Baylor comes up short 81-78 in overtime with TCU

After TCU jumped to a 12-point lead in the second half, the Ferrell Center flipped a switch as to carry Baylor into overtime only to fall short 81-78. The loss marks Baylor’s first two-loss opening in Big 12 play for the time in three years.

Acuil comes back swinging with Maston

Considering the magnitude of the loss Tech handed Baylor without Jo Lual-Acuil in or Terry Maston at 100 percent, their performances tonight are still of note. Big Jo finished the night with 28 points and 11 rebounds, recording his seventh double-double of the season. Not only was he instrumental getting the ball moving but was a force on defense again with two blocks.

He really worked in tandem with Maston as well, each grabbing each other’s missed shots and turning them into points. Had the game ended on better terms, this putback from Baylor's Agent Zero would go down as one of the program's best slams.

Baylor’s second-chance points were severely limited against Tech but thanks to Maston and Acuil making up 12 of Baylor’s 19 offensive rebounds, the Bears had 24 points that’d otherwise turn into TCU points. 

In all, Maston ended with 20 points and nine boards. Considering it was with a surgically placed metal plate in his hand, it’s a sign he won’t be silenced like his first game back. He was as agile as ever, working his way through defenders in the paint for contested shots better than ever. Reported to have slimmed down 13 pounds, it's beginning to show.

No Three-Point game again

One is the loneliest number. Had it been a pair, the game could have avoided overtime. But as Baylor shot 1-of-12 for the night from three-point range, there should have been no reasonable expectation of sinking a game-winning trey. Jake Lindsey’s layup did just fine tying up the game but to avoid overtime, sharpshooters like Manu Lecomte and King McClure needed to earn that moniker again.

Lecomte made the team’s only three-pointer on the night. There were some deep two’s from Maston among others but that only goes so far. Baylor has shot 4-of-24 from range the past two games and Lecomte as the team’s three-point leader is 2-of-11 in that span. It’s been a costly drought.

Lindsey does the dirty work for better and worse

As is often the case, you have to turn to the tape to appreciate Jake Lindsey’s contribution for the Bears. Aside from his overtime-setting layup with under 20 seconds left, his stat line was virtually silent.

He walked away with just seven points and two assists. But between the lines, he was as important as Lual-Acuil or Maston. Playing 28 minutes, Lindsey had a +/- of 3 points, one of only three Bears with a positive total.

Though he wasn’t responsible for many points, he was a vital distraction opening space for Lual-Acuil with back screens to break up TCU’s defense. He’s also increasingly becoming more visible on defense and now has consecutive two-block games. Chasing down breakaways has become a recent signature of his.

Most notably, he was the fall guy. With the game extending to overtime, he finished with a tied team-high four fouls. Some like his reach on Kenrich Wiliams a minute into overtime to give TCU the lead were questionable at best. As was the guidance of a Lecomte foul in OT. But others like the errant call at 13:54 in the second half were part of an aggressive attack that spurred Baylor’s run. And he was just as important drawing fouls to swing back possessions.