Bears Survive Bad Shooting to Beat the Pokes in OT, 75-70

STILLWATER, Oklahoma — The No. 18 Baylor Men’s Basketball team (12-2, 1-0) eked out a 75-70 overtime win against the Oklahoma State Cowboys (8-6, 0-1) in their Big 12 opener.

The Bears had a terrible night shooting from deep going just 2-for-15, but RayJ Dennis and Langston Love found just enough ways to score to get the Bears across the finish line.

Dennis led the Bears with 18 points, but he missed a pair of turn-around, fadeaway, midrange jumpers in the last minute of regulation and then fouled out during OT.

Love was key for the Bears after RayJ fouled out, especially since he established himself as one of the go-to guys for Baylor in the first half when many others were struggling to score. The redshirt sophomore finished with 17 points in his 34 minutes of action.

It was truly a back-and-forth game with neither team making a run of more than seven points before the other team answered. 

Given the shooting woes, Baylor won this game by crashing the offensive glass and limiting turnovers. Baylor grabbed 16 offensive boards and won the overall rebounding battle 40-31. They also won the turnover battle giving away just seven compared to the Pokes 12.

Yves Missi was a force on the offensive glass, with multiple put-back dunks on his way to a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double. 

And as for the steals the Bears got, none was bigger than Ja’Kobe Walter’s swipe with 19 seconds left in overtime to rob the Cowboys of a shot at tying the game.

It was a scrappy win for Scott Drew’s squad and the head coach will be happy to avoid starting Big 12 play with a loss for a second straight year.

The Bears now get to come home to play the first men’s Big 12 game in the Foster Pavilion on Tuesday against the No. 12 BYU. Tip-off for that game is at 8 PM and the broadcast will be on ESPN+.