Men's Hoops Preview: vs. Kansas State March 3
3/2/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
BAYLOR (8-19, 3-11) vs. KANSAS STATE (12-13, 4-10)
March 3, 2004 - Ferrell Center (Waco, Texas) - 7:00 p.m. CST
RADIO: Baylor Radio Network (KRZI 1660/1580 AM Waco)
INTERNET AUDIO: live broadcast at BaylorBears.com
TELEVISION: none
INTERNET VIDEO: live stream at baylorbears.nmnathletics.com
THE GAME
Baylor concludes its home schedule and hosts the final game at the Ferrell Center for a special senior trio when it faces Kansas State Wednesday, March 3, 2004. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST at the Ferrell Center. The Bears are 8-19, 3-11 in the Big 12 after a narrow 72-65 loss to No. 6 Oklahoma State Saturday in Waco. The Wildcats, 12-13, 4-10, have lost three straight, most recently a 79-69 decision at home to Missouri. The short-handed Bears (seven available scholarship players) have won two of their last six contests. Wednesday will mark the final home game for seniors R.T. Guinn, Matt Sayman and Terrance Thomas, a trio that represent the hard work and determination of the 2003-2004 Bear squad that returned to play the season despite facing overwhelming odds. The trio of captains will be honored in a pregame ceremony and address the crowd following the game.
BAYLOR TIP-INS
- Baylor is currently playing with 7 active scholarship players and 5 active walk-ons.
- Baylor is 12-14 vs. Big 12 North schools the last 3-plus seasons (8-33 vs. South).
- Baylor has been outrebounded in 7 straight games (season long).
- The Bears are 6-2 vs. K-State since the inception of the Big 12 Conference.
- Bears are 1-4 in games decided by 5 or fewer points.
- Baylor's coaching staff, with an average age of 34 years, is the nation's youngest among major conference schools.
- Baylor teams have made at least one 3-point basket in 376 straight games.
- Wednesday Matt Sayman will play 117th game of career (will set new BU record).
- Matt Sayman ranks 2nd in conf. in assists (4.5) in league games.
- R.T. Guinn owns the 3rd-best career 3-point shooting % in Baylor history (39.6%).
- Terrance Thomas ranks 6th in Big 12 scoring (16.3 ppg) & 8th in rebounding (7.0).
- Terrance Thomas is 4th in the Big 12 w/ 2.2 3-pointers per game.
- R.T. Guinn is 5th in the Big 12 with 1.7 steals per game.
- Baylor's Thomas & Thomas duo is only school's 2nd pair in a decade to average more than 15 ppg (Terrance 16.3, Harvey 16.3).
- Terrance Thomas leads BU in scoring (16.3), rebounding (7.0) & 3-pointers (52).
- Carl Marshall has hit 11-of-20 3-pointers the last 10 games (broke 0-of-8 streak from previous 8 games).
- Matt Sayman in No. 6 on BU's career minutes played list (2,710 in 116 games).
- Terrance Thomas has compiled 9 career double-doubles (6 this season).
- Corey Herring has played the last 3 games (averaged 22 min.) since returning from hand injury.
- Terrance Thomas has scored 20+ points in 7 games.
- Baylor's jerseys include a black stripe in honor of late teammate Patrick Dennehy.
HEAD COACH Scott Drew
Scott Drew is 8-19 in his first season as head coach at Baylor and 28-30 in two seasons as a head coach. He came to Waco after 10 seasons coaching at Valparaiso, the final as head coach. Drew led the Crusaders to a 20-11 record and into the NIT in 2002-2003. Valpo earned the Mid-Continent Conference regular season championship with a 12-2 league record last season.
The previous nine seasons, Drew served as an assistant at Valpo under his father Homer Drew. During Drew's decade at Valparaiso, the Crusaders earned six NCAA Tournament berths, including the magical 1997-1998 squad that shocked the nation by advancing to the Sweet 16. Valpo made five straight NCAA appearances from 1996-2000. An outstanding recruiter, Drew was responsible for three national Top-20 recruiting classes the last five years. He was named the 1998-99 National Recruiter of the Year by Court Vision and helped produce what HoopScoop named the nation's sixth best recruiting class in 2001, the 13th best in 1999 and the 19th best in 2003.
THREE SPECIAL SENIORS
Baylor's 2004 senior class will surely hold a special place in the hearts of Bear fans everywhere. The trio of R.T. Guinn, Matt Sayman and Terrance Thomas will represent the heart and soul of a team of underdogs who returned to Baylor for the 2003-2004 season despite unprecedented adversity and the loss of several scholarship players. The trio, also the teams' captains, has led Baylor to eight wins and three Big 12 Conference victories -- exceeding nearly all preseason expectations. The three seniors have accounted for 48 percent of the teams scoring and 45 percent of the squad's minutes played.
