Baylor Men’s Basketball Reveals 2020-21 Schedule

WACO, Texas – Baylor basketball 18th-year head coach Scott Drew revealed the Bears’ revised 2020-21 schedule on Monday afternoon, in conjunction with the Big 12 Conference’s release of an 18-game league schedule.

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All Division I schedules have been reduced from a maximum of 31 games to 27 games due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving the Bears with nine non-conference games and 18 Big 12 contests. The adjusted schedule also has Big 12 teams playing two games before Christmas to create flexibility for potential rescheduling at the end of the regular season.

Baylor will open the season with a 14-day trip to play five games potentially in four different states, all against high-major teams. The Bears will arrive in Uncasville, Conn., on Nov. 22 to prepare for the Empire Classic, which will be played Nov. 25-26 at Mohegan Sun. BU will take on two of the other three teams in a field that also includes Villanova, Arizona State and Boston College.

BU will then travel to a to-be-announced site to play a road game in the Big 12-Big East Battle on Nov. 29. Following that contest, the Bears will take on a to-be-announced opponent in the Jimmy V Classic on Dec. 2, with the site of that game yet to be determined. The Bears cap the two-week trip by facing Gonzaga on Dec. 5 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind.

The Bears could play three top-10 ranked teams in their first five games, with the blockbuster Gonzaga game and potential matchups against Villanova and a to-be-announced opponent at the Jimmy V Classic. Baylor, Villanova and Gonzaga are ranked Nos. 1, 2 and 3, respectively, in ESPN’s early top-25.

Baylor’s first home game of the 2020-21 season is scheduled for Dec. 8 against Nicholls State at the Ferrell Center, which will be the final matchup before opening Big 12 play with a pair of mid-December games. BU will host Texas on Sunday, Dec. 13, and travel to Manhattan, Kan., to play at Kansas State on Saturday, Dec. 19.

The Bears finish the month of December with a pair of non-conference home games against teams from The Natural State, taking on Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Dec. 21 and Central Arkansas on Dec. 29. 

Baylor’s January schedule includes road games on the first four Saturdays and midweek home games. The Bears play Saturday road games at Iowa State (Jan. 2), at TCU (Jan. 9), at Texas Tech (Jan. 16) and at Oklahoma State (Jan. 23). Baylor’s January home games include Oklahoma (Jan. 6), West Virginia (Jan. 12), Kansas (Jan. 18), Kansas State (Jan. 27) and an SEC/Big 12 Challenge game against Auburn on Saturday, Jan. 30.

The Jan. 30 game against Auburn begins a stretch with four-consecutive Saturday home games, including TCU (Feb. 6), Texas Tech (Feb. 13) and Oklahoma State (Feb. 20). BU’s midweek road games in February are at Texas (Feb. 2), at Oklahoma (Feb. 10) and at West Virginia (Feb. 15). The Bears’ final home game is Tuesday, Feb. 23, vs. Iowa State, and Baylor wraps up the regular season with a trip to Kansas on Saturday, Feb. 27. The 2021 Big 12 Championship will be played March 10-13 at Kansas City’s T-Mobile Center.

Ticket information will be announced by the Baylor Bear Foundation later this week. Baylor Athletics expects to begin the season with 25 percent capacity in the Ferrell Center, and renewed season ticket holders will have exclusive priority to request tickets in the reduced capacity format. Game times and television networks will be announced as they become available. Follow @BaylorMBB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for updates throughout the year.

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