By Max Calderone | Sports Writer
The Baylor Lady Bears kept rolling Saturday afternoon, notching their 18th consecutive win after defeating the Texas Tech Lady Raiders 90-44 in Lubbock.
Career games from sophomore guard Juicy Landrum and senior forward Dekeiya Cohen were able to keep No. 3 Baylor (21-1, 11-0) undefeated in conference play.
Landrum, who made her first start of the season, led the way with 20 points on eight of 10 shooting. Senior guard Kristy Wallace tallied 16 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. Junior center Kalani Brown added 11 points and seven boards of her own.
Baylor shot 52 percent from the field, drilling eight of 15 tries from deep. The Lady Bears held the Lady Raiders to just 19 makes, shooting a poor 27 percent from the floor.
Brown knocked down the first basket of the game for the Lady Bears, who went on a 15-0 run to close the first quarter. Sophomore forward Lauren Cox sank a lay-up with 4:53 remaining in the first to begin the run and Landrum hit a three with two seconds left to end the period with her team ahead 21-6.
“We don’t take anyone lightly,” Brown said to reporters before the game. “It doesn’t matter what they’re ranked in the league, the whole Big 12 is good and full of talent.”
The Lady Raiders (7-15, 1-10) were able to hang around with Baylor in the second quarter, scoring 17 points, including seven from senior forward Brielle Blaire. But they couldn’t slow down the Lady Bears’ offense as the lead swelled to 42-23 at the break.
Landrum scored seven of Baylor’s last 11 points of the second quarter, shooting a perfect 4-4 from the field in the first half, including two of her four total makes from downtown.
Cohen made all four of her free-throw attempts in the first half and added two jumpers to give her eight points before halftime. She finished with 19 points, a career-high.
Baylor and Texas Tech last played each other on Dec. 31 in Waco and the Lady Bears dominated in a 97-49 victory. Cohen and Brown each picked up double-doubles.
After shooting 55 percent in the first half, the Lady Bears opened the third quarter with six straight points, causing Texas Tech to call a timeout with the score at 48-23. Following the stoppage, Cohen and Cox knocked down two jumpers each to put Baylor up by 26.
The Lady Bears continued to pour it on, as Landrum and freshman guard Alexis Morris drilled back-to-back triples to increase the lead to 64-30 with 2:06 remaining in the third. Baylor finished the quarter on another large run, this time 17-0.
It was smooth sailing from there, as freshman guard Moon Ursin got on the scoresheet, knocking down a three-pointer to put Baylor up by 50 with 5:43 left in the fourth quarter. All Lady Bears players made at least two shots from the field.
Cohen scored five of Baylor’s last six to clinch their 11th conference win of the year.
The 46-point victory is Baylor’s 21st double-digit win of the season. None of its games have finished within 10 points.
“We’re good with being close, we’re good with it being a larger margin,” said Kim Mulkey, Baylor head coach following the Lady Bears’ game against Oklahoma State. “Just win, just win.”
Neither sophomore guard Natalie Chou nor freshman guard Didi Richards appeared in the game for Mulkey, whose plan was to rest the duo.
“Going into the game, that [was] the plan, to rest some kids,” Mulkey said pregame.
Baylor currently sits atop the Big 12 Conference standings, two games ahead of Texas (18-4, 9-2). Next, the Lady Bears will take on the Oklahoma Sooners Monday at 8 p.m. at the Ferrell Center.
