Sports / Mensbasketball

MEN’S TOURNAMENT: Baylor continues run in win over Texas

Kyle Oppenhuizen
March 12, 2009

Baylor 76

Texas 70

RECAP:

OKLAHOMA CITY – Baylor broke a 24-game losing streak to the Texas Longhorns on Friday night.

Pretty big deal, right? Not for a team that is now playing for its first ever Big 12 Championship game.

“I think that we came in here with a mind set – with a task,” guard Curtis Jerrells said. “Today was step three, and I think that either team that won, that would have been in this place, they would have got that type of game from us in the tournament.”

LaceDarius Dunn hit a three-pointer to give Baylor the lead with 1:13 left, and the Bears hit 9-of-10 free throws down the stretch as they held on for a 76-70 win over Texas in the Big 12 Championship semifinals on Friday. Baylor is the first No. 9 seed to make the finals.

In a back and fourth second half, the Bears found themselves down 65-61 with just over two minutes left. The Bears clawed back, helped by a couple of Texas missed shots, and found themselves within one on a breakaway, but had a three-point attempt by Dunn blocked by Damion James.

Dunn came back by making a three on the ensuing inbound, giving Baylor a lead it would not give up.

“I just felt the first one I had before Damion smacked it out of bounds,” Dunn said to laughter. “I heard Curtis saying ‘We got to get him a ball, we got to get him a shot.’ They got it to me and I was willing to shoot it and it went in.”

The Bears, who had an underachieving 9-7 conference season, then showed poise by knocking down free throws in the final minute. The one miss by Dunn was followed up with a rebound by Jerrells, who went back to the line to give Baylor a five point lead.

Texas jumped out to an 30-18 lead in the first half, but Baylor wouldn’t let the game get out of hand, cutting the deficit in half by the time the teams headed to the locker rooms.

Now, Baylor will take on either Oklahoma State or Missouri in the championship, and a win would send the Bears to an improbable NCAA Tournament.

“I believe in God,” said Baylor coach Scott Drew. “And I know He can do miracles.”

Texas coach Rick Barnes was visibly frustrated in the press conference following the game, and said his team let the game slip away when it was up by four with missed shots by A.J. Abrams and Gary Johnson.

“This time of year is going to be a very fine line between winning and losing and coming down the stretch, we didn’t make the plays we needed to make,” Barnes said.

The Longhorns had 20 points from Abrams, but center Dexter Pittman, who led Texas in the first two games of the tournament, was held to only seven points, all in the first half.

“In the locker room, I just really told our bigs they did a great job because I know they are all going to need ice, because Texas is very, very physical and they do a great job of playing hard,” Drew said.

Now, Baylor will try to finish strong in one more game to keep the run alive. But beating Texas was nice, too.

“I really didn’t like that streak,” Drew said.

QUOTABLE:

“It is a situation where you had so many close games with Texas and chances and you just knew it was a matter of time, you would break through. I was really hoping it would be with this group of guys, though, because they had persevered and been through so much from their freshman year until now. I’m so happy they are the ones that broke through the streak.” – Baylor coach Scott Drew on Baylor’s first win vs. Texas in 25 tries

“I told the team, this is what we always played for, Texas to be in the NCAA Tournament, and this is the one that counts and this is the one we got to try to do what we can do with it.” – Texas coach Rick Barnes

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