Baylor
TCU
No. 1 MBB Sets a Program Record with 18th Consecutive Win
2/1/2020 6:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Bears are 10-0 to start conference play for the first time since 1948
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Breaking out of a monthlong shooting slump, MaCio Teague drained five 3-pointers and scored a game-high 19 points to lead top-ranked Baylor to a record-breaking 68-52 win over TCU Saturday afternoon before a Ferrell Center crowd of 8,850.
With Baylor celebrating the 175th birthday of the university, Teague helped the Bears (19-1, 8-0) break the school record with their 18th-consecutive win, topping the 2011-12 team that got off to a 17-0 start on its way to an Elite Eight appearance.
"On the 175th birthday, setting the record for the longest streak is a heck of an accomplishment," Baylor coach Scott Drew said, "especially with the parity in college basketball today where everybody knows, you check the scores no matter in what league, rankings don't matter. It's really hard, and I'm proud of our guys."
To Drew's point, Saturday was a strange day (or maybe typical) in college basketball, where all three of the top-25 teams from the Big East – Villanova, Seton Hall and Butler – lost to unranked teams on their home court.
Playing before a raucous home crowd, the Bears weren't about to let that happen to them. Not on Baylor's birthday.
Senior forward Freddie Gillespie, who recorded his eighth double-double of the season with 12 points, 11 rebound and six blocks, said the 18-game winning streak has been "a ride. It's really a gift from God."
"I just enjoy being a part of it," Gillespie said. "I think as a team, we just enjoy spending time with each other, coming to the gym, getting better. it feels like we're getting better with each win. We're getting closer. But, it's fun."
Teague, who came in shooting just 25.6 from 3-point range in Big 12 play (10-of-39), capped off a 14-0 first-half run by knocking down back-to-back treys and then kept it going by hitting two more in the first two minutes of the second half. The junior guard finished 5-of-8 from outside the arc and 7-of-13 overall, adding six rebounds and a teal.
Giving credit to his teammates, Teague said "they did a great job finding me."
"Jared (Butler) had a fast break, and I ended up missing the 3. But, he was really looking to find me," Teague said. "Davion (Mitchell) was talking to me, encouraging me on every shot that I shot, telling me to shoot it. So, it really goes to those guys."
Even when he had his 3-pointer streak snapped, going 0-for-2 in two of the first three conference games, Teague said he tried to stay positive.
"(Golden State's) Steph Curry went 30-for-something, and I don't think he was frustrated out there," Teague said. "I just try to look up to him and just try to keep shooting the ball."
With the game tied at 17-17 through the first 12 minutes, Baylor went on that 14-0 run that created separation and changed the complexion of the game. After Mitchell started it with a. free throw, Tristan Clark threw down dunks on feeds from Devonte Bandoo and Matthew Mayer.
Mayer also assisted Bandoo on a 3-pointer, followed by Teague's treys, as the lead stretched to 31-17.
"We talked about not giving them the 3's, and they got nine of them," said TCU coach Jamie Dixon, whose team dropped its third in a row since upsetting then-No. 18 Texas Tech. "Defensively, we've got to do better. They're living up to their ranking. Their guards are really good. We had trouble containing their penetration, which was disappointing, but it was good for us to see and hopefully something we can get better at going forward."
The Frogs pulled back within eight by hitting three free throws in a 7-1 run, but a Mayer 3-pointer pushed the lead back to double digits, 35-24, going into the break.
After a scoreless first half when he missed all six of his shots from the field, Desmond Bane was 5-of-8 with three 3-pointers in the second half and was TCU's only double-digit scorer with 14 points.
"We could have put six or seven on him during that one stretch," Drew said, "and it wouldn't have mattered."
TCU had a run of its own in the second half, scoring eight unanswered points and pulling within 51-45 on a PJ Fuller dunk. Bane answered a Butler 3-pointer with one of his own that cut the deficit back to single digits, 60-52, with 3:42 left in the game.
But, those were the last points Baylor's defense allowed. The Bears held to TCU to 35.8 percent shooting and gave up less than 60 points for the 12th time in the last 15 games.
With a chance at making things even tighter down the stretch, TCU guard RJ Nembhard had his pocket picked by Mitchell, who turned it into a layup at the other end to start a closing 8-0 run by the Bears.
"Defense gives you a chance to win every night," Drew said. "But, offense and defense go hand in hand. If we're turning it over, that means we're in transition defense, which probably means we're not scoring and we're taking quick shots. Really, it's both components working together. We have some outstanding defensive players."
In a quick turnaround that will close out the first half of league play, the Bears will travel to Manhattan, Kan., for an ESPN "Big Monday" matchup against Kansas State (9-12, 2-6) at 8 p.m. Monday. The Wildcats have lost three of their last four, including Saturday's 68-57 loss at No. 12 West Virginia.
