Takeaways From Baylor's Close Loss to Iowa State
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The Bears' 11-0 run late wasn't enough to pull off the upset against Iowa State, who was clearly the better team in the Big 12 matchup. Baylor was playing an elite game until the Cyclones got hot and ripped off a 13-2 run in crunch time. Here are some takeaways from the game:
Tounde Yessoufou couldn't carry his weight on offense
Cameron Carr rose to the occasion, shooting 8-15 from the field with zero turnovers. Obi Agbim was facilitating the offense well throughout the first 30 minutes of the game. Tounde Yessoufou had some window dressing for his stat line in the last minutes, but he was not a threat from deep and only had three rebounds.
For the Bears to keep this game close, they needed Tounde to make the Cyclones respect his shot and create space for others. But he was sloppy, taking step-back threes that are not in his game and not getting in position to get rebounds.
Foul trouble and injuries
The depth and size of the Cyclone roster really exposed the limited rotation for the Bears. Carr, Agbim, and Yessoufou never came off the floor for Baylor and were clearly gassed. It was also crucial to have Isaac Williams IV benched early in the first half due to foul trouble.
Whether you like the calls or not, he has to play smarter when you have officials with a quick whistle. Baylor was undermanned today, and Iowa State took advantage, playing a very physical and fast game. The Bears kept up for 30 minutes but lacked the manpower and stamina to hold the Cyclones down.
Michael Rataj is a liability
The senior guard got exposed in his 20 minutes on the court tonight, turning the ball over four times while scoring two points. Unfortunately, he is the Bears' only backup option with the knee injury of Dan Skillings Jr. and Williams IV in foul trouble.
The Bears fell just short today, but they demonstrated resilience and hustle against one of the best teams in the country. Coming up, they will have a one-game homestand against AJ Dybantsa and a reeling BYU team. This is officially a must-win conference game if Baylor basketball is going to keep its tournament hopes alive
More from Baylor on SI
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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.
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