No. 10 WBB Uses Second-Half Surge to Down West Virginia

Saturday, February 12

Waco, TX

5 PM

Baylor

19-5,9-3Big 12

West Virginia

11-11,4-8Big 12

West Virginia

Baylor

Athletics – Women’s Basketball vs WVU - WBB – Ferrell Center – 02/12/2020

No. 10 WBB Uses Second-Half Surge to Down West Virginia

2/12/2022 7:28:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Final Book (PDF)

NaLyssa Smith matches a career high with 30 points in the win

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
            Blown out by 33 points at home just two weeks ago, West Virginia changed up some things and made 10^th-ranked Baylor "uncomfortable" for three quarters in Saturday's matchup at the Ferrell Center.
            The Bears looked a lot more comfortable in the fourth quarter.
            Exploding for 29 fourth-quarter points and hitting 11-of-17 from the floor, the Bears (19-5, 9-3) finally pulled away in the last 7 ½ minutes and defeated the Mountaineers, 75-57, behind a career-high-tying 30 points from 6-4 senior All-American NaLyssa Smith.
            "I feel like it was just the will to win," said Smith, who recorded her 16^th double-double of the season with 30 points and 12 rebounds. "You sit back and think, 'We worked this hard, came this far, just wanting to win.' We just started playing, and everybody started playing collectively, wanting to come out with a win."
            West Virginia (11-11, 4-8) looked nothing like the version that gave up 51 first-half points in an 87-54 loss to the Bears two weeks ago in Morgantown. Baylor didn't hit the 50-point mark this time until a Caitlin Bickle layup off a dump pass from Jordan Lewis almost a minute into the fourth quarter.
            "It's a shame," West Virginia coach Mike Carey said. "I thought for three quarters, we did a good job defensively, and then kept getting into foul trouble. You're down seven in this game, and then you start taking bad shots."
            The pivotal point came 2 ½ minutes into the fourth quarter, after Madisen Smith hit a 3-pointer and three-straight free throws to get the Mountaineers back within striking distance at 53-49.
            Sarah Andrews had bookend buckets in a decisive 13-2 run over the next three minutes, hitting a floater in the lane to get it going and then capping it with a layup off a feed from Jordan Lewis that pushed the lead to 66-51 with 4:38 to play.
            "They tend to press after made throws. I just thought Sarah did a good job of not letting them slow her down as a result of the press," said first-year Baylor head coach Nicki Collen. "She just dribbled right past it and created separation in a hurry and showed her explosiveness."
            That was enough to finally put away a West Virginia team that took 12^th-ranked Oklahoma to double-overtime last Saturday.
            "I told them in there, it's a shame. We had it. All we he had to do was keep it close in the fourth quarter," Carey said. "Anything can happen in the fourth quarter. I thought at times, we were right there, then gave up some easy ones."
            Facing a physical West Virginia defense that made pretty much everything difficult, the Bears scored just 29 first-half points and led by one at the break. Baylor shot 36% from the floor, missed all five shots from outside the arc and missed nine of 14 free throws.
            "We allowed our missed free throws to affect everything else," said Collen, whose team won its fourth in a row and stayed just a game behind ninth-ranked Iowa State (21-3, 10-2) in the Big 12 standings. "You miss some shots, and then you go to the foul line where you have a chance to separate. Then, you miss all of those, and you could see the collective sigh."
            After scoring one point in the first half, Lewis hit back-to-back 3-pointers and scored eight-straight points to extend Baylor's precarious lead to 37-32 early in the third quarter.
            "Early on, they were guarding me really close," said Lewis, who had 18 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals. "I don't think I was doing a good job starting off the ball screens in the first half. So, making the adjustments to go off-shoulder to hip because they were being very aggressive on the ball screens."
            Queen Egbo recorded her 28^th career double-double with 13 points and 11 boards, while West Virginia's Madisen Smith nearly had a triple-double for the Mountaineers with 18 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.
            After scoring just 29 points in the first half and leading by one at the break, the Bears got 17 points apiece from Smith and Lewis in the second half to finally break it open.
            West Virginia outrebounded Baylor, 53-41, and scored 18 second-chance points on 18 offensive boards.
            "We kind of know what to expect every time with West Virginia," Smith said. "But, we came out and we'ren't doing a couple of things we knew that we could do. It is frustrating, but we can't let it take over the game. We came out and adjusted and played well."
            In the first of back-to-back games against TCU (6-15, 2-10), Baylor will host the Horned Frogs at 7 p.m. Wednesday and play three days later in Fort Worth. TCU has lost seven-straight games and was blown out by 8^th-ranked Iowa State, 93-70, at home.