Baylor Basketball Keys to Victory over Colorado
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Baylor basketball has a big opportunity in front of them tonight. Eating an elephant starts one bite at a time, and that is the task that Baylor sees as they try and make a run to the top half of the Big 12, and more importantly, the NCAA tournament.
They scored a big win against West Virginia on Saturday, handing the Mountaineers their first loss at home this season.
Now, they’ll return home to face Colorado. Baylor has had chances this season to string together wins after big moments, but failed each time. Here are the keys to getting a victory tonight against the Buffaloes and inching their way toward a winning streak.
Start Fast
Maybe it’s a coincidence, maybe it isn’t, but each of Baylor’s last two wins saw them take an early lead instead of having to play from behind.
In losses to Kansas, TCU, Texas Tech, and Cincinnati, Baylor fell behind early and had to force their way back into the flow of the game.
That’s not a sustainable way to play for any team, especially one that has tried to put together a new roster on the fly the way Baylor has.
Baylor is returning home for the first time January 24, where they lost to TCU, so the home crowd should be rocking once the game is set to begin.
Baylor needs to ride the momentum of its home crowd to start getting points on the scoreboard early and often. Early buckets from Cameron Carr and Tounde Yessofou would go a long way toward getting the team off to a good start.
Fast Carr
Not to quote the song from Tracy Chapman that was redone by Luke Combs, but Cameron Carr is the straw that stirs the drink for these Baylor Bears. He is their best player, and that was the expectation when he transferred to the program this offseason.
Carr was a no-show against Cincinnati, and that was a game that Baylor should have seen as a winnable one. As a result, they lost by 10 on the road. Against West Virginia, Carr was much better and got off to a much better start.
In basketball, with great power, comes great responsibility. Carr has great power as the team’s best player. The responsibility now is to keep his team rolling after getting a big road win just four days ago.
Win the Guard Battle
Colorado’s two leading scorers, Isaiah Johnson, and Barrington Hargress are in the backcourt, and both average more than 13 points-per-game.
Cameron Carr and Tounde Yessoufou are Baylor’s best players, and they also happen to play a lot in the backcourt.
They average more than 17 points-per-game.
That’s an advantage for those that are good at math. Carr and Yessoufou are Baylor’s two best players, and need to play as such for the team to win.
Beating their counterparts on the other end of the floor would go a long way toward getting Baylor a win on the scoreboard.
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Jacob Westendorf is a contributing writer for Baylor Bears on SI. He is also a writer covering the Green Bay Packers for Packers on SI. Westendorf graduated from University of Wisconsin-Green Bay where he earned a degree in communication with an emphasis in journalism and mass media. He worked in newspapers in Green Bay and Rockford, Illinois. He also interned at Packer Report for Bill Huber while earning his degree. In 2018, he became a staff writer for PackerReport.com, and a regular contributor on Packer Report's "Pack A Day Podcast." In 2020, he founded the media company Game On Wisconsin. In 2023, he rejoined Packer Central, which is part of Sports Illustrated Media Group.