Nov. 29, 2016 vs.  |
No. 9/11 Baylor (6-0) vs. Sam Houston State (4-2) Nov. 30, 2016 | 8:05 p.m. CT Waco, Texas | Ferrell Center (10,284) WATCH: Fox Sports Southwest-Plus and Fox Sports Go LISTEN: Sirius 132, XM 201, Internet 961 and TuneIn App |
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 | MEDIA INFORMATION | Date | Wednesday, Nov. 30 | 8:05 p.m. CT | Location | Waco, Texas; Ferrell Center (10,284) | Tickets | Purchase Tickets Online | TV | Fox Sports Southwest-Plus and FS Go | TV Talent | John Morris (pxp), Jim Haller (color) | Satellite Radio | Sirius 132, XM 201, Internet 961, Tune-In App | BU Radio | BaylorBears.com | BU Talent | Rick May (pxp), Nick Joos (color) | Stats | | Game Notes | Baylor | Sam Houston State | Social Media | @BaylorMBB | #SicSHSU | BAYLOR BEARS | Record | 6-0 | Ranking | 9th (AP), 11th (Coaches) | Head Coach | Scott Drew | | Career: 276-183 (15th season) | | BU Record: 256-172 (14th season) | SAM HOUSTON STATE BEARKATS | Record | 4-2 | Ranking | nr (AP), nr (Coaches) | Head Coach | Jason Hooten | | Career: 102-71 (7th season) | | SHSU Record: 102-71 (7th season) |
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STORYLINES
- No. 9 Baylor hosts Sam Houston State at 8 p.m. CT Wednesday on Fox Sports Southwest-Plus.
- Wednesday is the 11th series meeting and the first since the 2010 NCAA Tournament (BU won 68-59).
- Baylor is coming off a tournament title at the Battle 4 Atlantis that included wins over VCU, No. 24 Michigan State and No. 10 Louisville. Johnathan Motley was named tournament MVP.
- Baylor came from behind at half to win all 3 Battle 4 Atlantis games. BU trailed by 8 to VCU, by 3 to Michigan State and by 15 to Louisville. The Bears out-scored all 3 by at least 16 points in 2nd halves.
- The Bears have won 37 consecutive non-conference home games dating back to Dec. 12, 2012. BU averages a 21.0 point margin of victory during the streak and has eight wins over high-major teams.
- Baylor leads the nation in fewest fouls committed per game at 14.0.
- Baylor has won all six games this season by at least 3 points and averages a +11.2 scoring margin.
- BU is 6-0 for a 5th time in the last 9 seasons and is looking to start 7-0 for the first time since 2011-12.
- Baylor is 1 of 22 remaining undefeated Division I teams through Nov. 28.
- BU is in the AP Top 10 for the first time since Jan. 6, 2014 and is 27-9 all-time when top-10 ranked.
- Baylor is 3-0 vs. ranked teams this season (No. 4 Oregon, No. 24 Michigan State, No. 10 Louisville).
- Baylor has 15 wins over ranked teams in the last two-plus seasons (15-14 since 2014-15).
- BU is 34-54 against ranked teams since 2007-08 after going 0-27 in Drew's first four rebuilding seasons.
- Baylor returned six letterwinners from last season's 22-12 NCAA Tournament team.
- Baylor's starting lineup has an average age of 21.9 years old and all five are at least 21 years old.
- All five players in Baylor's starting lineup are in at least their fourth years of college basketball.
- BU is 28-4 since the start of last season when it takes the lead at any point in the 2nd half of a game.
- Baylor is one of 13 teams to be nationally ranked in each of the last 10 seasons.
- The Bears are coming off a school-record third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
- Head coach Scott Drew is in his 14th season at Baylor and is the school's all-time wins leader (256).
- Six Baylor players have been selected in the last five NBA Drafts, sixth-most nationally.
- Baylor's 131 wins since 2011-12 are second-most in the Big 12 behind only Kansas (153).
- Drew is 222-103 since 2007-08, the first year he had a full allotment of scholarships.
- Drew (45) is the youngest of 12 coaches to take his current program to three Sweet 16s since 2010.
- All 12 of Baylor's losses last season were against NCAA Tournament teams - Iowa State and National Championship game participants North Carolina and Villanova are the only other teams to make that claim.
- Drew has won 22+ games in five straight seasons and won 20+ games in eight of the last nine years.
