As the race for a higher seed in this year's NCAA Tournament continues, a big game in Kansas City took place Thursday afternoon between the Baylor Bears and the West Virginia Mountaineers. Each team will be making it to the big dance, but a solid performance by either team could lead to a much more favorable seeding. Baylor had won five of six entering their first game of the conference tournament, while WVU had lost two of three. After a back and forth first half, Baylor pulled away in the end and held off West Virginia 80-70.
The first half was back and forth from start to finish, each team matching the other's short bursts of momentum. West Virginia played their game, utilizing their press and defending well, forcing Baylor into a 1/9 start from the floor. Each team held a lead to open the game, Baylor coming out of the gates with a four-point edge and West Virginia going up by six at one point in the half after a big three-pointer from Jevon Carter. When the clock expired on the opening half, the Bears had regained a two-point advantage, 38-36.
For much of the second half, Baylor was in control. The Bears held the lead or were tied with WVU for all but 26 seconds of the opening 9:50 of the second half. Bob Huggins squad would make a run in the middle of the final period, gaining a three-point lead with 8 minutes left in the ball game. That was the last such advantage that the Mountaineers would have, however, as the Bears would storm back and pull away from West Virginia as the game wore on. Baylor made 9 of 10 free throw attempts in the final 2:22 of the game, icing West Virginia and advancing to the next round by a 10-point margin, 80-70.
Jaysean Paige had a big game off the bench for the Mountaineers, scoring 18 points, tied for the team-high. The West Virginia bench scored 29 total points on the day. Devin Williams also scored 18 while also leading the team in rebounds with 7 before fouling out. Nathan Adrian did not score for WVU, however he did lead the squad with 5 assists. Jevon Carter contributed four steals as well as eight points in the loss.
Taurean Prince led Baylor in scoring off the bench, not to be outdone by his West Virginia bench counterpart, dropping 18 points along with 3 steals before he fouled out. 3 starters for the Bears also scored in double digits, including Royce O'Neal (16), Rico Gathers (15) and Lester Medford (10). Gathers also led the team with nine rebounds.
Recent projections for West Virginia's NCAA Tournament seeding have them placed at about a fifth seed, but a quick exit in the Big 12 Tournament may very well work against Bob Huggins' team, which has now lost three of their last four games and is still without their best player, Juwan Staten. Baylor, on the other hand, continues their roll and will advance in the conference tourney. A fourth or even third seed could be at stake for the Bears if they continue to win, which would not be surprising considering their high level of play recently. Baylor will be taking on Kansas in the tournament semifinals on Friday, while West Virginia is required to wait patiently for their seeding to be announced Sunday evening.