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BAYLOR at 2003 BIG 12 TOURNAMENT
American Airlines Center - Dallas, Texas

(10) BAYLOR (14-13, 5-11) vs. (7) TEXAS TECH (16-11, 6-10)
Thursday, March 13, 2003 - 6:00 p.m. CST

THE GAME/TOURNAMENT
Baylor enters the Big 12 Tournament as the No. 10 seed and will face seventh-seeded Texas Tech in Game 3 Thursday, March 13. Tipoff at American Airlines Center in Dallas is 6 p.m. CST and the game will be telecast on ESPN+Plus. The Bears (14-13, 5-11) finished the regular season in a 10th-place tie in the conference and are coming off a 74-68 victory over Texas Tech at home Saturday in the regular season finale. The loss was the third straight for the Red Raiders (16-11, 6-10) who finished in a seventh-place tie in the league standings. Thursday's rematch pits Dave Bliss against his former boss, Bobby Knight, for the second time in six days. Baylor and Tech split two regular-season meetings this year. The Game 3 winner will face No. 2 seed Texas in Game 7 Friday at 6 p.m.

BAYLOR TIP-INS
- Baylor is 5-5 in Big 12 Tournament games.
- Baylor has won its opening-round Big 12 Tournament game 3 of the past 5 seasons.
- Baylor is the Big 12 Tournament's 10th seed for the second straight year.
- Dave Bliss own's a 30-22 (.577) record in conference tournaments.
- Baylor's 8.9 3-pointers per game ranks 10th nationally.
- Baylor's 72.8% team free throw shooting is tops in the Big 12.
- Freshmen and sophomores account for 65% of Baylor's scoring (1,207-of-1,867).
- Over the past three seasons Baylor is 37-1 when totaling an equal or higher shooting percentage than its opponent (9-0 in 2002-2003).
- 8 of Baylor's 11 Big 12 losses came to ranked teams (at time of game).
- The Bears are averaging 8.9 3-pointers and attempting 26.4 per game; both figures lead the Big 12.
- 45% of Baylor's field goal attempts (714-1,573) are 3-pointers.
- Baylor is 30-3 under Dave Bliss when scoring 80 or more points (5-0 this year).
- Baylor is 6-0 this season when outscoring its opponents in the paint.
- Baylor is 30-3 under Dave Bliss when recording 40 or more rebounds (8-0 this year).
- Lawrence Roberts leads the Big 12 with 10 double-doubles in conference games.
- Lawrence Roberts is averaging a double-double (15.7 ppg/10.6 rpg) this season.
- Kenny Taylor is the Big 12's most improved scorer, averaging 7.5 points more (11.4 ppg) than last season.
- R.T. Guinn and Kenny Taylor are among Baylor's top 3-point shooters of all time (by percentage), Guinn is No. 3 on the career list (41.8%), Taylor is No. 4 (38.4%).
- Lawrence Roberts is 2nd in the Big 12 and 16th nationally in rebounds, 10.6 per game (11.4 in conf. games).
- John Lucas is Baylor's career leader with an 83.2% career free throw percentage.
- Kenny Taylor and John Lucas have shot a combined 4-for-32 (13%) 3-pointers over the last 3 games.
- 82% (212-260) of Kenny Taylor's field goal attempts are 3-pointers.
- Lawrence Roberts has compiled 14 double-doubles this season; and 22 in 55 career games played.
- R.T. Guinn has scored in double-digits in 8 of the last 9 games.
- Lawrence Roberts is 1 of 2 Big 12 players in the Top-10 in scoring and rebounding.
- John Lucas is shooting 2-for-19 (11%) 3-pointers the last 4 games.
- John Lucas has made 12 straight free throws (last 8 games).
- Over the last 7 games Lawrence Roberts has averaged 18.4 pts and 13.4 reb.
- Kenny Taylor has missed 11 straight 3-pointers over the last 3 games (2.7 ppg).

HEAD COACH DAVE BLISS
Dave Bliss, in his fourth season at Baylor, is a 27-year coaching veteran and ranks 12th among active Division I coaches in victories with 526. The former head coach at New Mexico, SMU and Oklahoma owns a career record of 526-327 (.617). He has led teams to 15 postseason tournament appearances, including 11 trips to the NCAA Tournament. Five times Bliss has been honored as his conference's coach of the year, and he is one of only two dozen Division I coaches ever to have taken three different schools to the NCAA Tournament (UNM, SMU, OU). Bliss took over the reigns of Baylor basketball on March 23, 1999, and was given the task of rebuilding a program that had finished the 1998-99 season without a Big 12 Conference win. Bliss proceeded to guide the Bears to a 14-15 record in 1999-2000, a 19-12 mark and into the NIT in 2000-2001 and in his third year led Baylor to a 14-16 record.

