WACO, Texas -- Jared Butler said he wasn't trying to make up for the absence of Baylor's second-leading scorer behind him as the top-ranked Bears chased the Big 12 record for consecutive wins.
Maybe it just seemed that way when the junior guard connected on a three-pointer just 21 seconds in and hit three more from long range before halftime.
Butler scored 16 of his 21 points in the first half, and Baylor never trailed while matching Kansas for the longest winning streak in the Big 12 at 22 games with a 70-59 victory over No. 14 West Virginia on Saturday.
The Bears (23-1, 12-0 Big 12) cruised without MaCio Teague, a junior whose streak of 90 consecutive games ended because of a right wrist injury. Butler and Teague are the only two Baylor players averaging 10 or more points a game.
"I told myself that I can't change my game," said Butler, who was 8 of 11 overall and 5 of 7 from long range. "I can't try to force shots now that he's not playing. I didn't try to change my game, but luckily it just worked out that way."
Baylor led by 19 in the first half and answered a scoreless stretch of nearly four minutes before halftime by starting the second half on a 20-3 run for its biggest lead at 53-25.
Taz Sherman scored a season-high 20 points for the Mountaineers (18-7, 6-6), who had 11 of their season high-tying 22 turnovers in the first 12 minutes and shot 35% in a third consecutive loss.
"We have this incredible fascination for dribbling the ball," Coach Bob Huggins said. "I haven't seen a game yet where you get points for that. You're not going to win turning it over 22 times."
Matthew Mayer had a flying dunk off a nifty spin move on the baseline and finished with 13 points and eight rebounds for the Bears, who matched Kansas' record run in the Big 12. The Jayhawks started 22-0 in 1996-97, the league's first season.
Davion Mitchell scored 13 points with a game-high nine assists -- two more than West Virginia had as a team -- as Baylor extended the longest winning streak in school history.
"I think it's a tribute to the players, their belief," Coach Scott Drew said. "And we've been operating under joy ... focusing one game at a time and we'll keep doing that."
NO. 2 GONZAGA 89,
PEPPERDINE 77
MALIBU, Calif. -- Filip Petrusev had 27 points and 12 rebounds and Corey Kispert scored 19 as second-ranked Gonzaga defeated Pepperdine to extend its winning streak to 18 games.
The Bulldogs (26-1, 11-0 West Coast) have won 39 consecutive regular-season WCC games, currently the longest streak of its kind in the nation.
Colbey Ross scored 23 points and Kameron Edwards had 22 for Pepperdine (14-13, 7-6).
CLEMSON 77,
NO. 5 LOUISVILLE 62
CLEMSON, S.C. -- Johnny Newman III had a career-high 23 points and Clemson used a strong defensive first half to send No. 5 Louisville to its second consecutive defeat.
The Tigers (13-12, 7-8 ACC) held the Cardinals (21-5, 12-3) to their lowest first-half output this season as they led 31-14 at the break and limited the ACC's leading scorer Jordan Nwora to five points.
NO. 6 DAYTON 71, UMASS 63
AMHERST, Mass. -- Jalen Crutcher scored 11 consecutive points during a two-minute span and got 15 of his 17 points in the second half to lead the No. Flyers (23-2, 12-0 Atlantic 10) over the Minutemen (10-15, 4-8).
NO. 7 DUKE 94,
NOTRE DAME 60
DURHAM, N.C. -- Vernon Carey Jr. scored 21 points, Tre Jones added 19 and No. 7 Duke used its high-intensity man-to-man defense to beat Notre Dame.
The victory vaulted the Blue Devils (22-3, 12-2 ACC) into sole possession of first place in the ACC standings, one-half game ahead of Louisville.
The Irish (15-10, 6-8) had success when they were able to get the ball inside to Juwan Durham, whose 21 points marked a career high.
NO. 8 FLORIDA STATE 80,
SYRACUSE 77
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- MJ Walker scored 16 points, including five three-pointers, as the No. 8 Seminoles (21-4, 11-3 ACC) held off Syracuse (14-11, 7-7).
NO. 9 MARYLAND 67,
MICHIGAN STATE 60
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Anthony Cowan scored 11 of his 24 points in the final two-plus minutes, helping No. 9 Maryland beat Michigan State with a strong finish.
The Terrapins (21-4, 11-3 Big Ten) scored the final 14 points after trailing by seven with 3:24 left. Cowman had the last 11 points on 3 three-pointers and two free throws. The Spartans (17-9, 9-6) trailed by 15 points in the first half.
PROVIDENCE 74,
NO. 10 SETON HALL 71
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Alpha Diallo scored a career-high 35 points to lead Providence past No. 10 Seton Hall.
