2/2 HOUSTON (23-3, 10-3 Big 12) Location: Houston, Texas Conference/Affiliation: Big 12 Head Coach: Kelvin Sampson (UNC Pembroke, 1978) Roster | Stats | Game Notes	2/2 HOUSTON (23-3, 10-3 Big 12) vs. 11/11 BAYLOR (19-7, 8-5 Big 12) Feb. 24, 2024 • 11:00 a.m. CT Waco, Texas • Foster Pavilion (7,500)  LIVE STATS: Stat Broadcast WATCH: CBS Talent: Spero Dedes (pxp), Jim Spanarkel (analyst) LISTEN: Baylor Sports Media Network via ESPN 1660 AM / 92.3 FM in Central Texas and worldwide at centexsportsfan.com Talent: John Morris (PBP), Pat Nunley (Analyst) SIRIUS XM: SiriusXM 84 or on the SXM App Baylor Social Media:
	11/11 BAYLOR BEARS (19-7, 8-5 Big 12) Location: Waco, Texas  Conference/Affiliation: Big 12 Head Coach: Scott Drew (Butler, 1993) Roster | Stats | Game Notes (PDF)

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
 
Undoubtedly, Baylor fans will remember 6-1 shooting guard LJ Cryer and even his familiar No. 4 jersey.
 
Part of Baylor's 2021 national championship team, Cryer averaged 11.3 points over three seasons and knocked down 148 3-pointers. But he ended up at Houston after entering the transfer portal last summer and is the leading scorer (15.0 ppg) for the second-ranked and league-leading Cougars (23-3, 10-3) going into Saturday's 11 a.m. game at Foster Pavilion.
 
"Players always work on certain things, improve certain areas," Baylor coach Scott Drew said. "So what you thought of a player maybe a year ago is different than what you think of him now. But LJ was tremendous for us, and we know he's capable of getting 30 any given night. We have to do everything we can to make it as tough as possible on him.
 
"I'm sure our fans remember LJ."
 
Drew also knows that Houston is far from a one-man team. Senior guard Jamal Shead (13.3 ppg, 5.8 assists) joined Cryer on the Naismith Trophy Player of the Year Midseason Team, redshirt senior J'Wan Roberts (9.0 ppg, 7.0 rebounds) "leads that charge" on the boards and sophomore guard Emanuel Sharp is averaging 12.6 points.
 
"Shead has been tremendous all season long," Drew said. "And if (the season) ended today, he would be the Player of the Year in the Big 12. He's somebody that has been in (coach Kelvin Sampson's) program, knows exactly what he wants, how he wants it."
 
Houston's calling card is a defense that ranks first nationally in points allowed (55.3 ppg) and opponents' field goal percentage (37.4%). Shead is one of two players nationally who rank in the top 25 in the country in assists, steals per game (2.31) and assist/turnover ratio (3.00).
 
"They're probably one of the more physical teams in the country," said Baylor fifth-year senior guard RayJ Dennis, who is averaging 13.1 points and 6.6 assists per game. "I've played them in the past, and they've always been physical and just get after you. Just contest everything and try to make life difficult."
 
A high-octane Baylor offense that's averaging 82.6 points per game will be severely tested by the Cougars.
 
"We're going to make it competitive, for sure," said junior guard Jayden Nunn, who is averaging 10.8 points per game. "It's going be fun at the end of the day, but competitive, too."
 
Also averaging double-digit points for the Bears are freshmen Ja'Kobe Walter (14.4 ppg, 4.5 rebounds) and 7-footer Yves Missi (11.2 ppg, 5.7 rebounds, 1.6 blocks), sophomore guard Langston Love (11.1 ppg) and 6-9 senior forward Jalen Bridges (10.9 ppg, 4.8 rebounds).
 
Baylor (19-7, 8-5) is coming off one of its most frustrating game of the season, a 77-71 loss on the road at No. 25 BYU, when the Cougars scored 20 second-chance points off 16 offensive rebounds.
 
"I think we had a really uncharacteristic game," Dennis said. "I think we are one of the toughest teams in the country. So, we're looking forward to the matchup. But just getting our minds back right, listening to the coaches and following the game plan."
 
Saturday's game will be a national broadcast on CBS, with Spero Dedes and former NBA player Jim Spanarkel calling the action.



 STORY LINES

• No. 11/11 BU hosts No. 2/2 Houston in the first meeting as Big 12 rivals Saturday morning at 11am on CBS.

• Baylor is a nations-best 31-14 against ranked teams over the last five seasons. 

• BU is 12-4 in its last 16 games against AP top-10 teams, but is looking for its first-ever win over an opponent ranked at No. 2 in the AP Poll. 

• The Bears are 0-10 all time against teams ranked second in the AP Poll, while having beat at least one team at the other 24 ranking positions.

• Saturday marks the first meeting between the two programs since the 2021 National Semifinal, where the Bears dominated the first-ever Final Four meeting between two Texas teams 78-59.

• In the last games, Jared Butler led the way with 17 points, while Davion Mitchell added 12 points and 11 assists, which was the most assists in a Final Four game since 2003.

• The last meeting in Waco was a 91-84 overtime win by Houston on Jan. 27, 1996 at the Ferrell Center.

• The Bears and Cougars are two of just four teams to win at least one game in each of the last Four NCAA Tournaments (Kansas, Gonzaga).

• BU and Houston both rank in the top-5 for the most wins since 2019.

• Baylor's 314 wins since 2011-12 are second-most in the Big 12 behind only Kansas (352), UH is 3rd (307).

• The Bears were the No. 10 overall seed in the initial Top-16 committee ranking, joining Kansas as the only teams to be in the initial top-16 for five-straight years.

• BU has won 8+ Big 12 games in 13-straight seasons after winning 8+ just 3 times in the league's first 15 years.

• The Bears are aiming for a sixth-straight 20-win season and the 15th in the last 17 seasons, after having just three 20-win seasons in the 97 seasons prior to Scott Drew's arrival.

• Baylor enters fourth in the nation in 3-point FG% (39.6) and offensive efficiency (123.4), while ranking second in the Big 12 in points per game (82.6).

• The Bears are one of just two teams in the country with six players averaging double-digit points (Tulane).

• Ja'Kobe Walter averages a team-leading 14.5 points per game, most among Big 12 freshmen, followed by RayJ Dennis' 13.1 points per game, and is averaging a Big 12-best 37.3 minutes per game in conference play.

• Dennis leads the conference and ranks eighth in the nation in assists per game (6.6). The senior transfer is just 3 assists (171) from breaking into the top-10 in program history for most assists in season.

• Langston Love is averaging 12.8 points per game in Big 12 play, most in the league among players with no starts.

• BU has had six players win Big 12 Sixth-Man of the Year, no other conference school has more than two.

• In addition to his 11.2 points per game, Yves Missi is tied for second in the Big 12 with 1.6 blocks per game.

• Jayden Nunn has picked up steam lately averaging 15.7 points per game in his last six games, including 47 last week with 27 against Oklahoma and 20 at West Virginia. The junior transfer averaged 9.3 points per game through the first 20 games of the season.

• For his efforts, Nunn became the first player in Baylor history to sweep the Big 12 Weekly Awards (2/19).