Big 12 Basketball: Kansas, Oklahoma shines, K-State upset in Round of 64

Big 12 Basketball: Kansas, Oklahoma shines, Kansas State upset in Round of 64

By Chris Kern | Mar 23, 2019

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - MARCH 21: Mark Vital #11 of the Baylor Bears reacts as they take on the Syracuse Orange during the second half in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 21, 2019 in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Baylor Bears won 78-69. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

4 of 6

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – MARCH 21: Makai Mason #10 of the Baylor Bears and teammate Mario Kegler #4 celebrate their 78-69 win over the Syracuse Orange in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 21, 2019, in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

Baylor Shoots Their Way To A Win

The Baylor Bears were very impressive in their win over Syracuse. It was a very competitive game that went back and forth throughout. The Orange were without Frank Howard and Baylor was able to take advantage with a good defensive gameplan.

Makai Mason took Yale to a big upset over Baylor just a few seasons ago and he made sure he was able to get the Bears a win to pay them back for that upset. He has been battling injuries for much of the season and he was experiencing discomfort for much of this game, but it didn’t matter because he had to make sure they got the win. He finished with 22 points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals.

Mason was the guy who led the way but he did have plenty of help in this game. It was a good team effort by Baylor which was headlined by their three-point shooting. They finished 16-34 from three-point range despite averaging just over eight three-pointers per game at 35%.

Against the Syracuse zone, you have to come out and make shots and that’s exactly what they did. They were patient and were able to work the ball around and get good looks for the most part, but they also did make some incredibly difficult shots which were key in the win. While Baylor did a good job playing team ball the Orange were so reliant on just three players.

The Syracuse offense was strictly a three-man offense as Elijah Hughes, Oshae Brissett, and Tyus Battle attempted 42 of the team’s 51 shots. Six of those other shots came from Buddy Boeheim who only scored two points on a pair of free-throws. Those three players for the Orange were good, but they just weren’t enough to get by a good Baylor performance.

The Bears have played good team basketball all season long and that’s why they’re in a game playing for a spot in the Sweet 16 when they weren’t even considered an NCAA Tournament contender to start the season. If guys like Jared Butler, King McClure, and Freddie Gillespie play as well as they did against Syracuse then Gonzaga is in trouble and we will have ourselves a really competitive basketball game.

Home/Big 12