Jo Lual-Acuil puts on a clinic as Baylor runs past Savannah State
While the margin could have been greater, it doesn't get much better than winning 118-86. Baylor's win this afternoon is the program's highest point since hosting Oral Roberts in 1993. It also marks the first time the Bears have scored over 100 points three times in a season since 2007.
Thank Big Jo for that.
Big Jo earns his name
Baylor left the first half with a 24-point lead, playing some of the smoothest basketball of the season. Manu Lecomte and King McClure got things rolling with their hot hands, leading the team in scoring but it was all about Jo Lual-Acuil.
A lot’s been made of Lual-Acuil being reunited with his parents who came to see him graduate this weekend, and they had quite the show to watch this afternoon. He put together a nice opening performance for them earlier in the week with an 18-point performance. But this is his career-defining moment, producing 19 points and 11 rebounds.
But wait. That was just the second half.
Savannah State crashed down on virtually everyone in the second half, closing the scoring gap but this was where Lual-Acuil came to play. In turn, he scored a career-high 31 points with 20 boards- his first 20/20 performance. He added three blocks to the box score to boot.
If it’s a matter of his family being around, he’d best keep them around. Either way, it's been a banner weekend for the senior forward.
Lecomte refinds his place
After taking a couple games rest, Lecomte has returned and has hardly missed a beat.
He opened the afternoon with as hot a hand as he’s had all year, helping push the Bears to a 21-0 run at one point. Lecomte was responsible for 10 of those points. In turn, the score margin kept growing to allow the team to get a bit more creative in their approach.
If Lual-Acuil didn’t put up his outrageous figures, Lecomte’s big afternoon would be a much bigger deal. His 25 points are just one shy of his career-best but unlike that game against Kansas State, he also continued to move the rock around, pushing Omot and McClure among others with seven assists.
A chance to work on ball control
While the sheer amount of possessions were a big contributor to Baylor’s 18 turnovers, it was still an outrageous percentage. The Bears turned over possession 21 percent of the time, letting Savannah State get a little too close for comfort at times.
The big lead early in the first half granted a bit more leeway for Lecomte and others to work on more creative passes before conference play starts. Toss it up as an intensive practice session but plays like those that have to be limited. Even if opponents have a low record like Savannah State, the metrics can’t be completely ignored. Savannah State proved it’s fourth in the nation in forced turnovers for a reason. Once Baylor goes against similar foes in the Big 12, it can't be something easily glossed over.