#2 Baylor travels to Oklahoma State
The 2nd ranked Baylor Bears will travel north to Stillwater, Oklahoma to take on the Oklahoma State Cowboys this Saturday afternoon. It will be the Bears first chance to see likely Top-3 NBA draft selection Cade Cunningham, one of the top players in the country who has lived up to expectations. Baylor (13-0, 6-0) looks to take their perfect record on the road against a dangerous Oklahoma State (9-3, 3-3) team.
The Cowboys have already defeated Kansas and Kansas State, two of the five Top-15 teams from the Big 12 conference. They have lost their three Big 12 games by a combined 7 points so this is a team that has been in every game they have played.
With the Cowboys coming off of a program suspension due to Covid-19 issues inside the team, it will be interesting to see who is and who is not available this Saturday afternoon.
SCOUTING REPORT
The star of the show is Cade Cunningham, the #1 player in the 2020 class. Even with high expectations, Cunningham is averaging 18 points, 6 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game. A strong two-way player, it is easy to see why the 6-foot-8 forward is high up on NBA draft boards. He is very efficient (57% True Shooting %, 441st nationally), able to be a playmaker (21.6 assist rate, 343rd), and makes an impact on defense (3.3% block rate, 353rd, while averaging a combined 2.1 blocks and steals per game). He is a 38.8% shooter from deep, hits 81.7% of his free throws, and is a big minute player for the Cowboys.
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Sharing the spotlight is junior guard Isaac Likekele, the only other Cowboy scoring in double digits at 12.1 points per game. At 6-foot-5, Likekele plays so much bigger than his size even with guard skills. He averages 7.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game and is also a very efficient offensive player. Neither are volume shooters from deep at all, but capable if left alone on the perimeter.
In fact, that might be the primary weakness for these Cowboys, their lack of 3-point shooting. They are 286th nationally in percent of points from behind the arc (25.9%), and make just 32.5% of their attempts from 3-point range. They don’t take a lot either, attempting just 20.5 per game (223rd nationally). This is another guard heavy team with guard Avery Anderson (9.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists), Rondel Walker (9.1 points, 2.8 rebounds), and Bryce Williams (8.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists) playing around half of the minutes around their two stars.
What the Cowboys don’t have a lot of is size, with one of freshman Matthew Alexander Moncrieffe (6-foot-7) or twin sophomores Kalib Boone (6-foot-9) and Keylan Boone (6-foot-8) usually out there as a second big man next to Cunningham. Defensively, this makes them active and able to switch on pretty much any screen. They challenge shots well, allowing an effective shooting % of 47% (67th) but it leaves them susceptible on the defensive glass (30% offensive rebound rate, 242nd).
They like to play fast on offense, and slow the opponent down on defense. They are 40th in offensive tempo and 263rd in defensive tempo. This is an offense that takes the first good look, and thrives in transition. Turning the ball over in the open court usually ends in a dunk by Cunningham or Likekele.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
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BAYLOR (13-0, 6-0) at OKLAHOMA STATE (9-3, 3-3)
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Jan. 23, 2021 • 1 p.m. CT
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Stillwater, Okla. • Gallagher-Iba Arena (13,611)
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LIVE STATS: baylorstats.com
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WATCH: CBS
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Talent: Tom McCarthy (pxp), Bill Raftery (analyst)
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LISTEN: Baylor Sports Network | ESPN Central Texas
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Talent: John Morris (pxp) and Pat Nunley(analyst)
NOTES OF THE GAME
This is the 87th meeting between the two Big 12 conference schools, with Oklahoma State having a 55-31 lead all-time in the series. Since Scott Drew has taken over though, the Bears are 19-16 against OSU. That includes a 9-1 record against the Cowboys since 2016 and five straight victories in Stillwater. The Bears have swept the season series 6 times in the last 9-seasons dating back to 2012.
Baylor leads the nation in scoring margin (+24.8) and is top-11 nationally in 3FG% (4th, 42.6), steals (7th, 9.5), scoring (9th, 86.5), effective FG% (7th, 58.6), offensive rebound pct. (6th, 38.4), assists (11th, 18.2), turnover margin (6th, +6.2), turnovers forced (4th, 19.0) and defensive turnover pct. (3rd, 26.7). Baylor is the nation’s only team to win every game by 8+ points this season.
BU is the nation’s only team top-5 ranked in adjusted offensive (4th) and defensive (1st) efficiency. BU has led by at least 10 points in every game this season and has led by 13+ at halftime in 9 of 13.
Baylor looks to start 7-0 in Big 12 play for the 2nd time in program history (first was 13-0 start last season). Baylor’s 21-3 record in Big 12 play over the last 2 seasons is the league’s best record in that span. BU is 11-2 in Big 12 road games over the last 2 seasons (rest of league is 39-69 in B12 road games).