BLISS IN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS
Dave Bliss has compiled a 30-22 record in conference tournaments in 28 seasons as a head coach, including four tournament championships. In addition to a 3-3 record in three Big 12 tournaments, Bliss compiled records of 4-3 in the Big 8 Conference Tournament (Oklahoma), 7-7 in the Southwest Conference Tournament (SMU) and 16-9 in the WAC Tournament (New Mexico). Bliss' teams won conference tournament titles at SMU (1979 Big 8), Oklahoma (1988 SWC) and New Mexico (1993 and 1996 WAC).

DAVE BLISS IN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS

Tourn. School          Rcd Years       TitlesBig 8   Oklahoma    4-3 1976-80         1 (1979)SWC SMU     7-7 1981-1988   1 (1988)WAC New Mexico  16-9    1989-1999   2 (1993, 1996)Big 12  Baylor          3-3 2000-2002TOTAL           30-22   1976-2002   4

BLISS vs. TEXAS TECH
Baylor head coach Dave Bliss owns a 16-17 record in 33 previous meetings against Texas Tech. That record includes a 3-5 mark while guiding the Bears.

THE TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS
Texas Tech (16-11, 6-10) is led by second-year head coach Bobby Knight, in his 37th year as a collegiate head coach. Knight owns a career record of 803-309. He is the second winningest active coach in Division I men's basketball.

TECH NOTES: Guard Andre Emmett leads the Red Raider attack averaging 219 points and 5.8 rebounds per contest... He also paces the squad with 51 steals and is tied for the team lead with 14 blocks... Forward Kasib Powell also averages double-figures in scoring with 14.7 points per game and is second on the team with a 5.7 rebound per game average... Tech senior Will Chavis played with Lawrence Roberts on the Big 12 All-Star team coached by Bear head coach Dave Bliss last summer.

THE TEXAS TECH SERIES
This Bears and Red Raiders will meet for the 106th time Thursday, and Texas Tech holds a 67-39 series advantage. Tech had won three straight in the series before the 74-68 Baylor victory on Saturday. The Red Raiders lead 5-3 in games played at neutral sites. The first meeting between the two teams was during the 1936-37 season.

BAYLOR MISCELLANY vs. TECH
Lawrence Roberts has averaged 24.0 points in four career games vs. Texas Tech (24.0)... R.T Guinn is a career 50 percent shooter from the floor against Texas Tech (18-35)... Roberts has hit 55 percent of the shots he has taken against Texas Tech in his career (33-of-60)... Baylor shot a season-high 87.5 percent from the line (14-of-16) in the season's first meeting with Tech, an 80-64 loss.

BEARS IN THE BIG 12 TOURNAMENT
In the short six-year history of the Big 12 Tournament, the Bears have compiled a 4-6 record. In three of the six tournaments, Baylor has reached the quarterfinals (1998, 2000, 2001). Baylor is 3-3 in first round games, 1-2 in the quarterfinals and 0-1 in the semis. Baylor's highest seeding in the tournament was a No. 5 seed in 1998. The Bears are the No. 10 seed in this year's tourney, for the second year in a row.

TOURNEY EXPERIENCE
Five members of Baylor's team have Big 12 Tournament experience, four from last season's first round defeat and two (Matt Sayman, Steve Othoro) who played in the Bears' three-game run in 2000-2001.

BLISS AND KNIGHT REUNITE
Thursday marks the fifth meeting between Dave Bliss and his former employer Bob Knight. Bliss was an assistant coach under Knight at Army in 1967 and again at Indiana from 1972-75 (the Hoosiers were 93-20). Baylor assistant Doug Ash also was on Knight's staff at Indiana in the early '70s. Both coaches are among the winingest active NCAA coaches. Knight is second on the career wins list with 803 while Bliss is 12th with 526 career victories.

MILESTONES & RECORDS WATCH
- John Lucas is currently Baylor's career free throw percentage leader, at 83.2% (104-125), [topping David Wesley -- 82.8% 1989-1992].
- Lawrence Roberts' 68 career blocks are 3 shy of moving into 5th place on Baylor's career list (passing Frank Williams -- 70 from 1985-88).
- Baylor is 2 steals shy of tying for the 8th-most team thefts in a single-season (232 -- 1990-91).
- Kenny Taylor's 81 3-pointers are 19 shy of 2nd place (Melvin Hunt 100, 1999-00) on the school's Top 10 single-season list.
- Baylor is 24 made 3-pointers away from tying for 2nd on the team single-season list (265 -- 1994-95).
- Lawrence Roberts has 94 career steals, and is 5 thefts shy of moving into 9th place on Baylor's career list (passing Vinnie Johnson -- 98 from 1977-79).

