By Foster Nicholas | Sports Editor
VJ Edgecombe scored a career-high 30 points, becoming the first Baylor men’s basketball freshman to do so since Keyonte George scored 32 against West Virginia on Jan. 11, 2023, as the Bears rallied back from a 12-point deficit to take down Kansas State, 70-62, Wednesday night at Foster Pavilion.
“I knew we had to win,” Edgecombe said. “I was just doing anything to win, because I knew they were going to key on me when I drive.”
The match marked head coach Scott Drew’s first win over longtime assistant Jerome Tang, who held a 3-0 record against the green and gold heading into his first contest at the Pavilion. The Bears (12-6, 4-3 Big 12) shot 60% in the second half and locked down the Wildcats (7-11, 1-6) with zone defense after falling behind by double-digits.
“VJ showed tonight why he’s so full potential and somebody that the draft boards have so high,” Drew said. “He did a great job playing with poise, and then he was the one guy getting to the rim and finishing for us. That led to [success] for others.”
Edgecombe went 8-of-13 from the floor and teamed up with fifth-year guard Jalen Celestine, who was the only other Baylor player in double figures with 18 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Playing without fifth-year guard Jeremy Roach and redshirt junior guard Langston Love, Celestine delivered 30 minutes as part of a seven-man rotation.
“Everyone on the bench was outstanding, and it took all of that to win,” Drew said. “When we started out 3-for-17, and then we were, I think, 5-for-29, I was wondering, ‘Should we stop doing shoot around?’ Because I don’t know if it’s helping. But we did have really good effort. And then, I thought the second half, the crowd really gave us a great lift, and we were able to string some stops together.”
The Bears missed three layups in the first 1:30 and started 0-for-7 from the floor. Edgecombe, who made a pair of free throws during the stretch, connected on the first field goal with a corner 3-pointer at the 15:53 mark in the first half.
Baylor combatted a 1-for-13 shooting start by forcing five Wildcat turnovers in the first six minutes. After checking into the game, freshman forward Jason Asemota sunk the second triple of the game and crashed the glass for a putback dunk, giving the green and gold their first lead with 12:37 on the clock, 10-8.
“Offensively, he’s done a great job learning two different positions,” Drew said of Asemota. “And probably one of my biggest regrets with TCU was not playing him more because he gave us a great lift, great minutes, and we should have definitely put him in the game against TCU.”
Kansas State bounced back in front despite the Bears holding an 11-3 lead on offensive glass in the first half. The Wildcats broke free down late in the first half with a 10-0 run to take a 25-16 lead with 3:56 in the first half. Baylor was held scoreless for more than five minutes during the streak.
The green and gold closed the half on a 6-0 run, heading to halftime staring down a 30-26 deficit. The Wildcats shot 50% from the floor, while Baylor settled for 25% shooting on 10 more first-half attempts than the visitors.
Edgecombe and Celestine found their groove out of halftime, as 35 of their combined 48 points came in the second half. The duo went 7-for-14 from beyond the arc and fed off the energy of a packed-out crowd.
“I love giving back to the fans,” Edgecombe said. “They spend money to be there. I just want to show them my character, show them that Baylor has a bunch of high-character guys. I just want to interact with them, show them love, because they show me love.”
After Kansas State held its largest lead of the game, 40-28, with 16:16 remaining, the green and gold pieced together a 6-0 run and a 13-3 run to pull themselves back on top. Edgecombe sailed to the rim, converting a high-flying poster to cut the deficit to 45-42 with 9:54 on the clock, forcinb Tang to use a timeout.
Out of the break, Asemota shut down a stale possession by defending the baseline against a hard-nosed drive, forcing a shot clock violation. Asemota flexed his arms, lept into the air and stomped his feet as cheers from fans echoed throughout the arena.
“Jason just loves his teammates. He loves the game. He loves to celebrate for others,” Edgecombe said. “He’s not selfish at all. He’s going to bring energy. Whether he’s playing or not, he’s going to be the same person. I’ve got to give a big shout to Jason because we started off a little slow, and he gave us a spark.”
Minutes later, Celestine strapped a 3-pointer from the left corner to give Baylor its first lead since the 9:01 mark in the first half, 49-48, prompting Tang to use his final timeout. Kansas State made the next bucket, but Edgecombe and Celestine combined for an 11-4 run that gave the green and gold an unbreakable 61-56 advantage with under four minutes to play.
From there, the green and gold hit their last seven shots from the floor, and Edgecombe embraced Kansas State’s foul plan, raising his free throw line to 11-for-12. The success rate at the charity stripe sealed the deal as the Bears mounted a comeback and secured a 70-62 victory.
“Anytime we get to go against Coach Tang, we’re excited,” Celestine said. “Especially since he was 3-0 against us before this game. So this one, for sure, means something.”
The green and gold open a two-game road trip in the Beehive State against Utah (11-7, 3-4 Big 12) at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Jon M. Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
