By: Giana Pirolli | Sports Writer
Baylor (11-6, 1-4) traveled to Ames, Iowa to take on Iowa State (10-6, 1-4) in another Big 12 matchup on Saturday.
The effort wasn’t enough to beat the Cyclones, losing 75-65, dropping the Bears to 1-4 in conference play, while Iowa State picked up its first conference win.
The Cyclones scored early in the game with redshirt freshman forward Cameron Lard’s jumper. Baylor took nearly two minutes to score before freshman forward Tristan Clark’s made free throw got the Bears on the board.
After a fast paced game against WVU, Baylor was able to control the tempo for much of the first half against Iowa State while taking its time to make shots late in the shot clock. The Bears held Iowa State for close to three and a half minutes without scoring in the first half.
Freshman guard Lindell Wigginton made two three-pointers within 31 seconds of each other, giving Iowa State a 29-25 lead. Lard came up with a big dunk that helped to elevate Iowa State’s momentum.
Wigginton scored another three points at the end of the first half, giving Iowa State a 34-27 lead over the Bears at halftime.
Going into the second half, Clark’s three-pointer assisted by senior guard Manu Lecomte early on helped the Bears cut Iowa State’s lead to four at 34-30.
Lecomte was taken out of the second half with an unintentional shot to the nose. With Lecomte being out for a little and only scoring nine points against the Cyclones, other players were forced to step up.
Clark led the way for the Bears with 16 points and 15 rebounds, while senior forward Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. had 13 points and seven rebounds and junior guard King McClure also added 13 points.
Senior forward Terry Maston also contributed with eight points and 10 rebounds, seven of them being offensive.
But in the end, it wasn’t enough as Iowa State scored the final six of the game, with Wigginton’s breakaway dunk serving as the exclamation point for the Cyclones.
Both teams struggled from behind the ark, especially in the first half. Baylor was 23 of 67 from the field while Iowa State was 26 of 63. Baylor also led Iowa State in rebounds, 46-41.
Although Iowa State was nine for 28 in three point attempts, it was Wigginton’s effort that helped boost Iowa State to its first conference win. Wigginton totaled 30 points and was five for 10 in three-point shots.
Redshirt junior guard Nick Weiler- Babb also had a high scoring game for the Cyclones, contributing 15 points.
Baylor was able to take care of the ball better than in past games, only committing a total of 12 turnovers against the Cyclones.
The Bears take on Oklahoma State at 8 p.m. Monday at the Ferrell Center while Iowa State plays TCU at 8 pm in Fort Worth.
