Four players scored in double figures on Monday night for No. 7 Baylor, which led wire to wire in a 74-68 win over Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla.
LJ Cryer and Dale Bonner each scored 15 points for the Bears (22-8, 11-6 Big 12), who maintained their longshot hopes of a share of the conference title. Jalen Bridges added 14 points, while Adam Flagler chipped in 13 to go along with six assists.
Playing without leading scorer Keyonte George (ankle), Baylor relied on the 3-point arc, knocking down 11 of 31 shots from deep, and put the clamps on the Cowboys for most of the game. Oklahoma State made just 39.7 percent of its field-goal attempts, including a miserable 9 of 32 (28.1 percent) from beyond the arc.
Oklahoma State made a late, desperate run in the final five minutes, cutting a 19-point deficit to four with 35.2 seconds left when John-Michael Wright sank a 3-pointer. But Bonner made 3 of 4 free-throw attempts and Flagler added a pair of foul shots in the last 25.2 seconds to keep the Cowboys at bay.
Wright scored a game-high 17 points for Oklahoma State (16-14, 7-10), which lost its fifth straight game after winning five straight to put themselves in contention for an NCAA Tournament at-large bid. Caleb Asberry and Quion Williams each added 12 points.
Baylor wasted little time establishing its tempo in the first four minutes of the game, grabbing a 12-4 advantage behind a 3-pointer and jumper from Cryer and a pair of layups from Flo Thamba. That put Oklahoma State in an immediate hole.
Try as they might, the Cowboys never really came close to putting real pressure on the Bears. The culprit was poor shooting. They were 12 of 34 (35.3 percent) in the first half, including 4 of 18 (22.2 percent) from beyond the 3-point arc. And their five first-half turnovers became 11 Baylor points.
It was 21-18 before Baylor went on a 14-2 run, capped by consecutive 3-pointers from Flagler, to up its lead to 15 points. Williams managed a late layup that pulled Oklahoma State within 41-30 at halftime.
–Field Level Media
