Box Score By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation
Kim Mulkey's not sure if her fourth-ranked Baylor Lady Bears will see another team like the DePaul Blue Demons the rest of this season. But if they do, they'll be ready.
Offsetting 21 turnovers with sizzling 63.2 percent shooting from the field, the Lady Bears finished off their Preseason WNIT run by beating 19th-ranked DePaul, 86-72, in Sunday's championship game at the Ferrell Center.
"Obviously when you shoot 63 percent, a lot of that is transition because of the style they play defensively," Mulkey said. "They got in that 3-2 zone, and we took some bad shots a couple times. But for the most part, I was pleased with our offense."
Tournament MVP Nina Davis recorded her first double-double of the season and 26th of her career, finishing with 20 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals. But it was a balanced attack with five double-figure scorers that led Baylor (4-0) to its second Preseason WNIT championship in five years and 156th win in a row at home over non-ranked opponents.
Junior guard Alexis Jones had 11 of her season- and game-high 21 points in the first quarter, Khadijah Cave scored 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting, Kristy Wallace just missed a double-double with 11 points and nine assists and the freshman post duo of Kalani Brown and Beatrice Mompremier combined for 18 points, 11 boards and three blocks.
"I'm really excited about this team this year," said Davis, who was 9-of-11 from the floor. "It's hard to guard us. Most teams have one or two players, and you can key in on those two. And if you stop them, you stop the team. But we had five in double figures, the freshmen played great, Jones came out on fire . . . and Niya always does what Niya does. They just make us hard to stop."
For the most part, the Lady Bears handled DePaul's press, but still turned it over a season-high 21 times.
"A lot of our turnovers were just moving too fast," said Jones, who had five assists, four turnovers and one steal. "That's just with DePaul's defense making us play a fast game, too. A lot of it is just moving really fast and seeing a player and thinking it was open at that time."
It doesn't help that Baylor's shorthanded at the guard spots with Alexis Prince, Alyssa Dry and Alexandria Gulley all out with injuries.
"We've just got little things like that we need to clean up and be more fundamentally sound, I don't care if it's DePaul's style of play or not" Mulkey said. "I'm asking Nina to play minutes (at wing). I've got to get confidence in Dekeiya Cohen and continue to give her more minutes. Really, that's about the only five perimeter players I have to work with right now."
In what Mulkey described as "fool's gold," Baylor jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the first 85 seconds on a pair of 3-pointers by Jones and a put back by Brown. But DePaul didn't go away, pulling back within two, 24-22, at the end of the first quarter on a buzzer-beating try by Chanise Jenkins.
The Lady Bears were able to extend the lead, going up 44-35 at the half and stretching it out to a 14-point cushion, 67-53, going into the fourth.
But again, the Blue Demons (3-1) wouldn't go away. Senior forward Megan Podkowa opened the final quarter with three straight layups, and Ashton Millender drove by Jones for a short jumper that cut it to an eight-point deficit, 69-61.
"They play with a lot of fight, they have a great head coach and they're just a team that isn't ever going to lie down and die," Davis said. "We knew it was going to be a challenge, but I'm proud of my teammates and the way we kept fighting."
A three-point play by Davis sparked a 12-3 run that essentially put the game away, with Wallace hitting Cave for a layup that made it 81-64 with 3:18 to play.
Mulkey subbed Brown and Mompremier back in the game at that point, giving the freshman a chance to finish, "but they weren't getting back in transition."
"It was a teachable moment," she said. "I was watching them on the defensive end, and I said, `Can I rely on you in a tight game?' . . . Normally, I would leave who you've got out there and see if we can get (the lead) above 20. But, we've got to have those bigs and we've got to get them valuable minutes. And what I told them was going to take place did take place. They had an outstanding game on the offensive end, but they weren't getting back in transition those last three minutes."
Podkowa (19) and Jenkins (13) led the Blue Demons in scoring and joined Davis on an all-tournament team that included Baylor point guard Niya Johnson, Indiana's Amanda Cahill and South Florida guard Courtney Williams.
Headed to the Bahamas for the Junkanoo Jam in Freeport, the Lady Bears will face Cincinnati (3-0) at 1 p.m. CST Thanksgiving Day and 23rd-ranked Michigan State (3-0) at 4:45 p.m. Saturday in a rematch of the 2005 national championship.
