauren Cox's (12.4 ppg). The duo's numbers are down from a season ago, mostly due to the fact that freshmen posts Smith (9.2 ppg) and Queen Egbo (5.9 ppg) are able to spell the starters off the bench with offensive production. And, also guards Juicy Landrum and Chloe Jackson are each sharing the scoring load at 11.1 and 11.0 points per contest, respectively.
 
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 Feb. 20) rank tops in the nation in defensive rebounds per game (33.0), rebound margin (+17.4) and field goal percentage defense (.314) while ranking fourth in field goal percentage (.511). Kalani Brown ranks sixth in the nation in field goal percentage at a .636 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 (7.0), led by Lauren Cox's 2.44 per contest. Baylor's rebounding is a staple of the program, and the Lady Bears have out-rebounded its opponents in all 25 games this season, Baylor won the rebounding battle in 34 of 35 contests last year, and in 94 of the last 97 contests, BU has had the upper hand on the boards.
 
LADY BEARS ON THE RUN
   Baylor has 24 runs this season of at least 10 unanswered points including at least one in nine of the first 14 Big 12 contests. In 16 of 25 games this season, the Lady Bears have had at least one such run, and Baylor has also put together five runs of 20 or more points. In addition, Baylor is dominating opponents in transition, out-scoring opponents 292-69 on the fast break this season.
 
SHARING IS CARING: BAYLOR LEADS NATION IN ASSISTS PER GAME
   Baylor's 23.4 assists per contest ranks best in the nation while the Lady Bears rank second in assists-to-turnover ratio at 2.63:1. Chloe Jackson's 6.1 assists per contest (ranks 10th nationally) and 2.58:1 assists-to-turnover ratio (ranks 21st nationally) lead Baylor. DiDi Richards is averaging 4.0 assists per contest while ranking 17th nationally in assists-to-turnover ratio at 2.70:1 and post Lauren Cox ranks 19th in that category at 2.62:1. Juicy Landrum also ranks fifth in the Big 12 in assists-to-turnover ratio while third on the team at 4.0 assists per contest. As a team Baylor's ball distribution has been the hallmark of the offense in 2018-19. In fact out of Baylor's 816 made field goals this season, the Lady Bears have assisted on 586 marking 71.8 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 214-1, and the Lady Bears are 36-0 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.
 
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.
   Jan. 24, Oliver was named a McDonald's All-American and will participate in the McDonald's All-American Games in March.
 
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.