OVERACHIEVING BEARS EXCEEDING ALL EXPECTATIONS
An 8-19 overall and 3-11 Big 12 record may not at first glance impress, but considering that many observers nationwide didn't expect Baylor to win any games - let alone games vs. Big 12 opponents - it is safe to say the short-handed Bears have exceeded expectations this season [Bears have eight wins and four of their losses are by five or fewer points]. As a Baylor team that was a consensus pick to finish last in the conference sits three games out of the cellar, head coach Scott Drew continues to garner praise for his efforts and that of his team. [see box, opposite page]
BREAKING DOWN THE ROSTER
Baylor's current 2003-2004 roster lists 14 players: six returnees and eight newcomers. Of the eight newcomers (six active), two are scholarship recruits (junior Harvey Thomas, freshman Carl Marshall), two arrived as walk-ons prior to the fall semester (junior Ryan Pryor, freshman Turner Phipps), one earned a spot during open walk-on tryouts in October (junior Robbie McKenzie), one was added in early January from a prep school (freshman Nino Etienne), one is a Division I transfer who joined in early January and will sit out the season (sophomore Tim Bush), and one walked on in mid January and is redshirting (forward Mark Shepherd). Seven of Baylor's 12 active players are on scholarships (five returnees & two newcomers). [note: Ellis Kidd Jr. was dismissed from the team in December for violation of team policy; senior football letterman Joe Simmons played five games before leaving to focus on football]
THE KANSAS STATE WILDCATS
Kansas State (12-13, 4-10) is led by fourth-year head coach Jim Wooldridge, who owns a 49-64 record at K-State and a 278-211 career record in four stints as a collegiate head coach at Central Missouri (1985-91), Southwest Texas State (1991-94) and Louisiana Tech (1994-98).
KSU NOTES: The Wildcats are on a three-game losing streak... KSU is 1-9 on the road this season... The Cats are led by junior college transfer F Jeremiah Massey, who averages 14.9 points and 7.9 rebounds per game... The K-State roster boasts two Texans, part-time starters F Cartier Martin (Nimitz HS in Houston) and G Dez Willingham (De Soto HS)... KSU finished its non-conference schedule with an 8-3 record, including a perfect 8-0 mark at home.
THE KANSAS STATE SERIES
The Baylor-Kansas State series is knotted at 7-7 though the Bears have won six of eight games since the two schools became conference foes in the Big 12. The Bears lead 3-1 in games played in Waco. Baylor won last season's meeting, a 66-57 decision in Manhattan.
DREW vs. KANSAS STATE
Baylor head coach Scott Drew has never coached a team against Kansas State.
BEARS SUCCESS vs. BIG 12 NORTH
Baylor is 12-14 over the last three-plus seasons in games against schools from the Big 12 North (10-13 in regular reason, 2-1 in the Big 12 Tournament). The Bears are 8-33 vs. Big 12 South teams during that same span.
BAYLOR'S IRON MAN NEARS GAMES PLAYED RECORD
When he steps on the court Wednesday against Kansas State, Baylor senior Matt Sayman will establish a new games played record for the school (117). Sayman, the Bears' co-captain, has played in all 116 games of his career and this season is averaging 8.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.0 assists and a team-high 35.0 minutes. Sayman is currently sixth on the school's career minutes played chart (2,710).
MILESTONES & RECORDS WATCH
* Matt Sayman is 1 game played shy of setting a new BU career GP record (117).
* Matt Sayman is 1 steal shy of 8th place (Julius Denton 110) on BU's career list.
* R.T. Guinn is 2 3-pointers shy of 8th place (Kenny Taylor 105) on BU's career list.
* Harvey Thomas is 3 blocks shy of qualifying (min. 30) for BU's career blocks-per-game Top-10 list (current 1.42 average would rank 2nd all-time).
* Matt Sayman is 19 assists shy of 6th place (Vinnie Johnson 308) on BU's career list.
THOMAS & THOMAS 1-2 PUNCH
Harvey and Terrance Thomas (no relation) have combined to give Baylor a potent offensive duo. The pair is leading the Bears in scoring and rebounding, Terrance with 16.3 points and 7.0 boards and Harvey with 16.3 and 5.6. The Thomas duo will become just the second Baylor twosome (joining Terry Black & DeMarcus Minor in 2000-2001) to average better than 15 points per game for a season.
TERRANCE LEADING THE BEARS
Senior F Terrance Thomas leads the Bears in scoring (16.3 ppg), rebounding (7.0 rpg) and 3-pointers (52). He also ranks as the sixth-leading scorer and eighth-leading rebounder in the Big 12 Conference and is fourth in the league with an average of 2.2 3-pointers. Thomas has six double-doubles this season and was named to the Hawai'i Surf N' Slam all-tournament team in December.