- BU was picked 5th in the Big 12 preseason coaches poll, behind Kansas, WVU, Texas and Iowa State.
- Baylor has won 89% of its games when leading at the half since 2011-12 (103-13).
- Point guard Manu Lecomte was named Big 12 co-Newcomer of the Week on Nov. 14. Lecomte was also picked by the league's coaches as the preseason Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.
- Motley is on preseason watch lists for the Naismith Award, Karl Malone Award and Lute Olson Award.
QUICK HITS
- Baylor has had a nation-leading four players selected in the NBA Draft since 2010 who weren't ranked in the ESPN100 out of high school -- Quincy Acy, Ekpe Udoh, Pierre Jackson and Taurean Prince.
- Six of BU's seven starting point guards during the Drew era have earned All-Big 12 recognition.
- Baylor has the Big 12's 2nd-longest active streak with at least one 3-point FG made in 806 straight games.
- Baylor went 68-17 in football, MBB and WBB in 2015-16, the nation's best combined record.
- BU did not receive any preseason poll votes for the first time since 2009-10.
ONE OF 22 REMAINING UNDEFEATEDS
- Baylor is 1 of 22 remaining undefeated Division I teams through Nov. 28 - Baylor, Butler, Creighton, Gonzaga, Houston, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Ohio, Ohio State, Rutgers, South Carolina, St. Mary's, TAMU-CC, TCU, Tennessee State, UCLA, USC, Villanova, Virginia and Xavier.
TIED FOR NINTH-BEST START IN PROGRAM HISTORY
- Baylor's 6-0 start ties the 9th-best start in the program's 111-season history.
- BU's best start was 17-0 in 2011-12. The Bears started 13-0 in 1911-12, 12-0 in 2000-01, 9-0 in 1945-46, 8-0 in 1926-27 (Immortal Ten) and 7-0 in 1908-09 and 1938-39.
- BU's 6-0 start equals the 1909-10, 1982-83, 1990-91, 2008-09 and 2013-14 seasons.
THIRTY-SEVEN STRAIGHT NON-CONFERENCE HOME WINS
- Baylor has won 37 consecutive non-conference home games dating back to Dec. 12, 2012.
- Included in that streak are eight wins over high-major teams - No. 4 Oregon, No. 16 Vanderbilt, BYU, Arizona State, Providence, South Carolina, Texas A&M and Georgia, along with a pair of wins over Stephen F. Austin.
- Baylor's average margin of victory during the 37-game streak is 21.0 points per game.
- BU has won by double-digits in 30 of its last 37 non-conference home games, including 22 of the last 25 games.
SECOND-HALF COMEBACKS
- Baylor trailed at half in all three games at Battle 4 Atlantis (VCU by 8, MSU by 3, UL by 15).
- Baylor trailed VCU by as many as 8 points, trailed Michigan State by as many as 10 points and trailed Louisville by as many as 22 points. The 22-point deficit overcome vs. Louisville was the largest comeback of the Drew era.
- The Bears out-scored all three opponents by at least 16 points in the second halves. BU out-scored VCU 43-27, out-scored No. 24 Michigan State 43-25 and out-scored No. 10 Louisville 42-24).
SERIES HISTORY
- Wednesday is the 11th series meeting between Baylor and Sam Houston State. The Bears are 7-3 in the all-time series, including a 5-3 mark in Waco, but they've lose their last two home games vs. SHSU (1995 and 1999).
- BU and SHSU last met in the 2010 NCAA Tournament first round. The Bears won 68-59 in New Orleans.
- Baylor is 45-13 all-time against current Southland Conference members.
ALL-TIME WINS LEADER
- Scott Drew holds Baylor's school record with 256 career wins as head coach.
- Drew's .598 winning percentage is the best ever by a Baylor coach with 60+ games at the helm.
BATTLE 4 ATLANTIS CHAMPIONS
- Baylor knocked off VCU, No. 24 Michigan State and No. 10 Louisville to claim the 2016 Battle 4 Atlantis.
- BU overcame halftime deficits in all three games and rallied back from 20 down with 16:30 to go vs. Louisville.
- Johnathan Motley was named tournament MVP and Big 12 Player of the Week after averaging 20.0 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. The Big 12 weekly award was the second on Motley's career.
- It was the third regular-season tournament title of the Drew era - the 2007 Paradise Jam, 2011 Las Vegas Classic and 2016 Battle 4 Atlantis.
