Baylor-Arizona: Grades and GIFs

Behind a great second half on offense, the Bears notched a massive victory over Arizona.

Here are grades:

Makai Mason- A:

Mason scored 22 points and did a nice job getting buckets when nothing was available.

Mark Vital- A:

Yes, Vital missed way too many free throws, and he isn’t much of a scorer.

I don’t care. Vital grabbed 17 rebounds—two fewer than Arizona. He was active and knew his roll. If teams continue to not guard him on the weak side, then he’ll just keep grabbing offensive rebounds:

Mario Kegler: A-:

Kegler did a nice job on offense. He finally hit another three, and he’s a load on the offensive glass.

The only issue with Kegler is that he has to hit more threes. Teams are abandoning him and doubling Tristan Clark.

Tristan Clark: A-

Clark is Baylor’s best player. I’d be shocked if anybody didn’t double him, at least until Baylor starts hitting more triples.

Clark’s been money firing out of double teams. The only thing keeping him from an “A” is that he draws a bad foul or two each game, limiting his time on the court.

But watch this play. Arizona’s assistant calls off the double team, and Clark makes Chase Jeter pay:

Flo Thamaba: B

This might have been his best game as a Bear. He did a nice job rolling to the hoop, and he fought hard for an offensive rebound.

Thamba was a little out of position defending a ball screen. He also needed to come to the ball on a pass his way early in the first half.

But Thamba was a good rotation piece in this game. With a little more depth, he’d have red-shirted this season. Good for Thamba playing well this early.

Devonte Bandoo: B

He didn’t do anything too bad, but he wasn’t much of an offensive player. The Bears need him to score a little more. Still, if he doesn’t make too many mistakes—and he hasn’t done that—Baylor can live with that.

Jared Butler: B-

His first shot was a brutal air-ball, but he followed it up with a nice three off an exceptional pass from Matt Mayer:

Butler was pretty good defensively, but he wasn’t that impactful in this game.

I could understand giving either Butler or Mayer a higher grade, but I’m holding them to a high standard.

Matt Mayer B-:

Mayer played pretty solid defense. Brandon Randolph made a stupid shot in his face, and Mayer was out of rotation on one sequence.

He hit the pass above, which is why his future is so bright. At 6-foot-9 and with a nice shot, defenses are left in a tough spot. But there’s a reason I’m giving him a “B-.” He still rushes to the ball and clogs passing lanes. And he missed a wide open Mason on the weak side of this play:

King McClure: C+:

McClure had a terrible offensive game. That happens sometimes. He finished 0-of-3 and had zero points and five turnovers.

So how does he not have an “F?” He was very good defensively and snatched some big rebounds. McClure was active in the zone and had four steals.

The Bears won’t win many games with McClure playing that poorly offensively, but they’ll be in a good spot, when his offense returns, with him playing that well defensively.