Baylor claims first Big 12 Championship with OT win at #6 West Virginia

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MORGANTOWN, West Virginia — The No. 2 Baylor men’s basketball team (19-1, 11-1) defeated No. 6 West Virginia (17-6, 10-5) in Morgantown 94-89 in overtime.

The wait is over. History is made. The Baylor Bears are Big 12 champions for the first time in program history, winning a league title for the first time since 1950. And it couldn’t have happened in a more poetic way — on the road, in overtime and against the No. 6 team in the nation. 

This was an absolute dog fight. Baylor obviously is not up to full strength, and playing a full 40 minutes is too much to ask of a team that’s still reeling from a COVID break. That’s the reality of what this program is going through. But they found a different level. 

Moreover, is Baylor really that much more physical than West Virginia? So much so that the Mountaineers would take 32 free throws compared to Baylor’s 14? I digress. It didn’t matter.

The first half was an absolute rollercoaster. Baylor jumped out to a 12-2 lead early and extended things to 23-12 with 12:33 to go. That wouldn’t last. West Virginia went on a 19-9 run to pull the game to 32-31 with the ball and 1.4 seconds on the clock. 

Thanks to a boneheaded turnover by Derek Culver, the Bears got the ball back and Jared Butler nailed a shot at the buzzer for a 35-31 lead at the break. 

Butler led Baylor’s opening 20 with 11 points on a 3-7 mark from outside with Davion Mitchell right behind him with eight points and four assists. Taz Sherman was the staple of the game, though, with 12 points on 5-6 shooting. 

Finding separation in the first half stat book is tough. The one area of separation actually favors the Mountaineers — 10 free throw attempts compared to Baylor’s three. That disparity kept things tight. 

The second half started hot for West Virginia. A 19-6 run in the first six minutes made the score 50-43 in favor of the Mountaineers, and things didn’t look great. That’s when Baylor started the ascent back to 54-54. There was no room to breathe. 

Things stayed knotted to the point that the game crawled to 74-74 with under four to play. Trading blows, West Virginia led 81-79 before Jared Butler sent the game to overtime at 81-81 with less than three seconds on the clock. 

Overtime was just as wild as regulation, but Baylor did what it took — tired legs and all — to get it done. Even when Jared Butler fouled out, MaCio Teague, Adam Flagler and Mark Vital were there to score when points were an absolute necessity. 

Even with Butler’s 25 points, Matthew Mayer’s 15 in the second half and Teague’s 11, this was a complete team win — a win by committee. It is a damn good day to be a Bear. Hoist that trophy high, for the first time ever. Wow. This is Baylor history, and we’re all living it.