ROBERTS LEADING BAYLOR'S YOUNG CUBS
After sitting out two of the season's first three games with a stress fracture in his left leg (fibula), All-Big 12 forward Lawrence Roberts returned to lead Baylor with 15.7 points (10th in Big 12) and 10.6 rebounds (2nd in Big 12, 16th nationally) per game and recorded 29 blocks (11th in Big 12). He has tallied 14 double-doubles this season, was named NABC All-District 9 and selected Big 12 Player of the Week Feb. 17.

ROBERTS' REBOUNDING PROWESS
Lawrence Roberts' rebounding numbers have steadily improved throughout the 2002-2003 season, particularly in Big 12 play. The sophomore leads the league with 11.4 rebounds vs. conference opponents, and his 10.6 rebounds in all games ranks second in the Big 12 and 16th nationally. Over the past seven games, Roberts has posted six double-digit rebounding games and averaged 13.4 boards. Roberts is only the second Baylor player in 31 years to average double-digit rebounds. He has tallied 14 double-doubles this season, including a Big 12-best 10 in league games.

3-POINT PROPENSITY
The Bears are averaging 8.9 made 3-pointers and 26.4 attempts per game this season. Both of those figures top the Big 12 Conference. In three previous seasons under Dave Bliss, Baylor has finished no lower than fourth in 3-point field goals or attempts in the conference rankings. Last season's squad established a new school record with 273 made 3-pointers (9.1 per game). Kenny Taylor is tied for second in the Big 12 with 81 made 3-pointers (3.0 per game). Baylor has made at least one 3-pointer in 349 consecutive games (dating back to Feb. 21, 1990).

BEARS' STELLAR SHOOTING FROM LINE
Baylor as a team is shooting 72.8 percent from the free throw line, the best mark in the Big 12 Conference. Three Bear players are shooting 80 percent or higher from the line: Carlton Dotson (16-18, 89 percent), Terrance Thomas (16-18, 89 percent) and John Lucas (54-62, 87 percent).

NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP
Baylor's prized freshman class of 2001, John Lucas, Lawrence Roberts and Kenny Taylor, has improved significantly in 2002-03 on its impressive performance last season. Through 27 games the sophomore trio from Houston has accounted for 57 percent of the team's points, 41 percent of rebounds, 54 percent of steals and 51 percent of assists. Production in every category is up from the trio's fabulous freshman season.

TAYLOR BIG 12's MOST IMPROVED SCORER
Sophomore Kenny Taylor owns the highest increased scoring average in the Big 12 Conference from last season to this (tied with Kansas' Keith Langford). During 2001-02, Taylor averaged 3.9 points per game. This season he has raised his scoring average to 11.4, an increase of 7.5 points per game.

TAYLOR NURSING ANKLE
Kenny Taylor sprained his left ankle in the regular-season ending victory over Texas Tech (scoreless in season-low 16 minutes). The sophomore is day-to-day and his status for the Big 12 Tournament is uncertain.

GUINN STEPPING UP HIS PLAY
Over the last eight games, junior center R.T. Guinn has put together seven double-digit scoring games, averaged 13.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, recorded two double-doubles and has shot 43% from the 3-point arc.

THE LAST MEETING: BAYLOR 74 - TEXAS TECH 68 [March 8, 2003]
Lawrence Roberts had 28 points and 16 rebounds as Baylor overcame a long second-half shooting drought to hold off Texas Tech 74-68 at the Ferrell Center. Baylor led 42-26 two minutes into the second half before the Red Raiders reeled off a 20-3 run over the next 10 minutes to take a 46-45 lead. Tech came back with help from Baylor, which went more than 11 minutes without a field goal. But Baylor quickly retook a 47-46 lead on two free throws by R.T. Guinn with 6:53 remaining and led the rest of the way. Roberts and Guinn helped put the game out of reach with back-to-back 3-pointers that gave Baylor a 66-61 lead with 1:30 left. Baylor proceeded to hit 8-of-10 free throws to seal the victory. Roberts hit 4-of-6 free throws down the stretch, and Matt Sayman was 4-for-4. Baylor sprinted to a 37-24 halftime lead, mostly on the strength of Roberts' first-half double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds.

STEADY SAYMAN
Matt Sayman, Baylor's most experienced player (88 games played), has continued to provide leadership and consistent play as a junior. He played his way into the starting lineup eight games ago, and since then has averaged 5.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists and helped Baylor to a 4-4 record. Sayman, a career 80 percent free throw shooter, is a perfect 14-for-14 from the line in the game's final three minutes this season.

