Five Players Score in Double Figures, #18 WBB Rolls Southern Miss, 101-55

Saturday, November 23

Paradise Island, Bahamas

12:30 PM

Baylor

4-1,0-0Big 12

101

Southern Miss

2-3,0-0Sun Belt

Southern Miss.

Baylor

101

Five Players Score in Double Figures, #18 WBB Rolls Southern Miss, 101-55

11/23/2024 2:54:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

BaylorBears.com

NASSAU, Bahamas – As much as the inside presence of 6-3 Colorado transfer Aaronette Vonleh adds to this 18^th-ranked Baylor women's basketball team, they're tough to beat when they can get it going from 3-point range.

Six different Baylor players knocked down 3-pointers, including four apiece by Sarah Andrews and Bella Fontleroy, as the Bears (4-1) hit 15-of-34 from distance to lift the Bears to a 101-55 rout of Southern Miss Saturday afternoon in the opening game of the Battle 4 Atlantis.

"We started to get out in transition and got to just about anything we wanted," said Baylor coach Nicki Collen, whose team topped the 100-point mark for the second time in its last three games. "I thought we did a good job getting the ball downhill and then moving it to open shooters. And then, ultimately, stepped up and made a lot of 3's today. So, really good, balanced team effort all the way around."

Flirting with a triple-double, senior guard Yaya Felder had 14 points, eight rebounds and eight assists and knocked down three from outside the arc.

"Clearly, Yaya's best game of the season," Collen said of Felder. "She brought some good energy, made her first shot. . . . We ran an action, and Yaya came in the game and hit the first 3, and I thought that kind of relaxed us, like we flowed into the zone offense."

Baylor had four other players score in double figures, led by Darianna Littlepage-Buggs with 19 points and seven boards, while Jada Walker had 17 points and eight assists with two turnovers.

Collen was able to use her bench, playing no one more than 31 minutes and getting 28 points from her reserves. Fontleroy and Andrews scored 15 and 14 points, respectively.

"That was really big," Collen said. "Obviously, not having Jana (Van Gytenbeek at the end, Yaya played her first little bit of point guard there in the last few minutes. But you're just so scared late in the game with a lead like that, to get somebody hurt. Super proud of (Felder). But I thought Madison (Bartley's) minutes were good. And I thought we needed what (Waiata Jennings) brought. I thought for the most part, she stayed within herself)."

The game was tied at 12-12 about six minutes into the first quarter, but the Bears had a pulled ahead 25-18 lead by the end of the first period and closed the half on a 9-0 run that included back-to-back treys by Andrews and Fontleroy to go up 52-26.

"I think we really just pushed the pace, didn't let them set their defense up," Walker said. "They wanted to ice us and keep us isolated on one side of the floor, and we didn't really let them do that by pushing the pace and getting open shooters and making the one more pass, which is stuff we've been practicing all week, getting ready for this tournament."

Southern Miss (2-3) scored just one point over the last five minutes of the second quarter, going almost 5 ½ minutes without a made field goal.

Littlepage-Buggs (12), Andrews (12) and Walker (10) already hit double figures by intermission, while Fontleroy had nine points on 3-for-7 shooting from outside the arc.

USM's 6-3 grad center Melyia Grayson, who had 10 of the Golden Eagles' 26 first-half points, scored just two second-half points and played only five minutes after the break before fouling out.

"I thought earlier in the game, we were late on a couple of our hedge rotations, which got her a little bit deeper touches," Collen said. "(Second half), I thought we did a better job of making her touches harder, getting more on top side a little bit. Not necessarily a full front, but making her touches (harder). . . . She's a really good offensive player when she's got space to maneuver."

Baylor went on another 12-2 run in the third quarter to go up 66-30 and then dominated the fourth quarter, 23-11, to pull away for the 46-point victory and run its winning streak to three in a row.

Forward Je'Mya Evans was 5-of-7 from the floor and shared team-high scoring honors with Grayson at 12 points apiece. The Golden Eagles were outrebounded 42-22 and gave up 22 second-chance points.

Advancing to the second round of the bracketed tournament, the Bears will face Indiana (3-2) at 12:30 p.m. CT Sunday. The Hoosiers pulled away late to beat Columbia, 72-62, behind a double-double effort (18 points, 10 rebounds) from 6-3 junior Yarden Garzon.