SAYMAN IMPRESSIVE IN BIG 12 PLAY
Senior co-captain Matt Sayman, who led the Bears to a victory over Texas A&M last Wednesday with eight points in overtime, has stepped up his play since Big 12 Conference action began. In 14 games of league play, Sayman is ranked second in the conference in assists (4.5) and ninth in assists-to-turnover ratio (1.54).
HARVEY DESERVING OF NEWCOMER MENTION
Junior Harvey Thomas is putting together numbers worthy of Big 12 Conference Newcomer of the Year mention. The transfer from Northeastern Oklahoma A&M missed the first eight games of the season but over the last 19 games has averaged 16.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.4 blocks. Thomas has not played enough games to qualify for overall conference rankings, but in league games he ranks fifth in scoring, 19th in rebounds and fourth in blocks. The former Georgetown player has recorded three double-doubles on the season.
THE LAST MEETING: BAYLOR 66 - KANSAS STATE 57 [Feb. 19, 2003]
Lawrence Roberts scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead Baylor past Kansas State 66-57 at Bramlage Coliseum. Baylor held off a late Wildcats rally to win back-to-back road conference games for the first time in five years. The Bears beat No. 16 Oklahoma State 74-72 on Saturday. It was the 10th double-double of the season for Roberts. R.T. Guinn added 13. Baylor held its biggest lead of the game at 54-40 midway through the second half before a 9-0 Kansas State run closed the gap to 54-49 with 5:35 remaining. Kansas State's Marques Hayden made a layup with 1:04 remaining to cut the Bears' lead to four at 60-56, but John Lucas, Ellis Kidd and Matt Sayman hit six straight free throws in the final minute to seal the victory. Baylor has won four straight regular season games against Kansas State. Despite failing to score a field goal for almost seven minutes in the first half, the Bears led 32-29 at halftime.
LAST TIME OUT: No. 6 OKLAHOMA STATE 72 - BAYLOR 65
The underdog Bears put up a valiant effort against the nation's sixth-ranked team but fell just short as Baylor lost 72-65 to Oklahoma State at the Ferrell Center. Baylor, playing with just seven scholarship players, cut a 12-point deficit with 4:11 left to just two points in the final minute before OSU's Ivan McFarlin made a layup and Tony Allen heaved in a 70-footer at the buzzer for the final points. Oklahoma State led by seven in the opening minutes, but Baylor wouldn't go away. The Bears tied it at 29 at halftime, then Harvey Thomas turned a midcourt steal into a dunk for the first basket of the second half -- and the lead. Allen answered immediately with a three-point play and the Cowboys were back up by 10 within a few minutes. The Bears had one more comeback left, with Thomas hitting two 3-pointers and four free throws to get them within 67-65 with a minute left. Then they nearly came up with a loose ball on defense; OSU kept it thanks to the possession arrow. John Lucas III, who transferred from Baylor last summer, nearly dribbled out the 11 seconds left on the shot clock, but fed McFarlin for a layup just before it expired. With 23 seconds left, the Bears went for a 3-pointer -- three of them. Allen rebounded the final miss and heaved the ball toward the other basket. It was ruled good after a brief delay. The Cowboys were at their best inside, outscoring the Bears 50-20 in the paint. Baylor hung tough by going 9-of-19 on 3-pointers, a ratio that was even better before the final, futile flurry. OSU was only 2-of-13 behind the arc, including Allen's 70-footer.
WALK-ON CONTRIBUTIONS
Playing behind a current roster of seven active scholarship players, Baylor's five active walk-ons (juniors Robbie McKenzie and Ryan Pryor, sophomore Will Allen and freshmen Nino Etienne and Turner Phipps) have played an important role, and the quintet has quickly become crowd favorites at home in the Ferrell Center. Though they log minutes individually as reserve subs (typically Allen and McKenzie), the unit has been utilized by head coach Scott Drew as an entire five-man substitution team to both rest and energize the regulars. The entire walk-on "team" has appeared as a group in 12 games and has logged 27 minutes together on the floor and has been outscored 55-37. [note: five of the walk-ons are new this season, Allen is a second-year sophomore]
NATION'S YOUNGEST COACHING STAFF
Baylor's coaching staff is the youngest among the nation's major college conferences (tallied by average age). The Bears' staff averages 34 years of age (head coach Scott Drew [34] and assistants Matthew Driscoll [39], Mark Morefield [27] and Jerome Tang [37]). New Mexico's staff also averages 34 years.
REMEMBERING PATRICK
Baylor's jerseys include a black stripe across the left shoulder in honor of the late Patrick Dennehy, a former teammate who was a redshirt at Baylor during the 2002-2003 season after transferring from New Mexico.