- The Bears jumped from No. 20 to No. 9 in the AP poll and from receiving votes to No. 11 in the coaches poll.
BEARS MOUNT HUGE COMEBACK VS. NO. 10 LOUISVILLE TO CLAIM ATLANTIS
- Baylor claimed its 3rd regular-season tournament title of the Drew era and third win over a ranked team this season by rallying from 22 points down to knock off No. 10 Louisville in the 2016 Battle 4 Atlantis title game.
- BU trailed 32-10 with 4 minutes left in the 1st half and trailed 39-24 at the break.
- Baylor still trailed by 20 points at 44-24 with 16:30 remaining, but out-scored UL 42-19 the rest of the way.
- The comeback was keyed by three reserves who played the last 15 minutes - Jake Lindsey, King McClure and Terry Maston combined to shoot 13-of-15 in the second half.
BU BEATS NO. 24 MICHIGAN STATE TO ADVANCE TO B4A CHAMPIONSHIP
- Baylor earned its second ranked win of the season by knocking off No. 24/20 Michigan State, 73-58, in the Battle 4 Atlantis semifinals. BU advanced to its 3rd regular-season tournament title game in the last 4 seasons.
- The Bears were led by Johnathan Motley's 26 points, including 20 in the first half.
- Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. added 14 points, and Ishmail Wainright had 7 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists and 0 turnovers.
BEARS KNOCK OFF VCU IN B4A QUARTERFINALS
- Baylor rallied from an 8-point halftime deficit to beat VCU, 71-63, in the Battle 4 Atlantis quarterfinals.
- The Bears went a perfect 17-of-17 at the foul line in the 2nd half after shooting 10-of-16 on 1st-half FTs.
- Johnathan Motley posted his 6th career double-double (19 points, 10 rebounds) to lead BU in both categories.
- Manu Lecomte was cold from the field (3-of-12), but scored BU's final 11 points, including 9 straight free throws.
- Lecomte finished with 16 points, Al Freeman added 15 points, and Ishmail Wainright had a career-high 9 rebounds.
WIN OVER DUNK CITY
- Baylor earned an 81-72 win over Florida Gulf Coast in a non-bracketed Battle 4 Atlantis game.
- The Bears trailed 58-55 points with 10 minutes remaining, marking the first time this season BU faced a second-half deficit. BU finished the game on a 26-14 run, holding FGCU to 4-of-18 shooting in the last 10 minutes.
- Five Bears scored in double figures, led by Manu Lecomte's 19 points, the second straight game he's led BU.
- Al Freeman added 18 points, while Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. and Johnathan Motley had 12 apiece.
TOP-FIVE WIN OVER NO. 4 OREGON
- Baylor knocked off No. 4 Oregon, 66-49, on Nov. 15. The Bears became the first team to hold Oregon below 50 points since Feb. 21, 2013 - a streak of 119 games.
- The win was Baylor's 4th in its last 11 games against AP Top 5 teams. Prior to that stretch, BU was 3-34 all-time against top-5 ranked opponents. The Bears are now 4-17 against top-5 teams in the Drew era.
- BU was led by Manu Lecomte with 18 points and 7 assists, while Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. had 8 points, 14 rebounds and 7 blocks. Lual-Acuil's 7 blocks tied the 10th-most in a game in program history.
- Johnathan Motley made his season debut and had 17 points and 7 boards in 28 minutes.
TRIO OF REDSHIRTS IMPRESSIVE IN BAYLOR DEBUTS
- Manu Lecomte, Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. and Wendell Mitchell all made their BU debuts vs. ORU after redshirting last year.
- Lecomte earned Big 12 co-Newcomer of the Week after a double-double with 13 points, 11 assists, 0 turnovers and 3 steals in 35 minutes. He accounted for 53% of Baylor's scoring (40 of 76) through his own points and assists.
- Lual-Acuil had 12 points and team-highs of 9 rebounds and 4 blocks in 33 minutes.
- Mitchell came off the bench and scored 9 points on just 4 shot attempts in 14 minutes.
RANKED NO. 9 IN THIS WEEK'S AP TOP 25
- Baylor is ranked No. 9 in this week's AP Top 25 poll, just two weeks after receiving no votes in the poll.
- The Bears are top-10 ranked for the first time since they were No. 7 on Jan. 6, 2014.
