By Carson Vercoe | Sports Writer
Baylor women’s basketball’s offense hummed in a 70-point win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Sunday, recording 112 points. The Bears followed that stellar performance with an even more impressive one Thursday night against Prairie View A&M.
Baylor (4-0) put up the second-most points under head coach Nicki Collen, scoring 121 points on 65.7% shooting as the Bears flew past the Panthers (1-1) 121-43. The mark trails only to the 124-44 victory over McNeese State in 2023.
Junior forward Kayla Nelms led the Bears with 25 points on 10-for-11 shooting and three three-pointers. Longtime teammate and fifth-year forward Kyla Abraham knew Nelms had the ability to perform at that level.
“Me and Kayla did play AAU together, so I have seen her have similar games to this,” Abraham said. “I was just really proud of her; this was the confidence she needed.”
Senior forward Reese Ross was not too far behind Nelms, finishing with 19 points. Collen felt Ross provided a spark for the Bears.
“I thought Reese had a great game,” Collen said. “She really got us going; her energy on the glass was important early.”
The Bears got things rolling right from the tip-off with a 9-0 lead. Baylor shot an effective 75% from the field, with threes from senior guard Taliah Scott and junior guard Tianna Thompson. The quick offense forced Prairie View to call a timeout only two minutes into the game.
Baylor continued to do well on both ends, outscoring the Panthers 28-12 after the early lead.
The Bears finished the quarter shooting 57.9% from the field. Baylor found success getting to the hoop and drawing fouls, shooting 9-for-10 from the charity stripe. Scott led the charge offensively with seven of the Bears’ 37 first-quarter points.
Baylor’s offense slowed in the second quarter, turning the ball over eight times in ten minutes. The Bears finished with 19 turnovers, something Collen feels can’t happen against better opponents like No. 3 USC next week.
“We can’t turn the ball over 19 times, or we’ll lose by 30,” Collen said. “We’re going to have to take care of the basketball against them because they turn turnovers into layups.”
The Bears still managed 20 points on 53.3% shooting in the quarter, with Ross accounting for 10.
Baylor held on to its large lead going into halftime largely because of its defense. The Bears held the Panthers to 28 points and forced 16 turnovers, along with eight steals and a block.
The Bears returned to that high-caliber offense in the third quarter.
Baylor added 32 points on 11-for-16 shooting while cutting turnovers down to four in the quarter. The scoring came from a variety of sources, with seven players tallying points. Ross feels the team’s multiple scoring threats create opportunities on offense.
“We have such a unique and dynamic team,” Ross said. “Everybody can shoot, score, pass, dribble and bring a little bit of everything, so that ability allows for a lot of assists.”
The Bears finished the night with a season high of 31 assists on 44 made shots.
Senior guard Skylar Jones led the quarter with eight points on 3-for-4 shooting. She consistently attacked the rim, picking up two and-ones.
The quarter took a chippy turn as junior center Lorena Awou and Prairie View forward Awa Jawara got into a scuffle. The play resulted in a technical for both sides and Awou’s ejection. She left the game one rebound shy of 100 career rebounds despite entering the game with 98.
The fourth quarter saw much of the same action as the Bears continued to play both sides of the ball efficiently. Baylor outscored Prairie View 32-5 to secure the win.
The win makes it 17-0 for the Bears against Prairie View, with the win streak extending back to Baylor’s first game of its inaugural 1974-75 season against the Panthers when they won 83-30.
Baylor plays its final game of the five-game home stand against East Texas A&M at 2 p.m. Sunday at Foster Pavilion.
