Baylor quickly made it clear that he would dispute the national title on Monday night.
The Bears had an incredible 29-9 run in the 12:48 finals of the first half to take the lead at halftime in a comfortable 78-59 victory over Houston in Saturday’s Men’s Final Four semifinals.
Houston was five points behind Baylor on 16-11 with less than 13 minutes to go. Baylor’s lead was 10 less than two minutes later and increased to 20 in the next 10 minutes. Two baskets in the final minute of the first half gave Baylor a 45-20 lead at half-time and drained the game’s drama.
If Houston wanted a chance to defeat Baylor, he needed to do what he does best. Cougars are one of the best offensive rebound teams in the country and rebound is one of Baylor’s (relative) weaknesses. But rebounding doesn’t do much good when you can’t put points on the board – even if you’re hitting your opponent’s rebound.
Houston kicked 27% of the field in the first half and was hit by nine.
Yes, it was that kind of night for the cougars.
“I thought we went in really focused and the guys came and executed the game plan,” Baylor coach Scott Drew told CBS after the game. “God blessed us, we made a few shots and we knew Houston would never leave. They are very well trained, very disciplined, and the second half is very proud of our guys for never leaving that race that put the game in danger.”
Baylor led by Jared Butler
Jared Butler was a big part of Baylor’s run in the first half. The Big 12 Player of the Year had 17 points in the first 20 minutes and was 4 out of 5 behind the 3-point line.
Those 17 points in the first half were more than Butler had scored in any of the first four games of the NCAA tournament so far. Butler’s best-scoring game in the tournament was a 16-point game against Wisconsin. And he entered the Final Four shooting only 25% in three, thanks to a combination of 2 of 17 shots against Villanova and Hartford.
With Butler on point – he kicks more than 40% from the depths – Baylor is a worthy opponent for Gonzaga.
The passing of the bears was phenomenal
Houston’s strengths are recovery and defense. Which is why it wasn’t crazy to think that the Cougars could stay with the Bears for a while or even win the game at once. The spread was of two possessions.
Baylor ensured that the game was not a dispute thanks to his pass. The Bears threw the ball around the court with such speed and precision that players like Butler had many open kicks. No university defense in the country would be able to stop Baylor’s ball from moving on Saturday. Baylor ended the game with 23 assists in 29 field goals.
Sasser shines, other Houston stars fight
Houston won a great game from Marcus Sasser, but didn’t get much more from Quentin Grimes and DeJon Jarreau.
While Jarreau was the first highlight of the game when he jumped Butler in the first possession, he ended up with just six points. Grimes, on the other hand, went without goals in the first half. Some production by the ex-recruit five stars and transfer from Kansas could have kept Houston with Baylor. Instead, the Cougars’ top scorer had 0-of-5 on the ground and looked hesitant most of the time.
Sasser, however. alone it prevented the game from breaking even further in the beginning. He had a remarkable 17 of Houston’s 20 points in the first half thanks to five trios.
Baylor heading for first national title
Baylor has been in the national championship game once. This happened in 1948, when the Bears beat Washington and Kansas State to advance to the title game against Kentucky. But the Wildcats won that game 58-42.
If this Bears team plays something similar to what they played on Saturday night, they will not lose by 16 points on Monday.
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