- This is the 21st time in program history the Bears have been ranked in the AP Top 10, and BU is 27-9 all-time when playing as a top-10 team. BU is 10-4 all-time when ranked No. 9 in the AP poll.
- Baylor has now been ranked in each of the last 10 seasons - one of 13 teams nationally to make that claim.
EXPERIENCED DESPITE ONLY ONE SENIOR
- Baylor may have only one senior on this year's roster, but eight of nine rotation players are at least 20 years old.
- All five players in Baylor's projected starting lineup are in their fourth or fifth years of college. Manu Lecomte (21), Johnathan Motley (21) and Al Freeman (22) are fourth-year juniors, Ishmail Wainright (22) is a fourth-year senior and Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. (22) is a fifth-year junior.
- The Bears also have sophomore guards King McClure (20) and Jake Lindsey (20) and junior forward Terry Maston (21), who have all played in 40 consecutive games.
FIFTEEN WINS VS. RANKED TEAMS IN LAST THREE SEASONS
- Baylor has gone 15-14 against ranked teams since the start of the 2014-15 season.
- BU is 3-0 vs. ranked teams this season, with wins over No. 4 Oregon, No. 24 Michigan State and No. 10 Louisville.
- Baylor's 3-game winning streak vs. AP-ranked teams is the 2nd-longest in program history - the Bears won four straight from Jan. 14-Feb. 7, 2015, but none of those were against top-10 teams.
- BU had a school record seven wins over ranked teams in 2014-15.
- Five wins over ranked teams last season tied the second-most in program history (5 in 2013-14).
- Last season, Baylor had wins over No. 16 Vanderbilt, at No. 13 Iowa State, vs. No. 13 Iowa State, at No. 24 Texas and vs. No. 23 Texas.
- BU is 34-54 against ranked teams since 2007-08 after going 0-27 in Drew's first four rebuilding seasons.
- Baylor has won at least five games vs. APà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Top 25 teams in each of the last 3 seasons entering 2016-17.
NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER SUCCESS
- Baylor has posted a combined 120-26 record in November and December games during the Drew era.
- The Bears are 61-11 in November games and 59-15 in December contests.
- BU is 21-3 in November games over the last 4 seasons, with the lone losses to No. 8 Syracuse (2013), vs. Illinois (2014) and at No. 25 Oregon (2015).
BEST IN TEXAS
- Baylor is 42-8 against in-state opponents since the start of the 2011-12 season, and the Bears have advanced deeper into postseason play than any of Texas' 21 Division I team in four of the last five seasons.
- BUà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € is a combined 56-12 against Lone Star State teams over the last seven seasons after going 10-27 against in-state teams in Scott Drew's first six seasons at Baylor (9-3 in 2015-16, 10-1 in 2014-15, 6-3 in 2013-14, 7-1 in 2012-13, 10-0 in 2011-12, 5-3 in 2010-11 and 9-1 in 2009-10).
- Additionally, six of the nine NBAà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Draft picks fromà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Texas colleges since 2012 have come from Baylor. North Texas, Texas and Texas A&Mà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € have each had one player selected in the last five NBAà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Drafts.
DREW ERA HIGHLIGHTS
- Drew is coaching his 429th game at Baylor (256-172). His .598 winning percentage is best in BU history among coaches with 60+ games, and his teams have a .683 winning percentage (222-103) since 2007-08.
- BU has graduated 92 percent of its scholarship seniors since Drew took over in 2003 (24 of 26).
- In Drew's first 13 seasons, 25 players have gone on to professional careers.
PLAYER DEVELOPMENT - FROM UNRANKED TO NBA DRAFT
- Baylor has had a nation-leading four players selected in the NBAà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Draft since 2010 who weren't ranked in the ESPN100 out of high school.
- The only other schools with three such players were Colorado,à ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Marquette, Missouri, New Mexico and Connecticut.
- Baylor developed Quincyà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Acy, Ekpe Udoh, Pierre Jackson and Taurean Prince into NBAà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Draft picks after joining the program as unranked recruits.
POINT GUARDS THRIVE IN DREW'S SYSTEM
- Six of Baylor's seven starting point guards during the Scott Drew era have earned All-Big 12 recognition.
- Lester Medford (2016), Kenny Chery (2014, 2015), Pierre Jackson (2012, 2013), Tweety Carter (2010), Curtis Jerrells (2007, 2008, 2009) and Aaron Bruce (2005, 2006, 2007) have been named All-Big 12.
