Vonleh Drops Career High as No. 17 Bears Defeat No. 21 OSU in OT of Big 12 Semis, 84-74

KANSAS CITY, Missouri – No. 17 Baylor women’s basketball (27-6, 15-3) pulled out an 84-74 overtime victory over No. 21 Oklahoma State (25-6, 14-4) in the Big 12 Conference Tournament semifinals on Saturday evening at T-Mobile Center.

Center Aaronette Vonleh (Sr.) carried the Bears in the win, dropping a career-high 37 points on 14-of-25 shooting from the floor and was 9-of-9 from the free throw line.

Baylor didn’t get much scoring from its guards in regulation, but Sarah Andrews (Sr.), Jada Walker (Sr.) and Waiata Jennings (Jr.) all drained clutch 3-point jumpers in overtime to help seal the victory. Andrews and Walker combined for 23 points and 16 assists, with roughly half of those points coming in overtime.

The Bears were narrowly out-rebounded by the Cowgirls, 42-to-38, and struggled to shoot all evening. Outside of Vonleh’s 14 made field goals, Baylor shot 38% (16-of-42) from the floor and 32% (6-of-19) from beyond the arc but shot 3-of-4 from deep when it mattered most in overtime.

“We never give up. This was a tight game from the jump. We pride ourselves on being tough and never giving up, despite whatever happens in the game,” Vonleh said after the win.

Already missing star forward Darianna Littlepage-Buggs (Jr.) for the sixth consecutive game with a knee injury, forward Bella Fontleroy (Jr.) fouled out of the contest after playing only 18 minutes. Fontleroy scored five points and collected four rebounds but wasn’t on the floor for overtime or the final seven minutes of the fourth quarter.

“I’m really proud of our team and the way that we can fight, even though we went into overtime with two people fouling out and still being able to come in with subs and get the job done,” Walker said.

The Bears came out of the gates sluggish and trailed 19-12 at the end of the first quarter. Oklahoma State forward Stailee Heard (So.) dominated the game, scoring 11 of her team-high 25 points in the first period.

Head coach Nicki Collen’s squad picked up the pace and increased their defensive intensity in the second quarter. Baylor forced the Cowgirls into 12 first-half turnovers and scored 10 points off the miscues.

The Bears took their first lead of the evening with a few minutes remaining in the first half and ended the second quarter on a 13-6 run to take a 32-29 lead going into halftime. Vonleh came up huge for Baylor and scored 15 points in the period. There wasn’t another Bear with more than five points in the first half.

Baylor extended its lead to as many as nine points in the third quarter before Oklahoma State guard Micah Gray (Jr.) came alive, scoring all 12 of her points in the period and shooting 3-of-4 from beyond the arc.  

“I’m proud of what we did tonight against a good basketball team, especially since they punched first,” Collen said. “We had to fight our way back into the game. We took a bigger lead. Then, with Micah Gray, three 3s later, we were in a dog fight. We had to keep finding ways.”

A bucket from backup big Kyla Abraham (Jr.) gave the Bears a 54-52 lead going into the final period. Abraham had a great game off the bench in place of Vonleh; she collected four boards and scored six points.

The fourth quarter was a back-and-forth affair and featured seven lead changes, with Gray and Andrews missing potential game-winning shots to send the game to overtime tied at 66 apiece.

The Bears out-scored the Cowgirls, 16-to-8, in overtime, with Walker leading the way with seven points.

No. 17 Baylor (27-6, 15-3) will look to avenge its two losses to No. 8 TCU (30-3, 16-2) in the championship of the Big 12 Tournament. Tipoff from T-Mobile Center is scheduled for 4 p.m. CT on Sunday, March 9, and will be televised on ESPN.