Box Score By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation
As a former point guard, Kim Mulkey has a special place in her heart for assists.
Niya Johnson certainly has a place there as well, staying in Sunday's 105-46 blowout of McNeese State long enough to break Baylor's single-game record with her 19th assist.
"Records don't matter to me," said Mulkey, whose team improved to 10-0 with its 158th consecutive home game against non-ranked opponents. "But if there's an opportunity where you can do it, I'm not opposed to it. And they caught me at the right time."
They also gave her the right information. Johnson already had 14 assists going into the fourth quarter, which left her four shy of the record set by Darleen Primeaux against McNeese State on Jan. 12, 1983.
"I don't know who told me, but they caught me and said, "Coach, you might want to play her a few more minutes and see if she can break a record,''' Mulkey said. "And when she said assists, that just grabs my heart. Most kids, it's about points. So, I said I'd let her start the fourth quarter and go with the flow, and she was able to get two or three more right there quickly."
Johnson fed freshman post Kalani Brown for a layup, tied it with a dish to Dekeiya Cohen and broke it with a pass to freshman Justis Szczepanski for an and-one opportunity that gave the fourth-ranked Lady Bears a 96-43 lead with 4:07 left in the game.
"I don't pay attention to those records," said Johnson, who added 10 rebounds for her seventh career double-double. "They don't mean anything to me. Team awards, I'm there, but (personal) records don't really mean that much. I am thankful, though."
Five players scored in double figures, led by the 6-foot-7 Brown with a career-high 24 points on 10-of-11 shooting from the field. Freshman Beatrice Mompremier got her first start, in place of injured junior Khadijah Cave (dislocated right index finger), added her first career double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds.
"I think Kalani and Beatrice are two of the finest post players in the country, and they're just freshmen," Mulkey said. "They get schooled pretty much every day by the upperclassmen, but it makes them better when they get to the games. And when I say schooled, they're bringing it out. They've got to bring it out if they want to compete."
Coming off a six-day break for finals, Baylor was sharp from the opening tip and held the Cowgirls (6-3) scoreless over the last 5 ½ minutes of the first quarter to go up 21-10. McNeese State was 0-for-11 from the field in that stretch as the Lady Bears closed on an 8-0 run.
McNeese State coach Brooks Donald Williams said Baylor's size advantage was a problem for the smaller Cowgirls, who had no starters over 6-foot tall. The Lady Bears dominated the boards, 56-35, and outscored McNeese, 70-18, on points in the paint.
"It was a huge difference," she said. "I thought we did a pretty good job in the first half at times, defending their post game. In the second half, they did a really good job of dominating inside and taking advantage of their height advantage."
After scoring a combined 22 points in the first half, Baylor's inside trio of Brown, Mompremier and junior forward Nina Davis pumped in 31 second-half points as the Lady Bears shot a sizzling 70.3 percent from the floor (26-of-37).
Davis came up one board shy of a double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds. Alexis Jones hit four 3-pointers and scored 19 points, while sophomore guard Kristy Wallace chipped in with 11 points and three assists.
Brown said it helps her tremendously playing with a point guard like Johnson, who also broke her own previous Big 12 record of 17 assists.
"You just have to make eye contact," Brown said. "As soon as she's coming down the floor, you have to look, because she'll throw it. You're not even looking. You didn't even know you were open, but it's just because Niya sees everything."
Baylor will face Oral Roberts at 7 p.m. Thursday, capping off a five-game home stand, before traveling to the Florida Sunshine Classic in Winter Park, Fla., this weekend for matchups against Miami and James Madison.
