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Baylor Basketball

Gameday Thread: No. 25 Baylor Returns To Waco To Face Rival TCU

January 17, 2025
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No. 25 Baylor (11-5, 3-2) hosts TCU (9-7, 2-3) Sunday, Jan. 19 at 4 p.m. CST at Foster Pavilion. The game will be televised on ESPN.  

Predictions

KenPom: Baylor 74, TCU 62

Torvik: Baylor 71, TCU 61

Evan Miyakawa: Baylor 77, TCU 63

Haslemetrics: Baylor 71, TCU 61

Coaches

TCU: Jamie Dixon (59) 497-240 (169-117 at TCU); 15 NCAAs; 3 Sweet 16s; Elite 8

Baylor: Scott Drew (54); 477-260 overall (457-249 at Baylor); 12 NCAAs; 5 Sweet 16s; 3 Elite 8s; FF; 1 National Championship

Head to Head: 9-6 Drew

TCU Starters

  • Guard: Noah Reynolds (Sr.) 6-3 200 lbs; 13 ppg; 4 asst; 46% FG; 34% 3pt; 70% FT
  • Guard: Vasean Allette (So.) 6-2 190 lbs; 11 ppg; 4 reb; 3 asst; 38% FG; 25% 3pt; 71% FT
  • Guard: Micah Robinson (Fr.) 6-6 225 lbs; 6 ppg; 43% FG; 37% 3pt; 84% FT
  • Forward: David Punch (Fr.) 6-7 245 lbs; 6 ppg; 5 reb; 49% FG; 17% 3pt; 44% FT
  • Forward: Ernest Udeh (Jr.) 6-11 260 lbs; 7 ppg; 8 reb; 2 blks; 62% FG; 54% FT

TCU Bench

  • Forward: Trazarien White (Sr.) 6-6 185 lbs; 10 ppg; 3 reb; 41% FG; 37% pt; 67% FT
  • Forward: Brendan Wenzel (Sr.) 6-8 215 lbs; 8 ppg; 3 reb; 41% FG; 45% 3pt; 78% FT

Baylor Starters

  • Guard: Jeremy Roach (Sr.) 6-2 180 lbs; 12 ppg; 4 asst; 42% FG; 35% 3pt; 670% FT
  • Guard: Jayden Nunn (Sr.) 6-4 190 lbs; 11 ppg; 3 reb; 41% FG; 47% 3pt; 71% FT
  • Guard: VJ Edgecombe (Fr.) 6-5 190 lbs; 13 ppg; 6 reb; 3 asst; 2 st; 42% FG; 32% 3pt 71% FT
  • Forward: Norchad Omier (Sr.) 6-7 245 lbs; 16 ppg; 10 reb; 60% FG; 29% 3pt; 73% FT
  • Forward: Josh Ojianwuna (Jr.) 6-10 255 lbs; 8 ppg; 7 reb; 78% FG; 63% FT

Baylor Bench

  • *Guard: Langston Love (Jr.) 6-5 215 lbs; 7 ppg; 3 reb; 36% FG; 29% 3pt; 75% FT 
  • *Forward: Jalen Celestine (Sr.) 6-7 215 lbs; 8 ppg; 3 reb; 39% FG; 38% 3pt; 100% FT
  • Guard: Rob Wright (Fr.) 6-1 180 lbs; 12 ppg; 5 asst; 47% FG; 40% 3pt; 77% FT
  • Forward: Jason Asemota (FR) 6-8 200 lbs; 2 ppg; 2 reb; 32% FG; 21% 3pt; 33% FT

*sat out the last four games with injuries*

Discussion from...

