Baylor Drops Another Heartbreaker to Arizona, and Receives a Sobering Reminder
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Baylor basketball had a golden opportunity in front of them on Tuesday night with the second ranked Arizona Wildcats coming into Waco in a primetime matchup.
Baylor’s margin for error is gone. They essentially have to run the table in order to find their way into the postseason.
Arizona was a starting point for that, and Baylor looked like they knew the assignment, as they raced out to a seven point lead at halftime.
The Inevitable
Of course, if you’ve followed Baylor’s season this year, you knew that lead was not going to last, and they were likely to find themselves needing to make up a deficit late in the game.
Ultimately, a raucous crowd, some inspired performances from role players, and the scoring prowess of Cameron Carr was not enough as Baylor fell at home against the Wildcats, who were missing one of their best players.
Tuesday night’s game was about more than just Baylor’s chances of making the tournament. Anyone who has looked at this season with an objective eye knew that making the tournament was a long shot, at best coming into the final stretch of the season.
Instead, this game was a reminder of what this program was in the not-so-distant past.
Baylor vs Arizona was a matchup of an unranked foe against a powerhouse. A classic David versus Goliath storyline that is beloved throughout this country.
Baylor against Arizona should not be a scrappy underdog against a top team. That should be a heavyweight fight similar to the ones we saw on Saturday evening with Michigan taking on Duke.
Baylor used to be in that category. They typically have lived in the top of the coaches poll, and were at minimum on the fringe of being top tier contenders.
Arizona is that. They are one of the best teams in the country.
Missing a top player? No big deal.
Playing on the road against a desperate team? Who cares.
Trailing at halftime? Yippie.
Arizona just threw together a 50-burger in the second half to stave off the Bears in Waco.
They displayed the type of championship guts and playmaking that used to dominate Baylor’s program, but has been noticeably missing throughout the course of the season.
Maybe it’s an untimely turnover, or poor shot selection. Maybe it’s giving up an offensive rebound in a key spot.
Too Many Mistakes
Maybe it’s missing free throws and point blank layups.
Whatever the mistake is to be made, this team has found out how to make it far too often. It’s one of the biggest reasons they’ve fallen from the ranks of the elite, and will likely hear chants of “NIT” in all of their road games throughout the rest of the season.
Baylor fought. That was admirable. They came close against Arizona. That’s also admirable considering how this season has gone.
The reality, however, is there are expectations when Baylor steps onto the floor. The 2026 team has not come anywhere close to meeting those throughout the year.
There are no moral victories. There no participation trophies.
Just another loss to digest, and the prognosis of cleaning out their lockers in the coming weeks in what has been one of the most disappointing seasons in recent memory.
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.