MBB Win Streak Halted at Six

Wednesday, February 6

Austin, Texas

7 p.m.

Baylor

15-7, 6-3

Texas

13-10, 5-5

Baylor

Texas

MBB Win Streak Halted at Six

2/6/2019 9:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score PDF Box Postgame Notes

Bears drop 84-72 decision in Austin.

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider

AUSTIN – Unable to match Texas' energy or find a way to slow down the Longhorns' three-guard attack of Kerwin Roach III, Matt Coleman II and Courtney Ramey, the Baylor Bears saw their six-game winning streak come to an end with an 84-72 loss Wednesday night at the Frank Erwin Center.

Roach and Coleman combined to score 39 points, hit four 3-pointers and 13-of-17 from the line as the Longhorns (13-10, 5-5) also ended a six-game losing streak in the series against Baylor (15-7, 6-3) and won for just the third time in their last nine games.

"Texas came out and took it to us," Baylor coach Scott Drew said. "Defensively, we didn't have any answers. I thought Coleman and Roach set the tone and we really struggled with keeping both of those out of the paint."

Four players scored in double figures for the Bears, led by Mark Vital with 14 and Jared Butler with 13, but senior guard Makai Mason hit just 1-of-7 from the floor and scored a season-low five points after exploding for a career-high 40 in Saturday's win over TCU.

Mason, who had scored in double figures in 13 consecutive games and 17 of his first 18 games at Baylor, bruised a toe on his right foot in Monday's practice.

"That's why he played limited minutes," Drew said. "We tried to give it a go and, obviously, he wasn't himself out there."

Texas did little wrong in a dominating first half, shooting 61 percent from the floor and beating Baylor on the boards, 17-10, to take a 45-30 lead into the locker room.

"I just think Texas came out, played with a lot of energy, got after us," Butler said. "They punched us, and we didn't punch back, and that was the difference."

With a 14-6 foul differential in the first half, the Longhorns also capitalized at the line, going 13-for-19. Asked if he was upset about the fouls when he picked up a technical with 4:17 left in the half, Drew said, "Would you be? I was trying to help (the officials) out."

Baylor used an 11-2 run in the first five minutes of the second half to pull back within 53-45 on a Vital layup. Butler and King McClure had back-to-back three-point plays on layups and follow free throws, and then McClure drained a trey to get the Bears back in it.

Butler answered a pair of 3-pointers by Jese Febres with one of his own to whittle the deficit back to single digits, but the Bears could get no closer the rest of the way.

Roach scored a game-high 21 points, hitting 7-of-9 from the floor, and Coleman added 18 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Longhorns.

"They were really good as far as Roach and Coleman getting to the paint and getting fouled and creating scoring opportunities for themselves," said Drew, whose team suffered its first loss since Jan. 12. "When those two are 11-of-15, they're really good."

Butler had 13 points and six assists, but also had four of the team's 14 turnovers. Mario Kegler and Matthew Mayer chipped in with 10 points apiece for the Bears, who battled to a 29-29 tie on the boards and outscored the Longhorns, 16-4, in second-chance points.

"I think you have to control what you can control, and we didn't have the energy that they had to start the game," Drew said. "You have to give them credit for the way they played, and we've got to do a better job controlling what we can control. And that is our effort on the glass and our effort and willingness to try to keep them in front, and obiously taking care of the ball. We made some unforced errors."

Baylor returns home to face league-leading Kansas State (17-5, 7-2) at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Ferrell Center with a chance to move back into a tie for the Big 12 lead. That's the back end of a doubleheader, with the top-ranked Baylor women (20-1, 10-0) hosting TCU (17-5, 7-4) at noon in the earlier game.

"Everybody in the Big 12 wants a chance to win the championship and end (Kansas') streak," Drew said. "That's what everyone's goal is. But again, it's the Big 12. Each and every night is a dog fight. And if you don't bring your 'A' game, you don't even have a chance to win that game, let alone the conference championship. That's why it's so hard, because it's hard to be up for every game."