SIX NBA DRAFT PICKS IN LAST FIVE SEASONS
- Baylor's six NBAà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Draft picks over the last five years are the nation's sixth most, trailing only Kentucky, Duke, Syracuse, Kansas and North Carolina and tied with Arizona, Louisville, Michigan, Michigan State and UCLA.
- A program-record three Baylor players were selected in the 2012 NBAà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Draft -- Perryà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Jones III (28th pick; Oklahoma City Thunder), Quincyà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Acy (37th pick; Toronto Raptors) and Quincy Miller (38th pick; Denver Nuggets). Pierre Jackson (42nd pick, Philadelphia 76ers; traded to New Orleans Pelicans) was chosen in the 2013 draft, Coryà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Jefferson (60th pick; San Antonio Spurs; traded toà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Brooklynà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Nets) was selected in 2014 and Taurean Prince (12th pick; Utah Jazz; traded to Atlanta Hawks) was chosen in 2016.
TWENTY-FIVE PRO PLAYERS IN DREW ERA
- In Scott Drew's first 13 years at Baylor, 25 of his players went on to professional careers.
- All three scholarship seniors from last year's team are now playing professionally.
- Taurean Prince was selected 12th overall in the NBA Draft, becoming the 2nd lottery pick in program history.
- Rico Gathers decided to pursue a pro football career and was selected in the NFL Draft's 6th round.
- Lester Medford recently began his professional career playing in Hungary.
FIVE STRAIGHT 20-WIN SEASONS
- Baylor has won 20+ games in a school-record five consecutive seasons and in eight of the last nine years. The Bears had just three 20-win seasons in the program's first 101 years (1907-2007).
- Baylor has topped 22 wins in each of the past 5 seasons and is averaging 25.0 wins per season in that span.
GRADUATING 92 PERCENT OF SENIORS
- Since Scott Drew took over the Baylor Basketball program in 2003, 24 of 26 scholarship players who have exhausted their collegiate eligibility have graduated from Baylor.
- Players recruited by Drew who have graduated at Baylor: Tim Bush, Patrick Fields, Aaron Bruce, Mamadou Diene, Delbert Simpson, Curtis Jerrells, Henry Dugat, Kevin Rogers, Tweety Carter, Josh Lomers, Ekpe Udoh, Fred Ellis, Quincy Acy, Anthony Jones, J'mison Morgan, A.J. Walton, Cory Jefferson, Brady Heslip, Gary Franklin, Kenny Chery, Royce O'Neale, Lester Medford, Rico Gathers and Taurean Prince.
PICKED FIFTH IN BIG 12 PRESEASON POLL
- Baylor was picked to finish fifth in the 2017 Big 12 Conference Preseason Poll in a vote by the league's head coaches in October. It's the sixth time in the last seven seasons BUà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € has been picked in the top half of the league.
- In the last 10 seasons, BU has been picked 9th in 2007-08 (NCAA Tournament), 3rd in 2008-09 (NIT runner-up), 10th in 2009-10 (Elite Eight), 4th in 2010-11, 3rd in 2011-12 (Elite Eight), 2nd in 2012-13 (NITà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € champions), 3rd in 2013-14 (Sweet 16), t-6th in 2014-15 (NCAAà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Tournament), 5th in 2015-16 (NCAA Tournament) and 5th (2016-17).
SECOND-MOST WINS AMONG BIG 12 TEAMS SINCE 2011-12
- Baylor has averaged 25 wins per season over the last 5 years - 2nd-most in the Big 12 in that span. Baylor's 131-56 record since 2011-12 trails only Kansas (153-38) among Big 12 teams (thru 11/28/16).
- Iowa State (128-53) is 3rd, Oklahoma (116-58) is 4th, Kansas State (106-66) is 5th, West Virginia (105-69) is 6th Texas (103-72) is 7th, Oklahoma State (95-75) is 8th, TCU (74-94) is 9th and Texas Tech (70-94) is 10th.
HALFTIME ADJUSTMENTS
- Baylor has won 89% of its games when leading at the half since 2011-12. The Bears are 103-13 when leading at the break in that stretch (18-2 in 2015-16, 21-7 in 2014-15, 18-2 in 2013-14, 17-1 in 2012-13 and 26-1 in 2011-12).
