Texas Tech basketball: No. 11 Baylor fends off Lady Raiders
The Baylor women's basketball team seemed like it was on its way to a rout Wednesday night at United Supermarkets Arena.
Thanks to a blistering offense, the Bears got out to a double-digit lead in the first half.
Then Texas Tech made things interesting.
The Lady Raiders erased a 13-point halftime deficit, tying the game with 2:35 remaining, but could not overcome the No. 11 Bears — who ended the game on a 9-1 run to leave Lubbock with an 88-80 win.
The result was Tech's third loss in a row, matching its longest skid of the season.
"We're still battling that culture that we're trying to build," Lady Raiders coach Krista Gerlich said. "That winning attitude and that confident mindset that we belong. I think in the first quarter we were on the fence a little bit, probably because of the last week that we had. But I do think that the last three quarters we showed where we're going with our program and with this team."
Reigning Big 12 Player of the Year NaLyssa Smith scored a game-high 23 points for the Bears, doing much of her damage as the team built a big first-half lead. Three other Baylor players notched double digits, including Sarah Andrews (19).
Texas Tech basketball: Lady Raiders welcome NaLyssa Smith, Baylor to United Supermarkets Arena
Andrews shined in crunch time, keeping the Bears ahead as Tech tried to claw its way back in.
"I think she pretty much carried us in the big moments, to be honest," Baylor coach Nicki Collen said.
The Lady Raiders were a different team in the second half, opening with a 12-0 run to cut the deficit to one. That included three 3-pointers and a three-point play.
Tech made its first four 3-point attempts of the third quarter, with Taylah Thomas' trey pulling the team within 60-59. The Lady Raiders were within two points four times in the final 2:22 of the period.
But Baylor countered each time.
Three of the answers were by Andrews, including a late 3-pointer that gave the Bears a 71-66 lead going into the final frame.
Thomas' three-point play tied the game at 79 late and had the home crowd in a frenzy. Smith missed a jumper on the other end, but Caitlin Bickle got the offensive board then Andrews knocked down a 3-pointer with 2:18 remaining.
That started the Bears' final run, in which Tech missed its last three shots.
Baylor scored the first seven points of the game as part of a blazing start. The Bears led 29-14 after the opening quarter, shooting 73.3% from the field. Baylor scored on its last six possessions of the period to balloon a six-point edge to 15 in the final 3:21.
Tech's offense helped out, committing five turnovers that the Bears turned into 12 points.
The Lady Raiders cleaned up things in the second quarter and poured in 24 points. Vivian Gray had nine of her 11 first-half points in the period, shooting 4 of 6. Bryn Gerlich and Rhyle McKinney each scored six, the latter on 2 of 2 attempts from 3-point range.
Earlier coverage: Lady Raiders start road trip against TCU
Gerlich led the team with 13 points at halftime, while McKinney added eight. Gerlich finished with a career-high 22 points and led the team with seven assists. Gray chipped in 21, while Thomas scored 13.
But getting defensive stops was the problem, with Baylor spreading the scoring among six players.
Tech got as close as eight points, when Gerlich hit a pair of free throws with 6:18 left in the second quarter. But the Bears countered with seven unanswered points and maintained at least a 12-point cushion before going into halftime up 51-38.
Baylor got it done from all three levels, scoring 22 first-half points in the paint while also hitting 4 of 6 shots from beyond the arc. The Bears, led by Smith's 14 points, shot 66.7% in the opening half. Jordan Lewis, coming off a 24-point outing, had 10 at the break.
"I think we just talked at halftime and made some adjustments," Krista Gerlich said. "And our kids understood after the second quarter that they could play with them. We talked about, defensively, it had to get better. … If that could've happened in the first quarter, I think it would be a different ballgame."
What's next?
Tech (9-10 overall, 2-6 Big 12) host No. 13 Iowa State on Saturday. The Cyclones (17-3, 6-2) beat Kansas 77-62 on Wednesday.
Baylor (14-4, 4-2) will face West Virginia on the road Saturday. The Mountaineers (10-7, 3-4) have won consecutive games after topping TCU 66-54 on Tuesday.
"There's a lot of basketball left to be played," Krista Gerlich said. "There's a lot of good teams in this conference. And we're battling right there with the best of them."
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Texas Tech basketball: No. 11 Baylor fends off Lady Raiders