TAYLOR AND BEARS QUICK TRIGGER WITH 3-POINTERS
Sophomore Kenny Taylor is second the Big 12 Conference in 3-point field goals made, averaging 3.0 per game. He is shooting 38 percent from 3-point distance. Taylor has attempted 212 3-pointers this season. Treys account for an incredible 82 percent of the 260 field goals he has attempted. As a team, the Bears have taken 714 of their 1,573 shot attempts (45%) from behind the arc.

BAYLOR IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
As of March 3, Baylor's average of 9.1 3-pointers per game ranked 10th amongst NCAA Division I teams. The Bears are led in that department by Kenny Taylor, who ranked 20th nationally with an average of 3.2 treys per contest. Lawrence Roberts ranked No. 16 in the nation in rebounding, averaging 10.2 per contest.

ROBERTS NAMED BIG 12 PLAYER OF WEEK
Sophomore forward Lawrence Roberts was selected Phillips 66 Big 12 Player of the Week Feb. 17 following his performance in Baylor's win at No. 13 Oklahoma State. Roberts recorded a career-high 20 rebounds in the Bears' upset of OSU and added 11 points and three assists. For the week, Roberts averaged 11.5 points and 14.0 rebounds in two games vs. nationally ranked teams.

ROBERTS NAMED TO ALL-DISTRICT 9 FIRST TEAM
Lawrence Roberts has been honored as a 2003 first-team NABC All-District 9 selection. Roberts was named to the NABC All-District 9 second team as a freshman last season. The NABC selected 150 student-athletes from 15 districts, all of whom are eligible for the NABC All-American Team, announced at the end of the season.

MONUMENTAL COACHING MATCHUPS
Thursday marks Baylor's seventh game this season that features a matchup of current college coaching legends. Baylor's Dave Bliss, who ranks 12th among the nation's winningest active coaches with 526 career wins, has faced four other coaches who rank among the list's top 11. Baylor has faced Mount St. Mary's Jim Phelan (No. 1 - 830), Texas Tech's Bob Knight (No. 2 - 803), Oklahoma State's Eddie Sutton (No. 4 - 723) and Alcorn State's Davey L. Whitney (No. 11 - 563). Bliss is 4-2 vs. these top coaches in six games.

LOTS OF NEW BRUINS
The 2002-03 Baylor roster includes nine new players: four high school players (Will Allen, Corey Herring, Steve Raquet and Tommy Swanson), four junior college transfers (Carlton Dotson, Robert Hart, Ellis Kidd and Terrance Thomas) and a four-year transfer (Patrick Dennehy). Dennehy, a transfer from New Mexico, is a redshirt this season.

TRANSFERS FIND HOME AT BAYLOR
The 2002-2003 Bear roster boasts two players who transferred to Baylor from Division I schools, and a third who previously played at a DI institution. A fourth transferred from a DIII school.

RECORD ATTENDANCE FIGURES
For the third straight season, Baylor fans came to the Ferrell Center in record numbers. The Bears attracted 108,292 fans in 2002-2003, the second-highest attendance total in the 15-year history of the arena (behind last season's 109,494). The 6,768 average attendance was also second to last year's 6,843.

BAYLOR vs. NON-CONFERENCE FOES
The Bears concluded their non-conference schedule with a 9-2 record. Baylor is 39-7 in regular-season non-league play in Dave Bliss' four seasons, and the Bruins have won 28 of their last 29 games vs. non-conference opponents in the Ferrell Center.

BEARS INK NELSON IN EARLY SIGNING PERIOD
Baylor signed big-man Tyrone Nelson of Hempstead (Texas) High School to a national letter of intent in the early signing period. A 6-9 forward/center, Nelson averaged 29 points, 15 rebounds and four blocks as a junior at Hempstead in 2001-2002. He was named to the TABC Class 3A All-State first team and MVP of District 25-AAA following his junior year. A highly sought recruit nationwide, Nelson is included on several national top-100 recruiting lists. He was rated the 60th-best recruit by TheInsidersHoops.com, No. 64 by Basketball News, No. 70 by The Sporting News, No. 79 by PrepStars, No. 90 by RivalsHoops and No. 125 by Hoop Scoop. Street & Smith's named Nelson an honorable mention prep All-America.

NATION'S LONGEST COACHING DUO
Baylor boasts Division I basketball's longest-tenured current coaching tandem. Bear assistant coach Doug Ash has been Dave Bliss' top aide for all 28 years Bliss has been a collegiate head coach. The Bliss and Ash duo began at Indiana University in the early 1970s when both were assistants under Bobby Knight. When Bliss became head coach at Oklahoma in 1975, he took Ash with him. The pair has been together ever since, at SMU, New Mexico and Baylor.