Baylor Lady Bears back in Sweet 16 with 102-63 victory over California

WACO, Texas — Though it’s not the ultimate goal for their final destination, the Baylor Lady Bears are headed back to the Sweet 16 with a 102-63 victory over Calfornia inside the Ferrell Center on Monday evening.

After a what was a heavily contested first quarter of play, Baylor (33-1) used a 15-0 run over the course of just under six minutes to extend their lead over Cal (20-13) to 29-16 with 5:15 remaining in the first half. The run that started with 1:16 remaining in the first quarer was highlighted by baskets from four different Lady Bears including 5 points by DiDi Richards and was capped off by a Kalani Brown jumper. 

Baylor outscored Cal in the second quarter 27-11 and never looked back as they took a 46-27 lead into halftime and led 79-40 at the end of the third. 

Junior guard Juicy Landrum was Baylor’s leading scorer in the contest as she connected on 4-of-8 three-point field goals on her way to 20 points. She dished out a game-high 7 assists and did not commit a single turnover. 

Fellow guard Chloe Jackson, a grad transfer senior from LSU, was second in line in the box score for the Lady Bears with an 18-point, 6-assist performance. Like Landrum, Jackson also did not commit a turnover. 

Junior forward Lauren Cox chipped in 10 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists while senior Kalani Brown scored 8 points with 8 rebounds, 5 blocks and 3 assists. Freshman NaLyssa Smith scored 13 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. 

After playing the first two rounds at home, Baylor will now travel to Greensboro, North Carolina to face 4-seed South Carolina in the Sweet 16 on March 30 at 12:30 p.m. CT.