Freshmen Not Enough to Carry Baylor Past BYU in Overtime, Bears Fall 93-89

PROVO, Utah — The Baylor Men’s Basketball team (13-7, 5-4 Big 12) lost an overtime heartbreaker to the BYU Cougars (14-6, 5-4 Big 12) on Tuesday night by a score of 93-89. On a night where Baylor’s freshmen carried the load, the Bears were let down by veteran forward Norchad Omier.

VJ Edgecombe led all scorers with 28 points while dishing out five assists and Robert Wright carried the Green and Gold into overtime with the Bears’ last 14 points of regulation on his way to 22 total points and six assists.

Omier for his part, still scored 12 points and grabbed eight boards, but his four turnovers and two early fouls put Baylor being the eight ball early. Without their strongest inside presence, the Bears gave up a 10-0 run and fell down 13-6.

BYU kept Baylor scrambling on defense by getting down the court before the half-court defense could get set, earning six fast break points in the period.

Edgecombe and Baylor worked hard to tighten things back up before the break, but a 5-0 run by the Cougars widened the lead back to 10 points before settling at 44-36 at the horn.

BYU looked to knock the Bears back off balance early in half two by growing the lead to 11 points. An Omier turnover on an inbound pass led to the three that capped this BYU surge.

A Jayden Nunn three sparked the Baylor response before Edgecombe took over for three straight possessions, scoring five and setting up Joshua Ojianwuna for a dunk. A VJ triple capped what was an 11-2 run pulling the Bears within two points. Nunn would finish with 11 points and four assists. 

From there, the hosts kept the Green and Gold just out of reach for much of the rest of the night until Robert Wright led the final charge.

The freshman point guard took control for BU, hitting a pair of threes before driving to the rim and earning trips to the free-throw line or making tough buckets. The personal 14-point streak for Wright got the Bears to an overtime period that seemed unlikely the entire evening.

BYU regrouped during the break however, and made their first four shots of OT to take an 87-81 lead. Baylor’s freshmen duo tried to overcome the deficit one more time, but they did not have enough help to get it done. Those two Bears were the only to score in the extra period and Baylor’s fate was all but sealed when Omier was called for a foul on a BYU three — an admittedly ticky-tack call.

Scott Drew and company now have three days off to prepare for Kansas’ visit to the Foster Pavilion on Saturday. With another road loss, the home games become that much more important, especially if the Bears can’t convert the close chances.

Tip-off for Kansas at Baylor is slated for 3:00 p.m. on Saturday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.