No. 12 Baylor WBB Takes Off in SpaceU, Destroys UCF 93-63

ORLANDO, Florida – No. 12 Baylor women’s basketball (22-5, 11-3) got back in the win column, as they dismantled UCF (10-15, 2-12) by a score of 93-63.

Guard Taliah Scott led the Bears with 26 points in just 24 minutes. She shot 8-of-10 from the field, 3-of-4 from 3-point range and 7-of-7 from the free throw line.

Sixth-year point guard Jana Van Gytenbeek recorded a double-double, scoring 10 points and dishing out 11 assists. She shot 4-of-7 from the field and 2-of-4 from beyond the arc.

Senior wing Bella Fontleroy bounced back after a rough start to the month, scoring 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Fontleroy also secured seven rebounds and amassed three steals.

Baylor’s superior talent was extremely evident throughout the game. Baylor was able to generate open field goal attempts while preventing similar field goal attempts from the Knights. This led to Baylor shooting 59.3% from the field, while UCF converted on just 40.9% of opportunities.

After stopping the Knights on their first possession, the Bears got right to work. Scott curled a pin down for an elbow jumper, and after UCF’s Savannah Scott answered with a layup, Darianna Littlepage-Buggs added a mid-range jumper from the short corner. The Knights’ Mahogany Chandler-Roberts scored in the paint to tie the game at four before Scott nailed another mid-range jumper off a ball screen.

With Baylor up 6-4, the Baylor and-one party started. Fontleroy drove and finished through contact for a layup and a free throw, and after a 3-pointer from UCF’s Kristol Ayson, Kiersten Johnson finished through contact for another and-one. A Baylor stop allowed the Bears to get out into transition, in which Taliah Scott added another and-one, finishing with her left hand through contact and knocking down the free throw for a 14-7 lead.

Scott intercepted a pass to start another Baylor fast break, and she found Johnson for another layup. The 7-0 run forced a timeout from UCF head coach Sytia Messer.

The run continued after the break, as Scott knocked down a catch-and-shoot triple after receiving a pass from Kyla Abraham. UCF Samari Bankhead hit a mid-range to stop the run, but Scott finished another tough layup to answer.

Chandler-Roberts converted a layup, but nothing was stopping the Bears’ offense early. Fontleroy gathered a missed free throw from Littlepage-Buggs and went up for two points, then made a reverse layup for another two points to extend the Baylor lead to 25-11.

Kayla Nelms added a layup for the Bears, and Jacorriah Bracey knocked down a turnaround jumper to end the first quarter with the Bears leading 27-13.

Scott’s 12 first-quarter points on 5-of-6 shooting led the Bears in the opening quarter, and Fontleroy’s seven points and two rebounds provided the Baylor guard with ample support. Baylor was 11-of-13 from inside the arc in the first quarter.

The onslaught continued in the second quarter. Yuting Deng got on the board from deep, and Nelms added two more points on a putback layup. Bracey responded with a layup of her own, but the Baylor offense was in a groove. Littlepage-Buggs found Van Gytenbeek on a cut for two points, and Scott buried a triple through a late closeout, which sent her to the free-throw line for an extra point. With the Bears up 38-15, UCF burned a timeout to regroup.

After the timeout, UCF found life. Khayla Ngodu scored inside, and a bad pass from Deng led to another two points for the hosts. However, the 4-0 run was snapped before UCF could build real momentum. Littlepage-Buggs hit a short fadeaway mid-range after attacking a closeout, and the senior forward found Van Gytenbeek for a triple a couple of possessions later.

When Scott is in rhythm, she is nearly impossible to stop. She curled an Abraham screen and lifted for a short mid-range jumper, which she knocked down through a foul. The ensuing free throw gave her 19 first-half points.

Ngodu scored her second basket of the day following an offensive rebound, but Scott attacked, drew a foul and added two points at the free-throw line.

Audreonia Benson scored her first points of the day for UCF, but the same trend continued. Fontleroy attacked and finished a layup, continuing her strong half inside. Marcayla Johnson was fouled on a pull-up mid-range jumper and scored on both free throws to enter halftime with the Bears leading 52-23.

Scott led Baylor with 21 points at halftime, and Fontleroy added nine points and three steals. The Bears’ ability to win the turnover margin and shoot 64.5% from the floor allowed them to open up the big halftime lead.

The second half started with an outlet pass from Van Gytenbeek to Kiersten Johnson for a layup, and Fontleroy continued her strong day by backing down a Knight defender and finishing for two more points.

Ayson gave the Knights their first second-half points by finding space inside following a drive, but with the chance to add another UCF basket, Bracey lost her shoe, which led to a Van Gytenbeek layup. Van Gytenbeek received a ball screen from Littlepage-Buggs on the next Baylor offensive possession and found Littlepage-Buggs popping for a top-of-the-key 3-pointer. The triple gave Baylor a 61-25 lead and led to another UCF timeout.

Chandler-Roberts responded with a pick-and-pop of her own, hitting a mid-range jumper, and Kayanna Cox entered the scoring column to give the Knights a 4-0 run. However, similar to the first half, UCF failed to extend the run further. Van Gytenbeek splashed a triple from the right wing, and Littlepage-Buggs hit her second top-of-the-key triple off a pass from Van Gytenbeek. The senior forward ended the game with 10 points and eight rebounds. Bankhead drained a 3-pointer to match, but the Scott show can only be on pause for so long. The star guard sized up her defender before rising up and burying a 3-pointer to give the Bears a 70-32 lead.

Bankhead added another basket on a layup, but Deng found space with her go-to mid-range turnaround jumper and found her target. Baylor failed to score a field goal for the remaining 3:24 of the third quarter, allowing UCF to close the quarter on an 8-2 run, but Baylor still held a 75-42 lead entering the final quarter.

Nelms opened up the fourth quarter with her second putback layup of the game, before Cox knocked down a 3-pointer. Ayson scored on a layup, and Cox added two more points for a 7-0 UCF run.

Deng drove and came down hard on her hip, holding her lower back and hip area after landing. She did not return to the game.

Abraham slipped for two points, with Van Gytenbeek finding the cutting forward to stop the UCF run. Nelms added another basket, overpowering her defender inside. Ines Goryanova found her way into the scoring column with a floater off an empty-side ball screen to give Baylor an 83-49 lead.

Nelms, who has been one of the most impactful Bears in conference play according to impact metrics, scored again off a pass from Van Gytenbeek, and Van Gytenbeek followed that up by finding Abraham for two more points in transition. Nelms scored 12 points on just six field goal attempts while adding six rebounds. Savannah Scott responded with a mid-range jumper that hit every part of the rim.

Goryanova splashed her first made 3-pointer of her college career to give Baylor a 90-51 lead, and Ella Brow scored her first point of the season courtesy of the free-throw line as Baylor coasted to a 93-63 triumph.

Baylor’s balanced scoring was a huge bright spot in the win. Five Bears found their way into double-digit points, and the balance helped Baylor shoot 59.3% from the field. Furthermore, the 3-point defense was back on display, holding UCF to six makes on 21 attempts.

The Bears’ (22-5, 11-3) next game is against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at 6 p.m. CT, Wednesday, Feb. 18, at the United Supermarkets Arena. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.