Women's Basketball

Baylor Edges Texas, Advances to Big 12 Championship Final

Game 7: No. 1 Baylor 66, No. 5 Texas 55 
Box Score - Notes - Quotes - Photos

The No. 1-seed Baylor is headed to their 10th-straight championship final after knocking off the No. 5 seed Texas Longhorns, 66-55, in the semifinal round of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship.  
 
Baylor dominated the paint in the first half, but turnovers for the Lady Bears kept the Longhorns within striking distance. Big 12 Player of the Year NaLyssa Smith had 14 first-half points and gave Baylor a seven-point lead heading into the locker room.
 
The Longhorn’s lost their superstar player Charli Collier to early foul trouble, and she finished the game with three points and only 16 minutes played.
 
Baylor’s game plan was to find easy shots inside the paint and keep Collier off of the court. They stuck to that game plan for the second half as they continued to pound the ball inside and drew two more fouls on to Collier. The Lady Bears only attempted four 3-pointers the entire game and shot 42 percent from the field.
 
In the second half, both teams continued to fire back-and-forth, but the slow start along with Collier’s foul trouble drove Texas away from Baylor’s lead. Texas guards Celeste Taylor and Joanne Allen-Taylor kept the Longhorns within single digits most of the game, but late second half turnover totals continued to grow.
 
Taylor led her team with 22 points, knocking down big shots throughout the contest, and Allen-Taylor’s 18 points was the most she has ever scored against the Lady Bears. Junior center Lauren Ebo finished the game with 11 rebounds and played a large role in keeping the Longhorns in the game when Collier got into foul trouble.
 
The Lady Bears finished the game with four players in double figures, NaLyssa Smith led the team with 21 points and a double-double. Smith’s partner in crime in the paint Queen Egbo finished with 18 rebounds and 10 points.
 
Baylor’s guard production from Moon Ursin and Dijonia Carrington was a factor in freeing up space in the paint. Ursin finished with 19 points, knocking down 50 percent of her shots, while Carrington had 14 points -- eight of them in the second half.
 
Kim Mulkey is now headed to her 15th Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship final. Mulkey currently holds the most championships amongst coaches in tournament history.
 
No. 1 Baylor will take on the winner of No. 2 West Virginia and No. 3 Oklahoma State tomorrow at Noon CT on ESPN2.