Baylor Basketball
Baylor takes down Oklahoma State 61-57 for hopeful No. 1 ranking
WACO, Texas — SicEm365's Elizabeth Sherman had to park in a handicap parking spot before Baylor’s 61-57 win over Oklahoma State. If there was any worry of Baylor nation not supporting the nation’s soon to be No. 1 ranked program, that should be laid to rest tonight helping the Bears overcome 10 lead changes. You’d be hard-pressed to find one empty seat despite the Cowboys riding into town with an 0-2 record.
"[The crowd] took us a little time to get used to too," Baylor coach Scott Drew said. "They definitely affected the game and had an impact and was a big reason why we're ranked where we're ranked."
It was a true team effort that made sure that the Cowboys rode home with a third-straight loss as the Bears improve to 15-0 on the season. Two more wins will tie the program’s most consecutive wins to start the season and should come with the added bonus of being the top-ranked team for the first time in school history on Monday.
Like the 14 games before Saturday, it was the defense that propelled the win.
Entering the game, Oklahoma State guard Jawun Evans led the conference with 19.7 points per game. It wasn’t until nine minutes into the game he scored his first points of the game off two free throws and he finished with just seven points. Still, the Cowboys held a lead for the majority of the game including at a 30-25 lead at halftime but couldn't shake Baylor.
“Nothing rattles them,” Oklahoma State coach Underwood said mentioning Baylor’s 23-point comeback against Louisville. “I hope people here remember, they’re gonna be number one on Monday, remember where they were when he got here. They shouldn’t take that lightly . . . . Let’s not forget the job he took over, the remarkable job he’s done. That team wins because they’re very close and very old. Nothing rattles ‘em.”
In fact, it wasn’t because of the Pokes’ offense that they almost took down Baylor at all. Their 57 points were right in line with Baylor’s average points allowed per game, ranked third in the nation. It was Baylor’s offense that proved unreliable. In the first half, the Bears exited down 30-25 having sank only 8-of-20 shots from the field. Free throws came with ease, but single points don’t add up quickly and the hesitation to shoot from the perimeter didn’t help Baylor’s cause early on.
“They (the Cowboys) were really aggressive and physical and it took a little time to get used to," Drew said. "After we did I think we responded a little better. But credit them for doing a great job being physical.”
It wasn’t until midway through the first half Baylor even attempted a three-pointer and it was Johnathan Motley of all people to sink the Bears’ first trey. Conversely, Oklahoma State was incredibly active from deep, hitting 8-of-22 led by guard Phil Forte III shooting 5-of-7.
More importantly than OSU’s affinity to play the perimeter was its advantageous second chance opportunities. Led by their 19 offensive rebounds (35 total) compared to Baylor’s seven boards on offense (31 total), the Cowboys won 15-10 in second chance points.
Three-pointers and second chance point were two of the only scoring categories the Pokes won at the final tally. Though, Baylor churned out enough production in other places late in the game to overcome that hole dug early in the game, mainly forcing penalties from OSU and viciously working the lane.
Baylor exited the game winning 26-14 in the paint and also tacked on 22 points from the free-throw line (OSU had just 10 fall through). There were a fair share of lumps along the way including three consecutive missed free throws starting with two bricks from Johnathan Motley but in the end, those were just minor inconveniences.
Motley finished with 13 points and nine rebounds while fellow forward Terry Maston backed him up with 11 points and five rebounds.
“I tried to rebound my best. I tried to get as many offensive boards as I could," Maston said. "They were getting all of them and led 9-2 at halftime. We needed to get some more second chance points and that was the difference in the game.”
"“To their credit, I thought Maston was off the charts,” Underwood said. “Thought he was a big difference in the game.”
It was mainly a battle between Baylor’s forwards and OSU’s guard play from Forte and Jeffrey Carroll (14 points) until Manu Lecomte hit second gear in the final quarter of play.
With 15 minutes remaining in the second half, Lecomte had just four points and was 1-of-6 from the field. In the following eight minutes, he turned that into 3 points and was 4-of-10. Lecomte finished the night with 17 points. He finished with just three of Baylor’s 13 assists but that was made up for with Ish Wainright continuing to get in on the mix with three steals. It also doesn’t hurt any for Lecomte virtually ending the game with a steal to preserve Baylor’s 59-56 lead with 19.6 seconds remaining.