Gameday Thread: No. 25 Baylor Returns To Waco To Face Rival TCU

17,815 Views | 196 Replies | Last: 5 days ago by boykin_spaniel
Cove Dawg
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6:14p, 1/19/25
Pretty simple analysis of this team that completely changed my thoughts on the season, poor shooting, poor defense, out hustled, and nonexistent contributions from the big and this is what you get.
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IowaBear
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In reply to GoodOleBaylorLine • 6:14p, 1/19/25
KSU is the worst team in the league. So expect them to come to Waco and dominate.
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True Grit
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6:15p, 1/19/25
That's one horrific loss. Unbelievable… NIT bound
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Bear04
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6:15p, 1/19/25
What good are all these five star recruits if we can't put a team together??
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Oso del lago
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In reply to Bear04 • 6:17p, 1/19/25
Bear04 said:
What good are all these five star recruits if we can't put a team together??


Yup. Fast decline
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bear2be2
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In reply to IowaBear • 6:17p, 1/19/25
IowaBear said:
Well said! Our post season fate is pretty much sealed at this point
It's way too early to say this, but this team is doing absolutely nothing in March even if it makes the tournament.
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pilgrim
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6:18p, 1/19/25
That was just horrendous.
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Big12Fan2024
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6:19p, 1/19/25
It was evident in the first game mega blowout by Gonzaga that this team was not going to be good at switches. It became even more evident after the Tennessee game. The game with Iowa St should have sealed that knowledge. But here we are, completely clueless still even after Arizona blew the same switches to smitherines. This is just insanity.
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GoodOleBaylorLine
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In reply to Bear04 • 6:19p, 1/19/25
Bear04 said:
What good are all these five star recruits if we can't put a team together??

Um, those five star recruits are the ones that looked like dog **** in the second. Drew deserves a lot of blame but so do the players for a gutless performance. That ain't roster construction.
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IowaBear
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In reply to bear2be2 • 6:20p, 1/19/25
Is it though? I said 4 games in KSU wasn't sniffing the dance and that's the case. There's nothing to point to this team doing enough to make the tournament. There's no guaranteed wins. Hell I wouldn't bet against Tangs ****ty KSU team winning Wednesday in Waco
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Guitarbiscuit
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In reply to IowaBear • 6:25p, 1/19/25
I understand Scott Drew built baylor basketball, but he is also been the coach on this downswing going on 3 years. This team is bad and won't get any better. And that's the fault of Scott Drew.
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IowaBear
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In reply to Guitarbiscuit • 6:28p, 1/19/25
Love CSD dude literally built BU and it culminated in a Natty.
But unless he looks in the mirror and changes how he constructs the roster Baylor is going to continue its downward trend. You simply cannot continue the 75% roster turnover. Just look at next season. Who's guaranteed back? Josh O, Celestine. That's literally it
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Big12Fan2024
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6:30p, 1/19/25
Credit to Fran. The man is great at his job. He called it at approximately the 10 minute mark when we had been up by 9 and had a chance to put them away, but got lackadaisical with the ball and he saw that we were just going through the motions at that point.
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Guitarbiscuit
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In reply to IowaBear • 6:30p, 1/19/25
My sentiments as well. Just bewildering to me that a man who understands roster construction enough to win a championship has strayed so far from what he once did to succeed.
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bear2be2
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In reply to Big12Fan2024 • 6:34p, 1/19/25
Big12Fan2024 said:
It was evident in the first game mega blowout by Gonzaga that this team was not going to be good at switches. It became even more evident after the Tennessee game. The game with Iowa St should have sealed that knowledge. But here we are, completely clueless still even after Arizona blew the same switches to smitherines. This is just insanity.
We've been terrible at it for three straight years. The switch-everything defense only works when you have elite individual defenders as we did in 2020, 2021 and 2022. It looks like absolute **** when you don't.

You or I could run an offensive set every possession to get a giant mismatch against our defense. All it takes is one high ball screen. That our staff hasn't recognized and addressed this in three years is baffling.
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Guitarbiscuit
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In reply to bear2be2 • 6:35p, 1/19/25
Not too early.
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boykin_spaniel
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6:36p, 1/19/25
The lack of rebounding late was… sad

Leaving their hot hand wide open was sad

The game got physical and we couldn't handle it which was also… sad

The consistent lack of defense the past 3 years is coaching… go find a couple more Freddy Gillespies to coach up

Do we have a glue guy or utility/hustle man? I don't think so

So many blocked shots and missed free throws

Run some plays to set Nunn up for open 3 looks

Landing big 5* recruits is exciting and all but it's a gamble on consistency and then they leave.

