MBB Topples No. 3/3 Illinois, 95-91, in Final Exhibition

Friday, October 23

Urbana-Champaign, Ill.

7 pm

Baylor

0-0,0-0Big 12

Illinois (EXH)

0-0,0-0Big Ten

Team	1	2	F
Baylor	63	32	95
Illinois	44	47	91

Box Score (PDF)

10/23/2026 10:25:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Game Book (PDF)

Bears hang on behind would-be career-high 28 points by Isaac Williams IV

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Baylor men's basketball defeated No. 3/3 Illinois, 95-91, in its final exhibition game on Friday night at State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill.

BU led for 39 minutes, held a 19-point halftime lead and collected the wire-to-wire victory despite a late charge by the Illini, who pulled within three late in the second half.

The Bears were led by junior guard Isaac Williams IV, who poured in a would-be career-high 28 points. Sophomore guard Kayden Mingo added 24 points, while junior guard Brett Decker Jr. and junior forward Isaac Celiscar each contributed 15 points.

BU drilled 11 3-point field goals in the first half, and despite being shutout from deep in the second half, out-rebounded Illinois, 47-38, scored more second chance points, 20-18, and scored more off the bench, 43-37, than the Illini.

THE RUNDOWN
After Baylor jumped out to an early 10-6 lead at the first media timeout, Williams IV entered and promptly took over, scoring BU's next 16 consecutive points and helping the Bears open up an 11-point lead at the under-12 stoppage in the first half, 26-15.

Williams IV hit each of his first two 3-point attempts and added a pair of free throws in addition to three layups and a tip-in off his own miss. His points streak was snapped by a K. Mingo three, who was one of six different Bears to collect a steal in the ballgame.

Despite a 6-0 run over 55 seconds for the Illini, another Williams IV triple kept the Bears in front at 36-29 with 7:54 remaining in the first half. That sparked a 12-3 run for BU, extending the advantage to 45-32 late in the period.

That's when Decker caught fire from deep, pouring in four treys to give him five for the half. The Bears finished on an 18-9 run to lead by 19 at the break, 63-44.

In the second half, Illinois cut the deficit to 10 at the 13:45 mark thanks to an 8-0 run. However, a made free throw by Celiscar, who scored seven of BU's first nine points in the period, kept it a double-digit lead.

An Illini 3-pointer at the 8:20 mark brought the home side within eight, but Williams IV answered right back, converting an and-one opportunity to keep Baylor ahead by 11, 79-68.

The two sides continued to trade buckets, but the BU tandem of Williams IV and K. Mingo helped the Bears stretch the lead to 13, 87-74, with just over five minutes remaining. That's when Illinois scored seven straight, cutting the Baylor advantage to just six with 3:45 to go.

Coming out of the media timeout, another Illini triple, their seventh of the half, made it a three-point ballgame at 87-84. Each of the next five points were scored at the line, keeping BU in front at 90-86, before K. Mingo's floater with 36 seconds put the Bears up six.

HIGHLIGHTS
• This is Baylor's second win over a top-3 ranked opponent this week, after defeating No. 1 Florida, 82-76, in overtime on Sunday.
• BU scored 50+ points in the first half of a true road game for the first time since Feb. 28 at UCF.
• The Bears scored 60+ points in the first half for the first time since Dec. 29, 2025, against Arlington Baptist.
• Baylor has not scored 90+ points against a top-5 opponent since scoring 90 at Kansas in 2008.
• BU's 11 3-point FG's
• Junior guard Isaac Williams IV scored 16-consecutive points for the Bears after entering the game at the 15:17 mark in the first half.
• Williams IV's 28 points would be a career high, including exhibition games.
• Junior guard Brett Decker Jr. made five three's in the first half.

STAT OF THE DAY
28 – Isaac Williams led all scorers with 28 points, which would be a career high including exhibition games.

WHAT'S NEXT
Baylor officially opens its 2026-27 season at home against Northwestern State on Monday, Nov. 2. Tipoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. at Foster Pavilion in Waco.

To stay up to date on all things Baylor men's basketball, follow the team on its official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts: @BaylorMBB.

- BaylorBears.com -