Quote:

---

THE BEARS ARE BACK

Every Big 12 game feels like there is so much riding on it. And, Tuesday's game between Texas Tech and Baylor did have stakes.

The winner would be tied with Iowa State for a share of second place in the Big 12.

Entering the game the Red Raiders and Bears had identical 16-5 records with a 5-3 lead slate.

Baylor ended up with the victory, 79-73, winning its third straight game. It gave Baylor coach Scott Drew his first win over a former assistant in a Big 12 game. Since he can't seem to beat Kansas State's Jerome Tang (0-3), he'll just have to settle for a win over Tech boss and his former assistant Grant McCasland.

Baylor just walked away with this one in the second half. By the time McCasland used his last time out with 6:35 left in the game his Red Raiders were down 64-51. Baylor was on a 15-2 run and Tech was on a 3:50 scoring drought.

The Red Raiders answered with a Darrion Williams 3-pointer out of the time out. But it didn't matter.

And it really doesn't matter when a team like Baylor is shooting 72% in the second half with less than four minutes left. With 3:20 left Baylor was up 15. No one's catching that if the Bears are shooting like that. But the Red Raiders tried.

RayJ Dennis continues to excel for the Bears, as he finished with 21 points, four rebounds and five assists. Yves Missi had 17 points and seven rebounds while Jayden Nunn added 14 points. The Bears lost Langston Love in the final two minutes to a left leg injury that was significant enough for him to hop off the floor on his right leg.

It was interesting to hear that Baylor went back to its 1-3-1 zone defense due to deficiencies in man defense. The zone does have its benefits. It streamlines defensive assignments and allows players to pursue areas rather than players, which can be valuable to a team with two freshmen in the starting lineup.

The zone paid off late in the game against Texas Tech, especially during that scoring run. For a zone to truly work you have to force teams to shoot outside and not shoot well. In that regard, Baylor won.
Entering the game Baylor's last three opponents shot 45 percent from the arc. Texas Tech shot 40.9 percent from there, but they were below 40 percent for much of the game.

Joe Toussaint led with 18 points for the Red Raiders. Williams scored 17. Chance McMillian came off the bench for 13 points. The Bears held Pop Isaacs to 11 points. The Red Raiders did everything possible to make it a game down the stretch, cutting the lead to six points. But Toussaint fouled out on a drive down six with 35 seconds left and the Red Raiders' last-ditch effort ended.

The Red Raiders have now B & WBB.

---