No. 15 WBB Demolishes Oklahoma State, 67-49

Wednesday, January 19

Waco, TX

7 PM

Baylor

12-4,2-2Big 12

Oklahoma State

6-9,1-5Big 12

Oklahoma St.

Baylor

No. 15 WBB Demolishes Oklahoma State, 67-49

1/19/2022 9:06:00 PM | Women's Basketball

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By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
            At least in small glimpses, Nicki Collen saw the "Queen we need every game."
            Scoring 17 first-half points and reaching the 1,000-point milestone, Queen Egbo carried 15^th-ranked Baylor early and helped the Bears (12-4, 2-2) rout Oklahoma State, 67-49, Wednesday night in their first home in three weeks.
            "I don't want to say I'm the difference-maker," Collen said of the 6-3 senior center, who had 19 points and eight rebounds to go with two blocks, two assists and a steal, "because she's had strings in the past where she's put together three or four games that make her look like a top-5 (WNBA draft) pick. That's my challenge to her is she needs to bring it every night."
            Egbo, who was a perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line, said just "being aggressive and trying to get to the foul line and sticking with my shot is what I like to do."
            NaLyssa Smith recorded her 13^th double-double of the season and 41^st of her career with 16 points and 13 rebounds, while Jordan Lewis bounced back from a rough game in Sunday's win over Kansas with 13 points and seven assists.
            "I feel like if it's not one person's game, it's another," Egbo said. "Just because it's not your game doesn't mean you can't help us. I feel that's what we're doing, acknowledging when someone else has the hot hand and feeding them and continuing to go to them while still looking for your shot and playing aggressive."
            Despite playing without leading scorer Lauren Fields, who was out with health and safety protocols, OSU (6-9, 1-5) hit six of its first eight shots and was all knotted up at 12-12 in the first quarter. But, when the Cowgirls went scoreless for the last 3 ½ minutes, Baylor went on a 6-0 run and took an 18-12 lead on a pair of free throws by Egbo.
            "I thought defensively, we were not dialed in at the beginning, and that's frustrating," Collen said. "But, I think after they made three or four baskets, we started to guard better."
            Oklahoma was able to hang with the Bears and trailed by just eight at halftime, 34-26, behind Egbo's 17 points.
            "I thought one of the best plays she had all night was the little drop pass to (Smith)," Collen said of Egbo. "When those two can learn to play together and pass the ball and get the ball to each other . . . both of them have a scorer's mentality, but when they share it, we're a better team."
            While Egbo and Smith carried the Bears in the first half, combining for 26 of the team's 34 points, guards Jordan Lewis and Ja'Mee Asberry heated up in the second half. They combined for 18 second-half points, hitting 6-of-9 from the floor and 2-of-3 from outside the arc.
            "I had a good meeting with Jordan Lewis (Tuesday)," Collen said of the transfer guard from Alabama, "because she lost some of her aggressiveness in the last few games. Tonight, you saw the Jordan Lewis we saw early in the season. She didn't take as many shots as she probably can, but it was her playing downhill."
            Limiting OSU to just nine points and 3-of-14 shooting from the floor in the third quarter, the Bears were able to create some separation and were up 52-35 going into the fourth.
            Baylor got nearly half of its points in the paint, outscoring the Cowgirls, 32-14, and winning a tighter-than-expected rebounding battle, 36-31.
            "You've got to adjust to your competition," Smith said. "The way they were playing us, we knew we could pound it inside. So, that's what we did."
            With OSU hard-hedging on screens and defending the 3-point line, the Bears didn't hit their first 3-pointer until Asberry finally drained one with 4:48 left. Playing her first game against her former team, Asberry had nine points, four steals and three assists.
            "She was motivated, no question," Collen said of Asberry, who played three years in Stillwater and was recognized before the game for reaching the 1,000-point mark. "I wish we could have gotten her more shots, to be honest. But, I thought she really guarded. I think she was a difference-maker. She made some really good passes early. I thought she had a great game."
            Taylen Collins and Lexy Keys scored 16 points to lead OSU, which lost its third-straight and fifth in the last six games.
            Staying home, the Bears will host seventh-ranked Iowa State (16-2, 5-1) at 2 p.m. Sunday. The Cyclones, missing leading scorer Ashley Joens, had a nine-game winning streak snapped in a 66-48 loss to 15^th-ranked Texas.