Can we not take some more mid major dudes with 2-3 years of eligibility left and try to build a little more cohesion?
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bear2be2
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In reply to IowaBear • 6:36p, 1/19/25
IowaBear said:
Is it though? I said 4 games in KSU wasn't sniffing the dance and that's the case. There's nothing to point to this team doing enough to make the tournament. There's no guaranteed wins. Hell I wouldn't bet against Tangs ****ty KSU team winning Wednesday in Waco
I don't think it's too early to say you don't think this team will make the tournament. But we have way too many games remaining to say it definitively. Scott Drew has turned teams in deeper holes than this one around in the past. But it's hard to see this one getting where it needs to be.
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bear2be2
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In reply to boykin_spaniel • 6:39p, 1/19/25
boykin_spaniel said:
The lack of rebounding late was… sad

Leaving their hot hand wide open was sad

The game got physical and we couldn't handle it which was also… sad

The consistent lack of defense the past 3 years is coaching… go find a couple more Freddy Gillespies to coach up

Do we have a glue guy or utility/hustle man? I don't think so

So many blocked shots and missed free throws

Run some plays to set Nunn up for open 3 looks

Landing big 5* recruits is exciting and all but it's a gamble on consistency and then they leave.

Can we not take some more mid major dudes with 2-3 years of eligibility left and try to build a little more cohesion?
Great post. I couldn't agree more. Except with your part about 5* recruits being exciting. I don't even get excited about those guys anymore, because I know what they signify in terms of roster construction and continuity.
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Big12Fan2024
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In reply to bear2be2 • 6:39p, 1/19/25
bear2be2 said:
IowaBear said:
Is it though? I said 4 games in KSU wasn't sniffing the dance and that's the case. There's nothing to point to this team doing enough to make the tournament. There's no guaranteed wins. Hell I wouldn't bet against Tangs ****ty KSU team winning Wednesday in Waco
I don't think it's too early to say you don't think this team will make the tournament. But we have way too many games remaining to say it definitively. Scott Drew has turned teams in deeper holes than this one around in the past. But it's hard to see this one getting where it needs to be.
I agree that Scott has definitely turned some prior teams from just as deep if not deeper holes, but this is one of the few teams I can remember since his first year that genuinely doesn't even come across as if they enjoy playing with each other. No leader. No fire. We literally look like a pickup team at the Y comprised of a bunch of randos. I think that's the difference I see in this team compared to others where I personally continued to hold out hope.
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Guitarbiscuit
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In reply to bear2be2 • 6:40p, 1/19/25
Drew may have had bigger mid season turnarounds, but the players on those teams generally had better talent and more experience. We have none of those things.
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bear2be2
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In reply to Big12Fan2024 • 6:41p, 1/19/25
Big12Fan2024 said:
bear2be2 said:
IowaBear said:
Is it though? I said 4 games in KSU wasn't sniffing the dance and that's the case. There's nothing to point to this team doing enough to make the tournament. There's no guaranteed wins. Hell I wouldn't bet against Tangs ****ty KSU team winning Wednesday in Waco
I don't think it's too early to say you don't think this team will make the tournament. But we have way too many games remaining to say it definitively. Scott Drew has turned teams in deeper holes than this one around in the past. But it's hard to see this one getting where it needs to be.
I agree that Scott has definitely turned some prior teams from just as deep if not deeper holes, but this is one of the few teams I can remember since his first year that genuinely doesn't even come across as if they enjoy playing with each other. No leader. No fire. We literally look like a pickup team at the Y comprised of a bunch of randos. I think that's the difference I see in this team compared to others where I personally continued to hold out hope.
I'm with you. I said a couple of weeks ago I thought this was an 8/9 seed, so I've never thought particularly highly of this group. And this loss resets my expectations completely.

