Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
 
WACO, Texas – Watching from the sidelines as fellow Baylor freshmen Robert O. Wright III and VJ Edgecombe became consistent double-digit scorers, Jason Asemota dreamed of "trying to pick it up and be where they're at right now."
 
The 6-8 freshman forward took a step in that direction in Tuesday's 68-48 win over the Cincinnati Bearcats, matching a season high with 14 minutes and making a significant contribution with four rebounds, one block, a steal and a sweet dish to Edgecombe for a slam dunk.
 
"I'm glad he's getting the minutes," said Edgecombe, who had 18 points to share game-high scoring honors with Miami transfer Norchad Omier, "because he's worked hard for it. It's all paying off right now. (He) didn't take a shot, he didn't complain one time. He just wanted to be a team player. So, credit Jason."
 
Ranked a five-star prospect out of Hillcrest Prep in Phoenix, Ariz., Asemota had averaged just over six minutes in the 10 games he had played before Tuesday night's game at Foster Pavilion. But with Cal transfer Jalen Celestine and redshirt junior guard Langston Love both missing the last two games with ankle injuries, he's had to play a much larger role in a depleted seven-man rotation.
 
"These are the moments I work in the gym for," said Asemota, who has scored a total of 23 points while shooting 42.9% from the floor. "Not just putting up points, though, just playing extremely hard and playing with the passion that I wear on my sleeve every night. All the emotion just came out tonight because I've been waiting for this one moment."
 
Logging eight minutes in the first half, Asemota was part of a defensive effort that held the visiting Bearcats (10-4, 0-3) to 20 points and their worst shooting percentage (23.1%) in any half this season. With Cincinnati not scoring from the floor over the last eight minutes and missing nine of its last 10 shots, Baylor (10-4, 2-1) took a commanding 35-20 lead into the break.
 
"I'm 6-9, long arms, there's no reason I shouldn't be a good defender," Asemota said. "That's what they've been telling me all year. It's just every day, hard work and dedication to knowing the schemes and knowing when to rotate, when to drop, when to switch out and what we're doing defensively. Just stuff that helped me on the court today."
 
On top of grabbing three first-half rebounds, Asemota blocked a layup attempt by Jizzle James at the 8:30 mark when the Bears were leading by just four and then combined with Edgecombe to force a turnover by Simas Lukosius three minutes later.
 
"I thought Jason Asemota, plus-18 in 14 minutes," Baylor coach Scott Drew said, "he didn't score, but those were huge, huge minutes. . . . If he goes in and you're minus-10, you don't have that option. Playing a different position with injuries, it was really good, because especially young players think it's a good game if they score. The fact that he didn't shoot and was such a positive and a huge contributor in the win is great."
 
With five double-digit scorers, including Edgecombe and Wright, Asemota said "It's not all about scoring for me."
 
"We've got guys that can score," he said. "We've got VJ, we've got Rob, the list goes on and on. If I come in looking to get 15, 20, it's going to mess up the rotation. I know what I've got to do. I've got to come out here and do everything else. Everyone else is scoring, so I've got to do something else."
 
While Asemota admits that he is "much more comfortable" than he was at the start of the season, he said "nothing changes" with the expectations of more playing time as long as Celestine and Love are sidelined with injuries.
 
"Nothing at all changes," he said. "I just keep my head down and stay patient. (Celestine and Love) might come back, and my minutes might decrease. But at some point, I'm going to be back on the floor like tonight, and I've got to do the same exact thing."
 
In maybe his most impactful moment in the game, Asemota picked off a pass by James on the defensive end and then led a fastbreak, dishing to Edgecombe for a highlight-reel dunk that pushed the lead to 52-33.
 
"The coaches are putting so much trust into me," Asemota said. "It's not just stepping on the floor that the trust is presented. It's in practice. We're always on the phone after practice, always in the gym early in the morning and late nights, just watching film.
 
"That's where I get comfortable, just the talking and the relationship I built with the coaches. Knowing that even if you're not playing, they're still treating me like a starter. When I came in (tonight), I wasn't uncomfortable at all. I just kept doing what I always do."
 
Baylor goes on the road for its next two, facing Arizona State (10-3, 1-1) at 8:30 p.m. Saturday in Tempe and Arizona (9-5, 3-0) at 10:30 p.m. next Tuesday, Jan. 14, in Tucson. The Sun Devils play at No. 11 Kansas Wednesday night, while the Wildcats have defeated back-to-back ranked teams on the road and will host UCF Saturday.