Dallas ? Baylor’s Sophia Young and Steffanie Blackmon didn’t look like All-Big 12 Conference selections in the first half Tuesday afternoon.

But Young and Blackmon caught fire in the second half and carried the Bears to an 86-71 win over Kansas University in the first round of the conference tournament at Reunion Arena.

“I knew we had to be more aggressive,” said Blackmon, who scored 17 of her 19 points after the break. “I decided to come out in the second half and play with a lot of energy.”

Young finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds for the No. 14-ranked Bears (23-7).

“We knew we had to come in here and take care of Kansas to get another shot at Texas Tech,” Young said. “We just came prepared and worked really hard and came up successful.”

Baylor will meet the Red Raiders in today’s quarterfinals.

Although Kansas (9-19) ended its season on a 10-game losing streak, the Jayhawks went down fighting. After trailing by 15 early in the second half, they were within six with nine minutes left.

That’s when Blackmon took over, scoring six straight points on a pair of free throws, a fast-break layup and a short jumper. Back up by 13, the Bears cruised to their fifth straight win over the Jayhawks.

Kansas dropped 13 of its last 15 games, with the last 11 under interim coach Lynette Woodard. The former KU player replaced longtime coach Marian Washington, who went on medical leave Jan. 29 for unspecified health reasons.

Kansas University guard Aquanita Burras, center, is fouled by Baylor forward Sophia Young, left, as BU's Steffanie Blackmon helps defend. The Jayhawks lost to the Bears, 86-71, in the first round of the Big 12 Conference tournament Tuesday in Dallas.

Washington, who will be inducted later this year into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, retired Feb. 27.

Woodard said she hadn’t thought about whether she wanted the job permanently.

“Everything came so fast and furious,” she said. “I’m going to just relax and have some quiet time with myself. At that point I’ll ponder everything and just go from there.”

However, Woodard — a four-time Kodak All-American during her playing days at KU from 1977-81 — later said Kansas basketball “means life to me.”

Tamara Ransburg led Kansas with 15 points and added seven steals. Crystal Kemp had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Aquanita Burras had 14 points and eight boards.

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Point guard Erica Hallman rounded out KU’s double-digit scorers with 11 points, while guards Sharita Smith and Larisha Graves scored nine and eight points.

The Bears had 21 turnovers, 14 in the second half, to help the Jayhawks’ comeback. But Kansas shot just 34 percent, including 1-of-8 on three-pointers in the second half.

In losing to a ranked foe for the 26th straight time, the Jayhawks finished the season with the second-most losses in school history behind the 2001-02 team, which lost 25 games.

Kansas freshman forward Lauren Ervin — KU’s leading rebounder at 6.8 per game, who was also averaging 6.8 points a contest — did not make the trip to Dallas. Woodard said Ervin violated team policy.

KU guard Sharita Smith, right, and Baylor guard Jessika Stratton chase a loose ball. The Jayhawks lost, 86-71, Tuesday in Dallas.

Ervin also missed a road trip to Lubbock, Texas, last month because of a reported personal issue. Ervin sat out KU’s next game at Nebraska as part of her disciplinary action for missing the trip.

Ervin suited but didn’t play in KU’s last home game against Nebraska. Woodard said that was a coach’s decision.

In the Jayhawks’ season finale at Iowa State, Ervin — who averaged 21.3 minutes in 24 games played, while starting just once — grabbed seven rebounds, yet scored just two points on 1-of-8 shooting before leaving the game because of an injured foot.