Agbim, Carr Lead Bears to Second Big 12 Win, Topping West Virginia 63-53
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The Baylor Men’s Basketball team (12-9, 2-7 Big 12) gritted out its second conference win of the season, beating the West Virginia Mountaineers (14-8, 5-4 Big 12) by a score of 63-53 on Saturday afternoon at the Hope Coliseum.
Obi Agbim and Cameron Carr led the Bears in scoring with 16 points each. Agbim was not as efficient shooting the ball as Carr, but he registered four assists with zero turnovers. Meanwhile, Carr turned the ball over seven times but also grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds.
West Virginia Forward Brenen Lorient led all scorers with 19 points, but he was the only Mountaineer in double figures and could not stop the home team from going seven and a half minutes without scoring during the second half.
Overall, the game was a defensive struggle. Baylor had three separate four-minute scoring droughts of their own during the game. Two of those droughts overlapped with the Mountaineers’ rough stretch to produce a run of play that could make older, defense-loving fans nostalgic.
Despite the Bears’ momentary struggles, Scott Drew’s team shot 45% from the field for the game, including 41% from three.
For their part, WVU only shot 36% from the field and 26% from three.
Not to be forgotten, Tounde Yessoufou was the last double-figure scorer with 11 points. The freshman also showed some defensive talent making working hard in the post and forcing tough shots and misses down the stretch.
As for the flow of the game, Baylor jumped out to an early 13-4 lead before the first four-minute drought for the Bears allowed West Virginia to bring it back to 15-14 with a 9-0 run.
Cameron Carr and Baylor responded with a 13-2 run, including a four-point play for the Bears’ star to take a 32-24 lead.
The eight-point margin would make it through the halftime break before the hosts got as close as 47-44 during the Bears’ second four-minute scoring drought. A pair of Caden Powell free throws were the only respite for the Green and Gold before the next four-minute scoring stretch.
By the time a Yessoufou jumper broke that drought, the Bears had not made a field goal for eight minutes and 47 seconds. Luckily, West Virginia also could not make a field goal or a free throw for a mostly overlapping seven-minute and 26-second stretch.
A pair of threes from Agbim in the closing minutes of the game helped seal the win for the Bears and keep the slim hopes of an NCAA Tournament bid alive for another week.
Baylor has another winnable game up next as the Colorado Buffaloes come to Waco on Wednesday. That matchup tips off at 7 p.m. on Peacock.