SHEPHERD ADDED TO ROSTER
Baylor added a walk-on to its roster in January, Mark Shepherd, a three-year letterman from St. Michael's Academy in Austin, Texas. The 6-8, 210-pound forward led the Crusaders to a 28-7 record and the 2003 TAPPS 5A state championship as a senior. Shepherd averaged 15 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks and was named to the TABC All-State Large School second team.
LSU TRANSFER JOINS BEARS
Tim Bush, a freshman F at LSU in 2002-2003, joined the Bears in January and is practicing with the team. The 6-5 forward will be eligible to play after the fall 2004 semester as a sophomore with three years of eligibility. As a true freshman last season at LSU, Bush appeared in 10 games, averaging 0.7 points and 1.5 rebounds per contest. Coming out of high school, Bush was ranked the No. 137 prospect in the class of 2003 by HoopScoop. Bush averaged 15 points and eight rebounds per game as a junior at Shaw High School in New Orleans. Bush won MVP honors at the 2001 Michael Jordan camp in Santa Barbara, Calif. He was also a top-10 prospect at the 2001 Great American Shootout in Denton, Texas.
BAYLOR PRAISED FOR PAIR OF EARLY SIGNEES
Baylor has inked two prep athletes to national letters of intent during the early signing period: center Mamadou Diene of Senegal and guard Aaron Bruce of Australia. The pair are ranked as the 39th-best recruiting class to date by HoopScoop.
Diene, a 7-footer, is rated as the top NBA prospect in Africa and the sixth-best international prospect in the world by NBAdraft.net. The analysts at HoopScoop said that if Diene were playing high school basketball in the United States, he would rank among the top 40 players in the nation. HoopScoop also reported that Diene was ranked as the top player in camp when he attended the Babacar Sy Basketball Camp in July.
Bruce spent last summer playing for the Australian junior national team in the 2003 FIBA Junior World Championships in Thessaloniki, Greece. The 6-2 guard led Australia with 25 points as the Aussies upset Team USA 106-85. HoopScoop reports that if Bruce were playing high school basketball in the United States, he would rank among the top 50 seniors in the country.
BAYLOR SIGNEES:Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. HometownAaron Bruce G 6-2 190 Fr. Horsham, VictoriaMamadou Diene C 7-0 210 Fr. Yeumbeul, Senegal
FERRELL CENTER'S 16th YEAR
The Bears are enjoying their 16th season in the beautiful Ferrell Center. Baylor is 6-10 at home in 2003-2004 and owns a 142-99 all-time record in the arena, which opened in November 1988. The Ferrell Center is a golden-domed structure that seats 10,284 for basketball games.
NEW STAFF GUIDING BEARS
Head coach Scott Drew is joined on the Baylor coaching staff by new assistants Matthew Driscoll, Mark Morefield and Jerome Tang. Driscoll and Morefield followed Drew from his staff at Valparaiso, and Tang joined Baylor after 10 years as a prep coach at Heritage Christian Academy in Cleveland, Texas.
BAYLOR GAMES ONLINE - AUDIO AND VIDEO
For the first time, Bear fans can both watch and listen to live video and audio of Baylor basketball online in 2003-2004. The radio broadcast of all Baylor basketball games can be heard live on-line on Baylor's official website, BaylorBears.com, or at www.broadcast.com. Live video is available at baylorbears.nmnathletics.com; all home games that are not scheduled to be televised are included in the package. Subscriptions are available for $6.95 per game, or $49.95 for a season pass that covers both men's and women's games.
BIG 12 PRESEASON PROJECTIONS
Baylor's 2003-2004 edition was projected to finish last in the Big 12 Conference in virtually every preseason poll. The only preseason publication that didn't pick the Bears 12th in the conference was Athlon Sports, which was published prior to the transfers of three Baylor returnees.
INSIDE BAYLOR SPORTS TV SHOW
Inside Baylor Sports, a half-hour look at the world of Baylor athletics, airs weekly throughout Central Texas and the region. The program, co-hosted by John Morris and Lori Scott-Fogleman, airs on KCEN-TV Channel 6, Fox Sports Net Southwest, College Sports TV and the College Channel (Waco Time Warner cable channel 18). KCEN carries the show at 10:30 p.m. Sundays, and it airs at 1 p.m. Wednesdays on Fox Sports Net Southwest. Each show is archived online at BaylorBears.com and BaylorTV.com.
NEXT UP...
Baylor plays its final game of the 2003-2004 season when it travels to Norman, Okla. for a game against Oklahoma Saturday, March 6. Tipoff at the Lloyd Noble Center is scheduled for 5 p.m. CST.
