The stats that led to Baylor's tumultuous 2018-2019 regular season
The Baylor Men’s Basketball team has had its ups and downs, but that did not stop the team from giving fans a show to tune in to throughout the season.
From the team’s loss to Texas Southern in the opening game of the season to a remarkable 6 game win streak in January and February, this team has shown an incredible amount of grit and fight.
With that being said, here is where Baylor’s team statistics stack up against the rest of the field in Division I basketball.
Overall Statistics
Points/game: 71.7 (#179)
Opp points/game: 67.2 (#56)
Avg Score Margin: +4.5 (#76)
Assists/game: 13.8 (#113)
In the overall statistics, what clearly jumps out is the fact that the Bears are ranked pretty high in keeping their opponents scores low. Despite what many would consider a weak close to the season defensively, the points per game reflects Baylor’s steady offensive pace and a defense that can play at a higher level at times.
Shooting Statistics
Effective FG%: 50.9% (#164)
Opp Effective FG%: 48.6% (#75)
FT%: 67.4% (#292)
Opp FT%: 68% (#46)
Three Point%: 34% (#195)
Opp Three Point%: 34.1% (#161)
FTA/game: 18.9 (#180)
Opp FTA/game: 20.1 (#239)
Obviously, Baylor’s effective field goal percentage offensively needs to improve if they want to have any shot at a tournament run. Their shots need to fall, and it has been clear this season that the team struggles to find a rhythm and make their shots consistently as a unit. In addition, the free throw issue is glaring here. The Bears were one of the worst teams in the country at getting to the line and even worse at sending their opponents to the line. Imagine how much better the Bears would be in their opponent points per game if they were to get their opponent free throw attempts down.
Scoring Statistics
1st half points/game: 33 (#206)
Opp 1st half points/game: 31.8 (#100)
2nd half points/game: 38.3 (#144)
Opp 2nd half points/game: 35 (#49)
Any Baylor fan that has been watching this team throughout the season knows that this team has a tendency to play better in the second half, which is clearly shown in these stats. What is interesting in particular is that their second half defense ranking is very impressive.
Rebounding Statistics
Off Rebounds/game: 11.7 (#8)
Def Rebounds/game: 23 (#213)
Off Rebound%: 36.6 (#4)
Def Rebound%: 73.2% (#196)
This is where the Bears have made their money this season. The offensive rebounds have been one of the biggest reasons for their success in so many of their games this season. Ranking as high as they are in that category shouldn’t be shocking, but the Bears should be applauded for their tenacious work on the boards to create extra opportunities at the rim.
Turnover Statistics
Turnovers/game: 13.2 (#204)
Opp Turnovers/game: 12.4 (#211)
Turnovers/play: 16.5% (#204)
Opp Turnovers/play: 16.1% (#178)
The Bears struggled to take care of the ball in a lot of their tough losses. It’s hard to win games when they give the ball to the other team at such a high rate, so the Bears will need to take care of the ball if they want to make a name for themselves in the tournament.
Block Statistics
Blocks/game: 4.8 (#20)
Opp Blocks/game: 4.2 (#327)
Block%: 8.6% (#14)
Opp Block%: 7.3% (#330)
This category is not necessarily how I would have expected it. The Bears obviously got me used to seeing blocks all over the place, with some of the most blocks in the country both ways. They found themselves getting blocked at a pretty high rate, but also made up for it on the other end with their own work swatting shots away.
Taking a look at where the Bears line up against the rest of Division I basketball, it might seem like they are pretty low in a lot of these statistics. Keep in mind that there are 351 schools in Division I, and Baylor is recognized to be one of the top 40 teams with their placement in the tournament.
Injuries to some of their top players have plagued the team, but Scott Drew has clearly made the most of it. The team finished 19-13 in the regular season. In the Big 12, Baylor was 10-8, placing them as the No. 4 seed in the Big 12 tournament. The Bears lost 83-66 to the Iowa State Cyclones in the first round of the tournament, but there was not much the Bears could do to stop the red-hot Cyclones when they could not seem to miss especially when they have one of the most talented rosters in the country.
The Bears were selected as a No. 9 seed to play the No. 8 seed Syracuse Orange in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday. This first game in the round of 64 starts at 8:57 p.m. CT on Thursday.