- BU has won 39% of games in which its been tied or trailing at the half since 2011-12, going 28-43 in those.
- BU has led at halftime in 116 of 187 games over the last six seasons. With wins in 103 of those 116 games, and victories in 28 of 71 games it has trailed or been tied at the half, Baylor is 131-56 since 2011-12.
RANKED IN 10 STRAIGHT SEASONS
- Baylor is one of 13 teams to be nationally ranked in each of the last 10 seasons.
- The Bears went from receiving no votes in the week 1 AP poll to No. 20 in week 2 and No. 9 in week 3.
- BUà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € cracked a string of 38 consecutive unranked seasons when it was tabbed No. 25 in 2007-08.
- The Bears reached as high as No. 19 in 2008-09, No. 19 in 2009-10, No. 9 in 2010-11, No. 3 in 2011-12, No. 16 in 2012-13, No. 7 in 2013-14, No. 14 in 2014-15 and No. 13 in 2015-16.
THREE CONSECUTIVE NCAA TOURNAMENT APPEARANCES
- Baylor is on a school-record streak of three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. Prior to earning at-large bids in each of the last three seasons, the Bears had never been to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments.
- The Bears are one of nine teams nationally to earn a top-six seed in each of the last three NCAA Tournaments, joining Arizona, Duke, Iowa State, Kansas, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Villanova and Virginia.
- Baylor was a No. 6 seed in 2014, a No. 3 seed in 2015 and a No. 5 seed last season.
NO BAD LOSSES
- All of Baylor's losses last season were against NCAA Tournament teams. The only other teams to make that claim were Iowa State, North Carolina and Villanova.
- Baylor and Villanova were the nation's only teams to not suffer any losses against teams outside the RPI top 50.
CONSISTENTLY AMONG NATION'S BEST OFFENSES
- Baylor's offense has consistently ranked among the nation's best over the last nine seasons under Scott Drew.
- The Bears have finished eight of the past nine seasons among the top 20 nationally in KenPom's adjusted offensive efficiency, joining Duke as the only programs to make that claim.
- This season, Baylor is No. 13 in adjusted offensive efficiency as of Nov. 28.
- BU finished No. 13 in 2015-16, No. 18 in 2014-15, No. 9 in 2013-14, No. 14 in 2012-13, No. 8 in 2011-12, No. 102 in 2010-11, No. 3 in 2009-10, No. 11 in 2008-09 and No. 11 in 2007-08.
DREW AMONG NATION'S ELITE
- Head coachà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Scott Drew is the youngest of 12 coaches nationally to take his current program to three Sweet 16 appearances since 2010. Drew (45) is joined by Xavier's Chris Mack (46), Arizona's Sean Miller (47), Ohioà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € State's Thad Matta (49), Indiana's Tomà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Crean (50), Kansas' Bill Self (53), Kentucky's John Calipari (57), Michigan State's Tom Izzo (61), Louisville's Rickà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Pitino (63), North Carolina's Roy Williams (66), Duke's Mike Krzyzewski (69) and Syracuse's Jim Boeheim (71).
- Baylor is one of 15 teams to make three Sweet 16 appearances since 2010.
UNPRECEDENTED SUCCESS
- Baylor has enjoyed unprecedented success over the last 10 seasons under 14th-year head coach Scott Drew.
- Since the start of the 2007-08 season, Baylor is 222-103 (24 wins per season) and has made eight postseason appearancesà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € (NCAA -- 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016; NITà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € -- 2009, 2013) and posted eight 20-win seasons.
- Prior to 2007-08, Baylor won only 135 games in the first 11 seasons of the Big 12 era (12.3 wins per season).
- Baylor has made 15 postseason appearances (eight under Drew) and won 20+ games just 11 times (eight under Drew) in the program's first 110 seasons.
BAYLOR BASKETBALL ON THE RADIO
- Baylor basketball is aired live via the Baylor-IMG College Radio Network on ESPNà ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Central Texas and flagship station 1660AM ESPN Radio (KRZI) in Waco and worldwide on Sirius XM Radio.
- Games are broadcast by the "Voice of the Bears" John Morris and former Baylor basketball standout Pat Nunley.
- Morris is in his 29th year doing Baylor broadcasts, while Nunley is in his 34th season as color analyst.
- All of Baylor's games can be heard live on the Internet at www.BaylorBears.com and via the TuneIn App.
