By Ben Everett | Sports Writer
Baylor women’s basketball head coach Kim Mulkey found herself frustrated after the Lady Bears’ 77-64 win over Oklahoma State on Saturday night.
Baylor’s post duo of sophomore forward Lauren Cox and junior center Kalani Brown had been exposed on the defensive end by the Cowgirls’ versatile bigs.
Oklahoma State went 7-for-13 from three-point range in the loss, exploiting Brown and Cox’s inability to guard on the perimeter.
Mulkey said watching the three-point barrage was disheartening to watch, but only temporarily.
“You get frustrated at Kalani [Brown] and you get frustrated at Cox,” Mulkey said. “But I sure am glad they’re on our team.”
Brown finished with a monster double-double of 19 points and 18 rebounds while Cox poured in a game-high 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds.
That kind of production has been the recipe for success as the Lady Bears find themselves atop the Big 12 once again with a No. 3 ranking in the AP poll.
Mulkey said she is hard on Brown and Cox because she knows they can be great.
“I tell them all the time,” Mulkey said. “To whom much is given, much is expected. I stay after them because I want them to be just so dominant. As good as they are now, they’re just a junior and a sophomore.”
Brown averaged 15.4 points and 8.2 rebounds as a sophomore and made it a goal this year to bump rebounds up to double digits.
“It was one of my goals to average a double-double this year. I was close last year, averaging 15 [points] and eight [rebounds],” Brown said. “Having the dominance is what coach wants me to do, so I’m going to continue to keep doing it.”
So far this season, Brown is putting up 20.7 points and 9.8 rebounds on 67.3 percent shooting from the field.
Cox has seen an even bigger jump in her offensive contribution. She went from averages of 7.6 points and four rebounds per game her freshman year to 15 points and 10 rebounds this season.
Cox said her offseason conditioning has contributed to her dominance this season.
“I’m definitely in better shape,” Cox said. “I spent numerous hours in the weight room during the offseason just trying to get that weight down and trying to get in better condition, and I think it’s really helping me.”
Cox has more pressure on her defensively playing the power forward position, because she may be forced to guard more perimeter oriented players.
Despite being 6-foot-4-inches, Cox said she is comfortable guarding on the perimeter.
“I’m pretty comfortable out there,” Cox said. “I think that’s one of the things I’ve really improved at.”
The Lady Bears are undefeated this season when both Brown and Cox play, and one of the two has been the leading scorer for the Lady Bears in 15 of 20 games.