This team will be lucky to make the tournament. But there is still time to achieve that most modest of goals.
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boykin_spaniel
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In reply to bear2be2 • 6:41p, 1/19/25
Vital, EJ, and Gillespie could handle guards well enough to make switching effective. Vital could guard 1-5. I'd say go to zone but when we go to zone we keep leaving dudes wide open for 3s with simple basic ball movement
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bear2be2
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In reply to boykin_spaniel • 6:43p, 1/19/25
boykin_spaniel said:
Vital, EJ, and Gillespie could handle guards well enough to make switching effective. Vital could guard 1-5. I'd say go to zone but when we go to zone we keep leaving dudes wide open for 3s with simple basic ball movement
Ojianwuna does a pretty good job of switching onto guards, but every time he does, we have a 6-foot or 6-3 guard on their post player.

It's just a really stupid defensive philosophy.
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boykin_spaniel
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In reply to bear2be2 • 6:44p, 1/19/25
I don't disagree with you but they get media attention and it can help build some momentum and keeps some fans engaged
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bear2be2
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In reply to Guitarbiscuit • 6:45p, 1/19/25
Guitarbiscuit said:
Drew may have had bigger mid season turnarounds, but the players on those teams generally had better talent and more experience. We have none of those things.
These players have a ton of experience. We can't make that excuse.

Roach, Omier, Nunn, etc. have played a ton of college basketball. Every player in our rotation but Edgecombe and Wright are in at least their third year as a college player.

Unfortunately, collectively they suck.
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boykin_spaniel
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In reply to Guitarbiscuit • 6:46p, 1/19/25
I think this team has the talent which makes it more frustrating. They lack experience playing together and don't show nearly the grit as past teams
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boykin_spaniel
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In reply to bear2be2 • 6:52p, 1/19/25
You are correct. Josh O uses his length to his advantage when he gets on guards. It's tough asking skinny freshmen like VJ and Wright to cover big experienced dudes who have 40+ pounds on them plus height. You'd think after every great team we've played shredded it we'd be trying some new stuff
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ImABearToo
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In reply to bear2be2 • 6:52p, 1/19/25
Feels like this team is too soft. Not enough dogs.
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IvanBear
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In reply to boykin_spaniel • 6:54p, 1/19/25
boykin_spaniel said:
I think this team has the talent which makes it more frustrating. They lack experience playing together and don't show nearly the grit as past teams


Why do you think we have the talent. Roach looks horrible when other guys aren't carrying him he's getting massively exposed here.


Omier and Wright are the only two guys with talent that translates to basketball skill but they both play like freshman and that's only excusable for one of them.


The rest of the team are roll players at best who excel at most one thing not only do we lack cohesion because of roster construction but we lack the overwhelming talent to just gut it out.

This whole low ceiling high floor fell through today big time.
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bear2be2
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In reply to boykin_spaniel • 6:54p, 1/19/25
boykin_spaniel said:
You are correct. Josh O uses his length to his advantage when he gets on guards. It's tough asking skinny freshmen like VJ and Wright to cover big experienced dudes who have 40+ pounds on them plus height. You'd think after every great team we've played shredded it we'd be trying some new stuff
Usually, it's Wright or Nunn on those guys, not even Edgecombe. Because we switch man for man and never even try to switch back.

So if their one gets a pick from their five, our smallest guard is guarding their post.
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Big12Fan2024
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In reply to bear2be2 • 6:56p, 1/19/25
I wish I had a dollar for every time today I looked up and saw tiny Robert Wright having to cover manbeast Udeh under the basket.
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bear2be2
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In reply to Big12Fan2024 • 6:57p, 1/19/25
Big12Fan2024 said:
I wish I had a dollar for every time today I looked up and saw tiny Robert Wright having to cover manbeast Udeh under the basket.
It's been happening all year long. It's maddening.
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IowaBear
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In reply to Big12Fan2024 • 6:58p, 1/19/25
You would have enough $1 bills to get a private dance from a high level stripper
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Jorkel
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In reply to ImABearToo • 7:00p, 1/19/25
ImABearToo said:
Feels like this team is too soft. Not enough dogs.


How I feel about the couching staff the last few years
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