Power of the Hypnotoad Just Wasn’t Enough

The first two possessions did not go well for the Bears, with back-to-back turnovers. They held the Frogs though, and came back with two straight buckets, putting them up 5-0 on TCU. A couple of threes both ways and we’re going into the first media timeout Bears on top, 10-7.

Coming out of the timeout TCU had an inbound with 3.7 seconds on the shot clock. Baylor forced them into another timeout, then held them once they finally got the ball in. They grabbed the rebound and took the ball down to Langston Love who nailed the three. Momentum stayed with Baylor for a little while here as George and Flagler made repeated TOUGH buckets, putting Baylor up 17-11 with 10:14 to play in the first.

Keyonte came out of the break and threw an awesome alley to Caleb Lohner who jammed it down. TCU strung together a couple of transition buckets here and shrunk the gap to 2 points. 19-17 Baylor, with only one media timeout left.

A defensive takeaway by Keyonte George pushed the Bears down the court resulting in a nice setback-three for LJ Cryer. He followed this up with another bucket for himself, putting Baylor up 24-19 with 6:42 to go. Some fouls and easy buckets allowed TCU to put together a run and take the lead with 4:14 to go. 24-25. Flagler splashed one from range immediately putting the Bears back in front.

Baylor is really struggling to stop TCU in the paint today, which is incredibly similar to the loss in Waco, where the Frogs won with only four shots outside the paint. TCU worked all the way up four, but an and-1 three for LJ Cryer took that lead away in a flash. The Frogs finished the half with a three though, making the score 31-34, TCU on top.

Not a great start to this half either for Baylor, with back-to-back blocks on the offensive end and a big dunk coming the other way for TCU. Momentum is in their favor now. They are scoring at ease within the paint now. A charge by Flo Thamba takes us to the first break. No bueno. 38-42.

A charge by Flagler and a floater by Cryer out of the timeout, Bears down 2. They’re still playing sloppy though, as back to back turnovers allow TCU to go up 6. Back-and-forth turnovers now, TCU still on top. To make matter worse, Keyonte George is currently wearing sweats on the bench. Not sure if he is injured. 42-48.

Update: Keyonte is back. Baylor still has no answer for the Frogs in the paint, and can’t buy a bucket on the offensive end. LJ is leading Baylor in points today with 21 so far. Without him, this game would be a lot worse. Bears down 8 with 7:28 to go.

The Bears are clawing back with everything they can right now. Players have been all over the floor, and every single basket has to be earned. Back-to-back takeaways and buckets bring the Bears with four. And after a looooooooooong possession with the ball flying everywhere, Baylor finally secures it and Flagler drains the 3. Bears down 1. TCU brings it back to 3, but Flagler drains another from range. It’s all tied up with just over four left. AND ANOTHER. ADAM FLAGLER CAN’T MISS. Bears up 3.

The Frogs took back the lead, but a foul beyond the arc allowed Flagler to drain three free throws and put Baylor back up two. He makes another shot, and that is now fourteen straight points for the Bears that have come from Adam Flagler. A bucket after a scramble on Baylor’s side of the floor by Langston Love put the Bears up six with a minute to go. Langston had a chance to ice the game with 1and1, but missed the first. This resulted in two straight buckets for the Frogs. Bears up 2 with 22.3 to go. TCU sends LJ to the line now and he makes both of his free throws. Bears up four.

The Frogs came down and did exactly what they’ve been doing all game: score in the paint with ease. Two point game, Bears up, 10 seconds. They pass it in and the ball is tipped out of bounds. They call it out on TCU, but take it to the monitor. They overturn it and it is now Frogs’ ball with 8 seconds. They pass it in, and Flagler locks up his man who misses the shot. He grabs the ball and is fouled. He drains the free throws and BAYLOR WINS BY FOUR.

This is what you get watching Big 12 basketball. Scott Drew and Adam Flagler both agreed with this statement. To take it a step further Adam even said,“Literally like a March Madness game every time we step on the court.” Baylor shot really well down the stretch in this game and really just finished as a team. Next up: BIG MONDAY. Time to handle West Virginia at home. Quick turnaround for the team but in the words of Flagler,“Coach Drew preps us for moments like this.” Sic ‘em baby.