Box Score By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
LUBBOCK, Texas – One thing the 11th-ranked Baylor Bears have proven over the last two weeks is that they're never out of a game. No matter how bad things might look.
Trailing Texas Tech by 16 four minutes into the second half of Saturday's game at United Supermarkets Arena, the Bears (22-9, 11-7) rallied to take a one-point lead on a 3-pointer by freshman Ja'Kobe Walter with 7:25 left.
But the Red Raiders (22-9, 11-7) responded by hitting four 3-pointers in a 14-2 run and pulled away late for a 78-68 Senior Day win before a near-capacity crowd of 14,432.
"I thought we did a great job of coming back," said Baylor coach Scott Drew, whose team tied for third in the Big 12 with Tech and earned the No. 3 seed for next week's conference tournament in Kansas City because of a tiebreaker edge.
"Really, credit Texas Tech for making some big shots. We had some defensive breakdowns and errors, that's on us. But Coach (Grant McCasland's) actions and plays caused a lot of that. Never easy losing, but they deserve a lot of credit. . . . They really executed and played well and really kicked our butt on the glass. So, they deserve it."
Even without senior 7-footer Warren Washington, who was sidelined by a foot injury, Tech was particularly dominant on the boards in the first half. Not only did the Red Raiders outrebound the Bears 22-12, they gave up zero offensive boards and had a 10-0 edge in second-chance points in taking a 40-27 halftime lead.
"I obviously didn't have us prepared to play," Drew said, "because we hze zero offensive rebounds in the first half. They deserve a lot of credit for making sure that we couldn't get second and third chances, which we did the first time we played them. The other thing is, we had a lot better looks the first time we played them. I think defensively, they did a great job."
Other than Walter's first bucket 25 seconds into the game, this one could not have started off much worse for Baylor. Pop Isaacs scored nine of his game-high 20 points in a 16-0 run, capping it with a 3-pointer that gave the Red Raiders a 16-2 lead just over five minutes into the game.
"When you come out flat, the other team is going to make a run," said Walter, who hit three 3-pointers and scored 13 of his team-high 15 points in the second half. "I think with us, that's happened to us multiple times. But we've always fought back. I just realized that every day, you've got to be consistent and come with that energy."
Down 47-31 with 16 minutes left, the Bears started chiseling away at the deficit, forcing eight second-half turnovers and scoring eight second-chance points on seven offensive boards.
"I think RayJ (Dennis) was doing a great job getting to the paint," Walter said of Dennis, who had 12 points, five assists and two steals. "In the first half, we weren't kicking it out. I think that's probably the adjustment we made. Offensively, we started to move the ball more. But RayJ, when he was getting to the paint, they were crashing. And that's when we had opportunities to kick it out and shots just started falling."
Playing his first game in 18 days and just his second in the last month, sophomore guard Langston Love converted a three-point play to start the Bears' comeback and finished with nine points and five rebounds.
Another three-point play, this time by freshman 7-footer Yves Missi, capped off a 7-0 run that got Baylor back within four, 49-45, with just under 12 minutes to play. The Bears then scored nine unanswered points and took their first lead since 2-0 lead when Walter's 3-pointer put them on top, 54-53.
"I think we came out in the second half and started playing like ourselves," Walter said. "We started to rebound and started to press the gas by playing defense."
That lead lasted all of 22 seconds, when Isaacs answered with a 3-pointer to start a 14-2 run that gave Tech the lead for good. Dennis drove inside for Baylor's only bucket in that stretch, a run that finally ended when Walter drained another trey.
Forced to foul late in the game, Baylor played into Tech's hands. The Red Raiders, who lead the league in free throw percentage (77.5), made six free throws down the stretch and finished 17-of-24 from the line.
Darrion Williams had a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Chance McMillian chipped in with 11 points, three assists and two steals off the bench. Jayden Nunn gave the Bears their third double-figure scorer with 14 points.
Even with senior 7-footer Warren Washington sidelined by a foot injury, the Red Raiders won the battle of the boards, 40-29, and finished with a 13-8 edge in second-chance points.
The Big 12 tournament tips off with two games on Tuesday and four second-round matchups on Wednesday. Baylor will play the late quarterfinal at 8:30 p.m. Thursday versus either sixth-seeded Kansas (22-9) or the winner of a first-round matchup between 11th-seeded Cincinnati (18-13) and 14th-seeded West Virginia (9-22).