UP NEXT
- Baylor continues its non-conference schedule with four of its next five games at the Ferrell Center, with the lone exception a neutral-site game against Jackson State at Fort Hood.
- The Bears host No. 7 Xavier at 2:30 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2. It'll be the third matchup of top-10 teams in Ferrell Center history and the 7th top-10 matchup in program history.
- BU then plays a third consecutive home game against Southern on Dec. 14, before heading to Fort Hood for a Dec. 17 game against Jackson State. The Bears host John Brown the following day and face Texas Southern on Dec. 21 before opening Big 12 play on Dec. 30 at Oklahoma.
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation Sandwiched between top-10 matchups, the No. 9/11 Baylor men (6-0) will host Sam Houston State (4-2) in a potential trap game at 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Ferrell Center.
The Bears rallied from a 22-point deficit to upset No. 10 Louisville, 66-63, last Friday in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship game in the Bahamas and host No. 7 Xavier (7-0) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.
Coach Scott Drew said it helps that the Bears have already beaten Florida Gulf Coast (81-72), a team very "similar to Sam Houston State that's picked to win their conference."
"Our guys should know how tough a game it's going to be," Drew said. "There's a reason we've had the No. 1 strength of schedule the last four years, RPI-wise. Even if we play teams outside the Power-5 conferences, we play teams with great tradition and that expect to win and are used to winning. As a coach, you understand when you play good teams there's a better chance you lose. But, I think the players are always excited to play better games."
Sam Houston State was the preseason pick to win the Southland Conference, returning its top seven scorers from a team that won 18 games a year ago and advanced to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament for the third straight year.
Baylor leads the all-time series, 7-3, including a 68-59 win over the Bearkats in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in 2010. Coach Jason Hooten played collegiately at McLennan Community College and Tarleton State and has been part of the Sam Houston program since 2004.
"Being an in-state school, a lot of our guys are familiar with their program and the players that have played there. So, that helps, too," Drew said.
Since starting off the year unranked and not even receiving a vote in the AP poll, the Bears have reeled off wins over nationally ranked Oregon, Michigan State and Louisville to move up to No. 9 in the Associated Press and 11th in the USA Today coaches' poll.
"We understand that right now we're off to a good start," Drew said, "but we have a lot of goals and an lot of things left that we want to accomplish. Teams that get better each and every day are those that do that. Teams that get distracted or stop working, then obviously they don't have as productive a year. We have a lot of basketball left to play."
While the recognition in the polls is nice, sophomore guard Jake Lindsey said, "We're still the same team no one wanted to give votes to at the beginning of the year. So, that's the mindset we keep."
"Confidence can't become cockiness or complacency," Lindsey said. "Just because we've had success doesn't mean we're going to continue that. We have to continue to build on the habits we've formed. If we let those slip, it will be apparent out there. We don't want to let that happen."
The team's depth helped carry Baylor through three games in three days in the Bahamas. In the win over Louisville, sophomore guard King McClure hit two 3-pointers and scored all 15 of his points in the second half when the Bears rallied from a 20-point deficit in the last 16 ½ minutes.
"He was saving them up," Drew said of King, who had scored three points combined in the first 5 ½ games. "You knew it was just a matter of time before he broke through. Once the first one went down and then the second one went down, you could tell he was feeling it and he was fired up. His teammates and the coaching staff have always had confidence in him."
Junior forward Johnathan Motley, who is averaging 17.8 points and 7.0 rebounds, earned Battle 4 Atlantis MVP and Big 12 Player of the Week honors.
"First of all, the players did a great job of getting him the ball and allowing him to be successful," Drew said. "At the same time . . . coming off an injury, he probably won't be at 95, 100 percent until we have a couple weeks to strengthen his ankle. But, what he's been able to achieve and accomplish coming off a bad ankle sprain, is quite impressive."
The Bearkats are led by guards John Dewey III and Dakarai Henderson, who averaging 13.0 and 11.5 points, respectively. Senior forward Aurimas Majauskas (8.7 ppg) was a preseason first-team All-Southland Conference pick after averaging 14.2 points and 5.5 rebounds last season, while senior guard Paul Baxter joined Henderson on the second team after sitting out last year with a foot injury.
"They have great point guards and bigs," senior guard Ishmail Wainright said of the Bearkats. "They're not as tall as us, but they play big. They're playing a ranked team, so they'll bring their all."