NCAA Basketball: Updated way-too-early 2019-20 top-25

22. Baylor Bears

Baylor was one of the nation’s most underappreciated teams last year. They consistently exceeded expectations throughout the campaign and did not receive the coverage that they deserved. Now, though, they will have a healthy Tristan Clark back and the rest of the roster will have an entire extra year of development. That includes expected improvements from valuable players such as sophomore Jared Butler and Matthew Mayer.

At the core, though, the play of Baylor’s juniors will be key to success. The clear leader of this group is Clark, a 6-foot-9 star that should take the team to the next level. In 14 games last season, he had been averaging 14.6 points (73.7% FG), 6.3 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game. He is a tremendous anchor to their defense and a threat around the rim offensively. In addition, expectations are high for forwards Mario Kegler and Mark Vital, both of whom could average in double-figures this year.

The program also brought in MaCio Teague, who sat out last year due to transfer rules. An elite scoring guard, Teague averaged 16.7 points (.418/.425/.866) points per game as a sophomore at UNC-Asheville. He will hopefully be able to fill the void left by Makai Mason. On the whole, this is an extremely talented team that is well coached by Scott Drew. They will be a top-half team in the Big 12.