Luwane Pipkins added 13 points for the Friars. The Pirates (18-7, 11-2 Big East) got 27 points from Myles Powell, while Quincy McKnight added 14 points, though he was just 1 for 8 from the field. Seton Hall (14-12, 7-6) has dropped back-to-back games for the second time this season.
NO. 13 PENN STATE 77,
NORTHWESTERN 61
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Lamar Stevens scored 23 points to lead the Nittany Lions (20-5, 10-4) over the Wildcats (6-18, 1-3) in Big Ten action.
NO. 16 COLORADO 69,
OREGON STATE 47
CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Tyler Bey scored 21 points to lead No. 16 Colorado to a victory at Oregon State.
The Buffaloes (20-6, 9-4) moved into sole possession of the first place in the Pac-12 Conference.
GEORGETOWN 73,
NO. 19 BUTLER 66
INDIANAPOLIS -- Terrell Allen tied a career high with 22 points, including key baskets on back-to-back possessions late, and Georgetown endured on the road without its top two scorers to knock off No. 19 Butler.
The Hoyas (15-10, 5-7 Big East) were missing injured starters Mac McClung and Omer Yurtseven, but Allen hit 9 of 14 field goal attempts.
Kamar Baldwin and Jordan Tucker led Butler (19-7, 7-6) with 17 and 16 points, respectively.
SMU 73,
NO. 20 HOUSTON 72, OT
DALLAS -- Emmanuel Bandoumel hit an off-balance three-point shot with 30 seconds remaining in overtime to give SMU the upset.
Houston freshman Marcus Sasser made three free throws with three seconds left to send the game to overtime. Sasser reached a career-high 26 points to lead all scorers. He scored half of them in the second half to rally Houston (20-6, 10-3 AAC) from an 11-point halftime deficit.
Tyson Jolly led SMU (18-6, 8-4) with 20 points. Isiaha Mike and Feron Hunt scored 15 each, and Kendric Davis had 10.
RUTGERS 72,
NO. 22 ILLINOIS 57
PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Ron Harper Jr. hit all five of his three-pointers and scored 27 points and Rutgers remained unbeaten at home, sending the No. 22 Illini to their fourth consecutive loss.
Gio Baker and Akwasi Yeboah added 12 points apiece and Myles Johnson had 11 rebounds as the Scarlet Knights (18-8, 9-6 Big Ten) improved to a nation's-best 17-0 at home. Alan Griffin had 14 points to lead the Illini (16-9, 8-6).
NO. 23 CREIGHTON 93,
DePAUL 64
OMAHA, Neb. -- Ty-Shon Alexander matched his season high with 24 points in one of his best all-around games, and No. 23 Creighton blew out DePaul.
Creighton (20-6, 9-4 Big East) won its 12th conseuctive in the series and has beaten DePaul in 15 of 16 meetings since joining the Big East.
OKLAHOMA STATE 73,
NO. 24 TEXAS TECH 70
STILLWATER, Okla. -- Jonathan Laurent and Kalib Boone each scored 16 points as Oklahoma State registered its first victory over a ranked opponent this season.
Isaac Likekele added 14 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals for the Cowboys (13-12, 3-9 Big 12). Kevin McCullar and Davide Moretti each scored 15 points and Jahmiús Ramsey added 14 for Texas Tech (16-9, 7-5).
TOP 25 WOMEN
NO. 2 BAYLOR 69,
OKLAHOMA STATE 42
STILLWATER, Okla. -- Tea Cooper scored 15 points to help lead No. 2 Baylor to a dominant victory over Oklahoma State.
It was the 16th consecutive victory for Baylor (23-1, 12-0 Big 12) and its 53rd consecutive Big 12 regular season win, as well as the 599th of Coach Kim Mulkey's career. Vivian Gray scored 19 points to lead Oklahoma State (14-11, 5-8).
NO. 15 GONZAGA 53,
SANTA CLARA 46
SPOKANE, Wash. -- Jenn Wirth scored 11 points and grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds as Gonzaga clinched a tie for its 16th West Coast Conference title with a victory over Santa Clara. Nine players played and scored and eight played at least 14 minutes for the Bulldogs (25-2, 14-1).
NO. 21 SOUTH DAKOTA 77,
TULSA 73
TULSA -- Chloe Lamb scored a career-high 24 points and South Dakota jumped to a big early lead and held on. The Coyotes (25-2, 14-0 Summit League) won their 14th in a ro as the Golden Eagles (12-14, 7-5) used a 26-14 advantage in the second quarter to close within 35-31.
NO. 24 MISSOURI STATE 88,
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 57
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Elle Ruffridge had 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting, including four three-pointers, and Missouri State got revenge for its only Missouri Valley Conference loss. Alexa Willard added 13 points and Jasmine Franklin scored 10 points and a career-high-matching 14 rebounds for the Bears (21-3, 11-1).
Sports on 02/16/2020