The Jayhawks had their seven-game winning streak snapped with an 85-59 defeat to No. 9 Iowa State on Wednesday night, and Kersgieter, a junior forward, was willing to look past it.

“People individually will spend time on it, but as a team, games like that, we know what we did wrong,” Kersgieter said. “And an opponent like that? That team is so unique that we’ll never face another team like that, so that one you can put past you pretty quickly because we’re not going to see a team like that for a while — unless we see them in the (Big 12) tournament.”

The Cyclones, one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the nation, made 17 of their 34 attempts from beyond the arc at Allen Fieldhouse — the same number of shots the Jayhawks made from 2-point range. Iowa State took a 10-point lead just over five minutes into the game and the margin never got any smaller.

And although that game may be over, the challenges don’t end for Kansas (19-6, 10-5 Big 12), which will face No. 5-ranked Baylor on the road Saturday at 2 p.m.

It’s the second of four games the Jayhawks will play against ranked teams to close the regular season, and the Bears (22-5, 12-3 Big 12), who are a much more conventional team, are formidable.

They have won their last seven games and 12 of their last 13, including the first game against the Jayhawks on Jan. 16 — an 82-79 win in Lawrence in which Kansas held a four-point lead with 14 seconds remaining.

“They’re rocking,” said coach Brandon Schneider, who, as is the case with Iowa State, has not defeated Baylor in his seven seasons at KU. “They’ve got it figured out and they’re playing as good as or better than anybody in the league.”

That last meeting provided a chance. Ja’Mee Asberry made a 3-pointer with 14 seconds left to pull Baylor within one at 79-78, and Kansas gave the ball away on the ensuing inbounds pass from midcourt when Ioanna Chatzileonti’s attempt to get it to Kersgieter was tipped away by Jordan Lewis.

Asberry collected the loose ball and was fouled, then made a pair of free throws with 12.2 seconds to play for an 80-79 lead. She made both and Kansas again advanced the ball to midcourt, and Zakiyah Franklin’s turnaround jumper from the foul line with 5.1 seconds left, which would have restored Kansas’ lead, bounced off the back of the rim.

Baylor’s NaLyssa Smith snagged the rebound, and Sarah Andrews put the game away with 1.5 seconds left by making a pair of free throws.

That game was played four days after Kansas won 70-66 in overtime at then-No. 13 Texas. Holding onto that victory against Baylor would have been an even greater surprise.

“I think we learned a lot from it,” said Kansas’ Julie Brosseau. “I think we will be more mature in the future and make better decisions when the game is on the line. I think it was good that we learned so early because now, we can definitely learn from that mistake for the future games, which are more important than that was.”

Three days after letting the win slip away against Baylor, Kansas battled back from a 16-point deficit to tie the score at Kansas State, only to lose 69-61. But it won eight of its next nine games, often showing resilience and failing to be defeated when it held a second-half lead.

That leads the Jayhawks back to the rematch. Baylor has one of the best starting units in the nation, led by Smith, the 6-foot-4 forward who is averaging 21.2 points and 11.2 rebounds a game and is a national player of the year candidate.

Kansas is already on the cusp of making the NCAA Tournament for the first time in nine years, but a win against Baylor on Saturday would surely punch its ticket.

“We have a lot of good teams in the Big 12, a lot of ranked teams,” said Kansas’ Chandler Prater. “So, we know coming into every game it’s going to be a battle regardless. … We’re going to face adversity for the rest of the season, and so three ranked teams and then postseason? We know.”