Feb. 5, 2000

WACO, Texas - The Baylor Bears pushed their way to a seven-point halftime lead, but were unable to hold on as the No. 17 Oklahoma Sooners charged back in the second half to take a 68-59 win Saturday at the Ferrell Center in Waco.

Oklahoma led most of the first half, thanks to a balanced attack that saw three Sooners with six points apiece in the first 20 minutes. With 5:45 left in the first half, Jamie Kendrick layed it in on a fast break that gave the Bears a 24-23 lead. That started a 16-8 Baylor run to end the first half, culminating in DeMarcus Minor's off-balance shot at the buzzer to give the Bears a 38-31 lead at the break.

The Sooners regrouped in the locker room and started the second half on a 15-5 run to take the lead for good. Sophomore guard J.R. Raymond led the charge, scoring nine Oklahoma points in a row on three consecutive three-pointers. Raymond finished with 15.

The Oklahoma lead stayed around five points for eight minutes, but the Sooners thereafter slowly pulled away. Eduardo Najera's three-pointer with three seconds on the shot clock iced the game for the Sooners, who move to 18-3 overall, 6-2 in conference with the win. The Bears are now 11-9 overall, 2-7 in Big 12 play.

Minor led the Bears in scoring with 17. Kendrick had 13 points in the first half for Baylor, but added just two points in the second half to finish with 15. Najera led all scorers with 20.

The Bears travel to Texas Tech Saturday, Feb. 12 for a 7:30 match-up with the Red Raiders.