Men's Hoops GameDay: at Southern Dec. 21

Men's Basketball 12/21/2007 12:00:00 AM

BAYLOR (8-1) at SOUTHERN (1-8)
Dec. 21, 2007 - Clark Assembly Center - Baton Rouge, La.

RADIO: Baylor-ISP Sports Radio Network (ESPN/KRZI 1660AM Waco / Sirius Satellite ch. 161)
INTERNET AUDIO: live broadcast at BaylorBears.com
TELEVISION: none
INTERNET VIDEO: none
LIVE STATS: none

THE GAME
Following Baylor's 92-84 upset at South Carolina Wednesday, in which the Bear came back from a 20-point deficit, the Bears travel to Baton Rouge, La., to take on Southern Friday, Dec. 21. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST at the Clark Assembly Center. Baylor is 8-1 and Wednesday's win snapped a 25-game true road losing streak dating back to 2004. The Jaguars are 1-8 on the season and have lost eight straight following a 79-58 loss at North Texas Monday.

THE SOUTHERN JAGUARS
Head Coach: Rob Spivey (Ashland, 1972); 319-308, 22 seasons
Series vs. Baylor: BU leads 2-0
Last meeting: BU 75-62 (12-18-04 in Waco)
Streak: BU 2 straight
Series in Waco: BU leads 2-0
Drew vs. SU: 1-0
Baylor vs. SWAC: 27-0
SU NOTES: The Jaguars are a Division I member of the Southwest Athletic Conference... Southern is led by junior G Chris Davis (13.4, missed four games), freshman F Barry Honore' (8.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and junior G Stephon Wiley (8.0 ppg)... The Jags are 1-7 on the road this season, the win was a 75-61 victory at SMU in the season opener... Honore' (Garland; South Garland HS) and Wiley (Dallas; Carter HS) are two of three Texans on the Southern team, joining sophomore G Jazz Williams (Missouri City; Marshall HS)... Southern won the SWAC title two years ago and participated in the 2006 NCAA Tournament.

BAYLOR TIP-INS
• Baylor's 8-1 start is its best since the 2001-02 season (9-1 start).
• Bears are 70-22 over last 8 seasons in regular-season, non-league play.
• Baylor is 3-37 in its last 40 true road games (dating to '02-03) and snapped a 25-game losing streak with Wednesday's win at South Carolina.
• Baylor is 5-1 in its last 6 games away from home (4-41 in previous 45 away games dating to '02-03).
• Baylor is 27-0 all-time vs. teams from the SWAC.
• Baylor's 43.3 team 3-point percentage is on pace to break the school single-season record (38.5% - 1986-87).
• Baylor has outrebounded its opponents in each of last 5 games (4-1 record).
• Baylor has registered a positive assist-to-turnover mark each of last 3 games (3-0 record).
• Baylor has shot 45% or better from field each of last 5 games (4-1).
• BU is out-shooting its opponents 47.9-39.8%, including a 43.3-32.7% edge in 3s.
• 4 Baylor guards are shooting better than 40% on 3s: LaceDarius Dunn (52.3%, 2nd in Big 12), Tweety Carter (45.2%), Aaron Bruce (43.2%, 5th) and Curtis Jerrells (42.0%, 7th).
• BU is receiving votes in this week's AP poll (first season to receive votes since `01).
• Tweety Carter has made 7-of-10 3-pointers over the last 3 games.
• 8 BU players average 16 minutes or more & none average more than 30.
• Aaron Bruce is shooting 88.5% (23-26, 1st in Big 12, 33rd nationally) on free throws.
• Aaron Bruce ranks 11th on BU's all-time scoring list (1,162 career points).
• 61% (213-349) of Tweety Carter's career points have come from 3-pointers (71).
• Baylor won the 2007 Paradise Jam, its first non-hosted tourney title since 1971.
• Baylor is 23-1 in the Drew Era when scoring 80-plus points.

DUNN'S INSTANT OFFENSE
Eight games into his collegiate career, true freshman LaceDarius Dunn has shown a propensity for scoring, including the ability to provide instant offense off the bench. Over the last two games (since returning from his knee injury), Dunn has scored 36 points (18.0 ppg) in 37 minutes (18.5 mpg), an impressive 0.97 points per minute.

HOT 3-POINT SHOOTING
Baylor is shooting 43.3 percent as a team from 3-point distance. That figure ranks second in the Big 12 (19th nationally) and is on pace to top the school record of 38.5 percent (90-234) recorded in 1986-87.

COMEBACK WINS OVER QUALITY OPPONENTS
Baylor is a perfect 3-0 this season when trailing at halftime. Included in those three come-from-behind victories is a 14-point rally against Notre Dame and a 20-point comeback win at South Carolina.

THE LAST TIME OUT
Baylor roared back from a 20-point first-half deficit to defeat South Carolina 92-84 at the Colonial Center in Columbia, S.C. Freshman LaceDarius Dunn scored a career-high 24 points, behind six of eight 3-point shooting, as the Bears snapped a 25-game true road losing streak dating to 2004. Down 48-29 with three-and-one-half minutes remaining in the first, a Delbert Simpson dunk sparked a torrid 16-2 Baylor run to close out the half and cut the deficit to 50-45. Included in the impressive run were four 3-pointers, two each by Dunn and Curtis Jerrells. Baylor carried the momentum into the second period, opening with an equally impressive 26-6 run over the first nine minutes of the half to stake a 71-56 lead. The Gamecocks pulled to within 79-75 with 2:59 to go, but would get no closer as the Bears hit nine of 12 free throws, including five for six by Jerrells, in the final three minutes. Baylor shot 48.4 percent from the field and 52.4 percent from the 3-point arc. The Bears outrebounded USC 41-34. Jerrells finished with 21 points and Aaron Bruce added 13. Kevin Rogers notched a 12-point, 12-rebound double-double, his third of the season.

THE LAST MEETING: BAYLOR 75 - SOUTHERN 62 [Dec. 18, 2004]
Aaron Bruce (24) and Tommy Swanson (19) each scored career highs to lead undermanned Baylor to a 75-62 win over Southern at the Ferrell Center. The Bears, playing with limited scholarship players, overcame injuries to starters Patrick Fields (ankle sprain) and Tim Bush (cramps) in the victory. Baylor trailed early in the second half before 3-pointers by Roscoe Biggers and Bruce fueled an 18-4 run that put the Bears ahead 57-46 with 10:30 remaining. After Baylor extended its lead to 66-53, Southern's Chris Alexander hit his fifth and sixth 3-pointers to cut the deficit to 66-58 with about two minutes left. Turnovers plagued both teams with Baylor committing 23, and Southern had 20. The Bears reeled off 16 straight points and led 20-5 with just over 14 minutes left in the first half. But Southern countered with a 14-0 run and narrowed the margin to a single point at 20-19 with nine minutes remaining. Alexander's steal and layup at the buzzer tied the game for the Jaguars at the half 37-37.

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