Kansas State @ Baylor preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 3, 2020 ) Baylor 73, Kansas State 67

Baylor earned its fair share of superlatives over the last few months, but none figure to top what Hall of Fame coach Bill Self said after his Kansas team ended the Bears' Big 12-record 23-game winning streak over the weekend. Three days after suffering their first loss since Nov. 8, second-ranked Baylor attempts to keep pace with the Jayhawks atop the conference Tuesday when they host Kansas State.

The Bears nearly fought their way back from a 10-point deficit with 6 1/2 minutes left Saturday but ultimately saw their comeback attempt fall short when Jared Butler's 3-point attempt hit off the front iron as time expired in a 64-61 loss to Kansas. "I think Baylor is the best team that we have played against since I’ve been in the league the last 17 years. I think you could look at Oklahoma State in 2004 and you can look at (Texas) Tech in 2019, but I think at the same stage, Baylor has played better than both of those teams. … I don’t know how it’s going to finish, but I would certainly feel strongly about that," Self said. The Wildcats struggled early before making Saturday's 70-59 home setback to Texas look much more respectable than the game actually was, not unlike their 73-67 loss to the Bears on Feb. 3. Kansas State has dropped seven straight and won only one of 11 games away from home this season.

TIME: 8 p.m. ET. TV: No TV

ABOUT KANSAS STATE (9-18, 2-12 Big 12): Poor foul shooting has been a consistent theme for most of the season and declined during their skid; the Wildcats' 16-for-29 effort from the free-throw line Saturday marked the third time in four games they shot below 60 percent. “We tried to stay after. We’ve tried to shoot them during. We’ve tried to not say anything. You just hope sooner or later you’d have a good day there. David (Sloan) is 1-for-4 and Levi (Stockard) 2-for-6, those are killers," coach Bruce Weber said. Xavier Sneed (team-high 14.3 points, 4.7 rebounds) has scored exactly 15 points in three consecutive games and been remarkably consistent with his shot selection over the last month, attempting between 11 and 13 shots in 10 straight outings.

ABOUT BAYLOR (24-2, 13-1): The Bears lost to Kansas despite another strong offensive performance from Butler (team-high 15.7 points), who finished with 19 points, six rebounds, six assists and two steals Saturday; the 6-3 sophomore is averaging 20.7 points and 4.7 triples over his last three outings. Second-leading scorer MaCio Teague (14.2 points, 4.8 rebounds) returned to action after missing the previous two contests with a wrist injury but managed only eight points despite extending his streak of making multiple 3-pointers to eight games. Sophomore swingman Matthew Mayer (4.3 points) has started to see more consistent time off the bench over the last three contests and finished in double figures in two of those outings - matching the number of times he did so over his first 23 games.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Baylor's win in Manhattan earlier this month ended Kansas State's six-game winning streak in the series.

2. The Wildcats' seven-game slide matches their longest since Jan. 20-Feb. 14, 2001.

3. Saturday marked only the second time since the start of December that the Bears trailed at halftime.

PREDICTION: Baylor 64, Kansas State 48