In the end, 61-57 should become just as big feature of Baylor lore as 61-58 has become for football considering it’s the score that should ignite a No. 1 ranking next week.
"[The crowd] took us a little time to get used to too," Baylor coach Scott Drew said. "They definitely affected the game and had an impact and was a big reason why we're ranked where we're ranked."
It was a true team effort that made sure that the Cowboys rode home with a third-straight loss as the Bears improve to 15-0 on the season. Two more wins will tie the program’s most consecutive wins to start the season and should come with the added bonus of being the top-ranked team for the first time in school history on Monday.
Like the 14 games before Saturday, it was the defense that propelled the win.
Entering the game, Oklahoma State guard Jawun Evans led the conference with 19.7 points per game. It wasn’t until nine minutes into the game he scored his first points of the game off two free throws and he finished with just seven points. Still, the Cowboys held a lead for the majority of the game including at a 30-25 lead at halftime but couldn't shake Baylor.
“Nothing rattles them,” Oklahoma State coach Underwood said mentioning Baylor’s 23-point comeback against Louisville. “I hope people here remember, they’re gonna be number one on Monday, remember where they were when he got here. They shouldn’t take that lightly . . . . Let’s not forget the job he took over, the remarkable job he’s done. That team wins because they’re very close and very old. Nothing rattles ‘em.”
In fact, it wasn’t because of the Pokes’ offense that they almost took down Baylor at all. Their 57 points were right in line with Baylor’s average points allowed per game, ranked third in the nation. It was Baylor’s offense that proved unreliable. In the first half, the Bears exited down 30-25 having sank only 8-of-20 shots from the field. Free throws came with ease, but single points don’t add up quickly and the hesitation to shoot from the perimeter didn’t help Baylor’s cause early on.
“They (the Cowboys) were really aggressive and physical and it took a little time to get used to," Drew said. "After we did I think we responded a little better. But credit them for doing a great job being physical.”
It wasn’t until midway through the first half Baylor even attempted a three-pointer and it was Johnathan Motley of all people to sink the Bears’ first trey. Conversely, Oklahoma State was incredibly active from deep, hitting 8-of-22 led by guard Phil Forte III shooting 5-of-7.
More importantly than OSU’s affinity to play the perimeter was its advantageous second chance opportunities. Led by their 19 offensive rebounds (35 total) compared to Baylor’s seven boards on offense (31 total), the Cowboys won 15-10 in second chance points.
Three-pointers and second chance point were two of the only scoring categories the Pokes won at the final tally. Though, Baylor churned out enough production in other places late in the game to overcome that hole dug early in the game, mainly forcing penalties from OSU and viciously working the lane.
Baylor exited the game winning 26-14 in the paint and also tacked on 22 points from the free-throw line (OSU had just 10 fall through). There were a fair share of lumps along the way including three consecutive missed free throws starting with two bricks from Johnathan Motley but in the end, those were just minor inconveniences.
Motley finished with 13 points and nine rebounds while fellow forward Terry Maston backed him up with 11 points and five rebounds.
“I tried to rebound my best. I tried to get as many offensive boards as I could," Maston said. "They were getting all of them and led 9-2 at halftime. We needed to get some more second chance points and that was the difference in the game.”
"“To their credit, I thought Maston was off the charts,” Underwood said. “Thought he was a big difference in the game.”
It was mainly a battle between Baylor’s forwards and OSU’s guard play from Forte and Jeffrey Carroll (14 points) until Manu Lecomte hit second gear in the final quarter of play.
With 15 minutes remaining in the second half, Lecomte had just four points and was 1-of-6 from the field. In the following eight minutes, he turned that into 3 points and was 4-of-10. Lecomte finished the night with 17 points. He finished with just three of Baylor’s 13 assists but that was made up for with Ish Wainright continuing to get in on the mix with three steals. It also doesn’t hurt any for Lecomte virtually ending the game with a steal to preserve Baylor’s 59-56 lead with 19.6 seconds remaining.
In the end, 61-57 should become just as big feature of Baylor lore as 61-58 has become for football considering it’s the score that should ignite a No. 1 ranking next week.
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