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Janaé Adams and Deja Harrison, Rhoden Fellows
Oklahoma City – Top-seeded Baylor and No. 2-seed Iowa State will meet in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship on Monday evening at Chesapeake Energy Arena. The 8 p.m. CT game is televised nationally on FOX Sports 1.
Baylor defeated No. 5-seed Kansas State, 88-60, while Iowa State knocked off No. 3-seed Texas 75-69. Baylor swept Iowa State in the regular season series with an 84-69 win on Jan. 23 and a 73-60 victory on Feb. 23. The Lady Bears (30-1) and Cyclones (25-7) are meeting for the second time in the Championship. BU won the previous matchup with a 75-47 win on March 11, 2013, in Dallas.
Baylor is making its ninth consecutive Big 12 Championship title game appearance. BU’s lone loss this season was a 68-63 setback in December. Baylor entered the competition averaging a top-10 scoring offense of 80.9 points per game while holding its opponents to a scoring average of 54.7.
“Most of the time when we do things it's usually more defense than offense,” said Baylor head coach Kim Mulkey about the team’s preparation for Iowa State. “I know where we can score points.”
Iowa State is averaging 79.8 points per game, while its opponents are limited to 63.8 points per game. The Cyclones are making their sixth overall appearance and the first since 2013.
A lot of teams know that Baylor is an exceptional team and will be even more competitive in the finals. The Big 12 is a place for competitive teams to go head to head.
“If you want to play the best teams then that's what this league has done and every one of us is trying to beat Baylor,” said Bill Fennelly, Iowa State head coach.
This will be the third time that the duo will face off this season and Iowa’s guard, Bridget Carleton, understands what their team is getting into since Baylor is the top-ranked team in the country.
“They have an unbelievable post presence and they have guards who can knock down jumpers,” Carlton said. “Hopefully, tomorrow is our time to put together forty minutes and give it our best shot.”
Fans can watch the game on FS1 or the FOX Sports App. Additionally, live stats and the postgame press conferences will be available at Big12Sports.com.