Baylor vs Arizona State Tactical Breakdown: 3 Ways Bears Can Beat Sun Devils
In this story:
The Baylor Bears have finished their regular season play and will travel to Kansas City, Missouri, for the Phillips 66 Big 12 Tournament.
Their first task will be the Arizona State Sun Devils, who finished with the same regular-season record as the Bears at 16-15, with a 5-9 record in the Big 12.
The Bears defeated the Sun Devils at home 73-68 two weeks ago and will be 2.5-point favorites in the matchup tomorrow morning. Here are three keys to beating the Sun Devils.
Pick their pocket
Arizona State averages about 12 turnovers a game; the Bears proved their ability to expose a sloppy offense in their win against Utah.
Tounde Yessoufou has a knack for picking off passes and getting fast break points. He and Cameron Carr need to use their length to spoil Sun Devil possessions.
If the Bears' defense can find a way to generate 15 turnovers, Baylor ought to be in the next round.
Hit the deep ball
Yes, this is a given, but the Bears are going to get open looks against ASU tomorrow; it's just a matter of hitting them.
Shooting 40% from three can cover a multitude of errors across the floor. In their last win against the Sun Devils, the Bears lost the turnover battle, were out-rebounded, and shot terribly from the charity stripe (6-13).
But they shot 9-20 from behind the arc, led by Obi Agbim in the clutch, squeezing them past the Sun Devils.
Keep the legs fresh
While the first priority is to win the game, Baylor Basketball is hoping to have a long week of hoops in front of them.
It would be ideal if the Bears could win this game while preserving some energy for a new test the next day.
The Bears are athletic enough to control the pace of the game, and with how they have been playing as of late, there is no reason that this game should be anywhere near as stressful as the last time these teams met.
If they get out to a handsome lead with 10 minutes of play left, it will allow Scott Drew to rest his starters and keep Yessoufou and Carr fresh for the next game.
The Baylor Bears are still in search of a couple of signature wins that could squeeze them into the NCAA tournament, which they haven't missed since 2018.
A win against the Sun Devils will leave the squad primed to finally prove itself against the likes of Iowa State and Texas Tech.
Bennett is an undergrad student at Baylor University, studying journalism on the sports track. He is from the DFW area and grew up playing and watching sports, which inspired him to pursue sports writing.
Follow bennettparker22