FLO THAMBA

Matthew Mayer scored a career-high 22 points and defending national champion Baylor opened the NCAA Tournament with an 85-49 victory over Norfolk State.

Jaden Shackelford scored 19 points and had nine rebounds as Alabama toppled No. 4 Baylor 87-78 in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

James Akinjo matched his career high with 27 points, Adam Flagler scored 22 and top-ranked Baylor stretched its national-best winning streak to 20 games with an 84-74 win over Oklahoma.

James Akinjo scored 16 points, LJ Cryer had 10 of his 13 in the second half, and top-ranked Baylor beat No. 8 Iowa State 77-72 for the Cyclones’ first loss.

Scott Drew uttered the far-fetched idea of Baylor being national champion when he was introduced as coach nearly 18 years ago.

The fresh-as-can-be Baylor Bears obliterated wobbly-legged Gonzaga’s march to perfection in an 86-70 runaway in the national title game.

Baylor is the national champion in college basketball.

Baylor then had six consecutive games postponed because of COVID-19 issues in the program, and hadn't even had another full practice until Sunday. With 6-foot-8 forward Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua out of the Baylor lineup, Mark Vital had 15 rebounds and three blocks. “Congrats to Baylor for figuring our a way to win, that’s why they’re No. But to come away get a win and be able to perform like we did, very very pleased with that. Coming into the game second in the Big 12 averaging 17 points, Butler had three turnovers and took only one shot before halftime.

Baylor forward Flo Thamba (0) celebrates a score against Texas during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2021, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)AUSTIN, Texas – Texas played Baylor tougher than most teams have this season. 2 Baylor used a big run to pull away for an 83-69 victory over sixth-ranked Texas on Tuesday night. Texas (11-4, 5-3) was within six points late before Baylor pulled away behind open 3-pointers from Adam Flagler and Mitchell. Instead of rallying the Longhorns, Jared Butler made his free throws and another quick basket put Baylor up by 10.

2 Baylor stayed undefeated with an 84-72 win over Auburn in the Big 12/SEC Challenge on Saturday. Adam Flagler, another transfer, led the Bears with a season-high 19 points, while Butler had 16, MaCio Teague 15 and Mayer 13. He played 34 games at Auburn as a freshman in 2017-18 before transferring to Baylor, and Butler was initially enrolled at Alabama, though he never played for the Crimson Tide. AdBaylor: The Bears trailed for only 61 seconds against Auburn, and have trailed only 45:21 of 640 minutes played this season. Baylor is 7-1 in Big 12/SEC Challenge games, the best record by any team in either league in the annual showdown.