Baylor Bears
Big 12 (32-1, 18-0)
Baylor finished up the regular season with a perfect 18-0 mark in Big 12 play. Their lone loss came way back on November 16th against Stanford. The Bears never shy away from tough games and this is a team that beat Kentucky, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Connecticut and everybody in the Big 12. The Bears have spent all season building for the NCAA Tournament.
Big Wins: 12/5 at Notre Dame (73-61), 12/18 Tennessee (76-53), 2/18 at Connecticut (76-70)
Bad Losses: 11/16 vs Stanford (69-71)
Coach: Kim Mulkey
Why They Can Surprise:
There are no surprises here. Baylor has the most talented roster in the nation led, of course, by Brittney Griner and Odyssey Sims. Griner wrapped up her senior season averaging 23.6 points, 9.0 rebounds and 4.2 blocks. Griner is a massive force on both ends of the floor and few teams have found a way to stop her on either end of the court. Sims is the catalyst of the offense, dishing out 5.7 assists per contest. Lost behind the constant headlines featuring Griner and Sims are seniors Kimetria Hayden, Jordan Madden, Destiny Williams and Brooklyn Pope. Hayden and Madden are the starting guards beside Sims. Hayden is a great ball handler and Madden is a quality scoring option on most nights. Williams and Pope have split starting time in the post. Pope is the more efficient scoring threat, but Williams is stronger on the glass. Either way, Coach Kim Mulkey will get the player she needs on the floor to help out Griner.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The focus of every team facing Baylor is how to stop Griner. There are a few ways, but nothing usually works. One way is to get up and down the floor in a hurry and not let Griner get set defensively. The other way to score against the Bears is to have a post player who can stretch the defense and force Griner to defend on the perimeter. The bottom line is moving Griner away from the paint makes it much easier to score against the Bears. On the other end of the floor, stopping Griner from scoring can be much more difficult. She is always double teamed and Griner is a good enough passer to find her open teammate. And the rest of the team is more than talented enough to make those shots. Some teams will run a zone defense against Baylor. The Bears are not a good shooting team, so it makes perfect sense. The Bears will make most teams pay on the glass for running a zone, but some can have a little success packing it in and hoping Baylor forces three-pointers instead of working around the zone and finding Griner in the paint.
Probable Starters:
Odyssey Sims, Junior, Guard, 12.5 ppg, 5.7 apg, 2.6 spg
Kimetria Hayden, Senior, Guard, 7.5 ppg, 4.2 apg
Jordan Madden, Senior, Guard, 7.6 ppg, 2.9 apg
Destiny Williams, Senior, Forward, 8.5 ppg, 6.7 rpg
Brittney Griner, Senior, Center, 23.6 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 4.2 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Niya Johnson, Freshman, Guard, 2.0 ppg, 2.8 apg
Brooklyn Pope, Senior, Forward, 10.2 ppg, 5.7 rpg
Alexis Prince, Freshman, Guard, 5.2 ppg, 1.2 apg
Makenzie Robertson, Junior, Guard, 2.3 ppg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 81.4 (3rd in nation, 1st in conference)
Scoring Defense: 53.9 (33, 1)
Field-Goal Percentage: 51.1 (1, 1)
Field-Goal Defense: 32.5 (4, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 3.2 (309, 10)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: n/a
Free-Throw Percentage: 65.6 (266, 8)
Rebound Margin: 10.0 (8, 1)
Assists Per Game: 21.6 (1, 1)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.4 (15, 1)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2012 NCAA Round of 64 win over UC Santa Barbara
2012 NCAA Round of 32 win over Florida
2012 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Georgia Tech
2012 NCAA Regional Final win over Tennessee
2012 NCAA National Semifinal win over Stanford
2012 NCAA National Championship win over Notre Dame
2011 NCAA Round of 64 win over Prairie View A&M
2011 NCAA Round of 32 win over West Virginia
2011 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Green Bay
2011 NCAA Regional Final loss to Texas A&M
2010 NCAA Round of 64 win over Fresno State
2010 NCAA Round of 32 win over Georgetown
2010 NCAA Regional Semifinal win Tennessee
2010 NCAA Regional Final win Duke
2010 NCAA National Semifinal loss to Connecticut
2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over Texas-San Antonio
2009 NCAA Round of 32 win over South Dakota State
2009 NCAA Regional Semifinal loss to Louisville
2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over Fresno State
2008 NCAA Round OF 32 loss to Pittsburgh
*all team stats through 3/7
See All Women’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
