Browsing: Sports

Frustrated Southeastern Conference coaches say their league is treated more like a mid-major rather than a BCS conference.

The coaches said Monday the perception all year has been that the SEC was having a down year. The NCAA tournament selection committee apparently felt it was more than perception.

The 2012-13 season for the Baylor men’s basketball team was a rather rocky one. Baylor was able to win some highly impressive games this season but its inconsistency led it to lose some easier games on the schedule.

The Bears handed Kentucky its first home loss in 55 games, which was John Calipari’s first home loss as head coach of the Wildcats.

The Baylor Bears started the season ranked No. 19 in the preseason AP Top 25 poll.

The Bears went into the Big 12 Tournament as the No. 6 seed setting up a rematch with Oklahoma State. The Bears lost a heartbreaker to the Cowboys 74-72 in Kansas City at the Sprint Center. The Bears were down 42-24 at half and battled back in the second half to give Oklahoma State a run for their money. Senior point guard Pierre Jackson had a chance to win the game with a three at the buzzer but the shot deflected off the rim.

With March Madness upon us and spring break over, it is the time of year where everyone gets serious. Students make that final push academically for the perfect GPA before the semester ends, and basketball teams compete for the opportunity to play for a National Championship. This competition is reality for the No. 1 Lady Bears as they try to meet high expectations and advance to the Final Four round in New Orleans for a chance to win consecutive national titles.

Compete is a word very familiar to head women’s basketball head coach Kim Mulkey. In high school, she led her Hammond High School basketball team to four consecutive state championships. She then went on to play point guard at Louisiana Tech University and won two National Championships, the AIAW title in 1981 and the inaugural NCAA title in 1982. When it came to sports, Mulkey knew how to compete.

The No. 1 Lady Bears put on a show on March 9-11, at the Big 12 Tournament as they became the only team in the Big 12 to win the championship for three consecutive years.

The Lady Bears displayed why they are the No. 1 team in the nation, whether it was by blowing a team out, making shots in the clutch or responding every time an opponent tried to come back into the game.

Compared to her teammates, junior guard Odyssey Sims is small, but that doesn’t mean her game is.

Standing at 5 feet 8 inches, the All-American has led the Lady Bears to another successful season. As the top-ranked team in the nation, the Lady Bears charge into the Big 12 and NCAA tournaments. Personal accolades are also on the way for her.

Anyone that has been to a Baylor Lady Bears basketball game has seen the video that plays before player introductions. Head coach Kim Mulkey stands before her players and talks about the expectation that this team will repeat as National Champions.

While the rest of the country stresses its NCAA tournament plans on Selection Monday, the Lady Bears plan to sit back and enjoy themselves.

Sure, there are a few teams in the field that have a good idea where they’ll go. Notre Dame, UConn and Stanford can reasonably expect No. 1 seeds and subregional tournaments closer to home. Dozens more teams know they’ll be in the field, awaiting seeds and confirmation they beat the bubble.

Texas has no teams in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1977.

When the 68-team field was announced Sunday, the Lone Star State was completely shut out. There were no Longhorns, Baylor Bears, Texas A&M Aggies, Red Raiders or Owls.

By Greg DeVries Sports Editor Thursday’s 74-72 loss to No. 14 Oklahoma State puts Baylor in an awkward place. The…

The Baylor Bears lost to the No. 14 Oklahoma State Cowboys on Thursday night 74-72 in the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City’s Sprint Center.

With 25 seconds to play in the second half, the Bears were trailing 72-68. Junior guard Gary Franklin buried a 3-pointer and was fouled on the shot attempt. Franklin calmly sank the free throw to tie the game 72-72 with just 19 seconds remaining.

Kansas State and Kansas tied for the regular-season Big 12 title.

That doesn’t mean they feel very good about themselves entering the league tournament.

The Baylor men’s tennis team showed a valiant effort against the top-ranked Virginia Cavaliers Monday, but ultimately lost 6-1. The Bears (10-3) lost five of their six singles matches, and all losses were three-set thrillers.

“I thought we came out today and really came out swinging,” head coach Matt Knoll said. “We made a match out of it. Unfortunately we weren’t good enough to get a ‘W’, but we’re getting better.”

The No 1. Lady Bears played with a chip on their shoulder in the Big 12 Tournament Championship game after a sloppy game against Oklahoma State on Sunday. Baylor responded in dominating fashion as they went on to win the Big 12 Championship for the third consecutive year after defeating No. 23 Iowa State 75-47.

Tiffani McReynolds turned in the best race of her career in the 60-meter hurdles, but it still wasn’t quite enough to claim a national championship.

Nevertheless, second place isn’t too bad.

The Baylor men’s tennis team lost to the No. 2 UCLA Bruins Sunday, ending its eight-match win streak. The final match count was 6-1.

“They beat us up pretty good,” head coach Matt Knoll said. “We’ve got a lot to learn. There are a lot of opportunities to grow from this and that’s the key. If we take it as learners and make improvements, than it’s been a fantastic day. It’s still March, we got a long way to go and this is a great chance for us to see where we stand.”

The No. 1 Lady Bears defeated Oklahoma State 77-69 in a physical, hard fought battle Sunday in the semi-finals of the Big 12 Tournament with senior guard Jordan Madden coming through in the clutch.

Senior post Brittney Griner led Baylor with a double-double, scoring 30 points. She also had 10 rebounds, seven blocks and three steals. Senior forward Brooklyn Pope had 12 points, seven rebounds, three assist and three steals. Senior forward Destiny Williams scored all 10 of Baylor’s bench points.

In a memorable Senior Night for Baylor basketball, the Bears upset the No. 4 Kansas Jayhawks 81-58 Saturday. The Bears shot 58% from the field.

By Parmida Schahhosseini Sports Writer The No. 1 Lady Bears defeated Kansas State 80-47 Saturday in the American Airline Center…

In a high-intensity event involving a rain delay, sportsmanship warnings and the biggest win of the season for the Baylor men’s tennis team, the No. 38 Bears defeated the No. 5 Kentucky Wildcats 6-1 Friday at the Jim and Nell Hawkins Tennis Facility.

It has been less than a week since the No. 17 Baylor Lady Bears made a statement and upset No. 3 Arizona State 6-2 in the last game of the Wilson DeMarini Invitational on Sunday in Tempe, Ariz. Baylor will play a three-game series against Purdue, beginning with a double header at noon on Saturday and concluding with a game at noon on Sunday in Getterman Stadium.

Baylor track and field is sending 10 athletes and one relay alternate to the 2013 NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark., this weekend.

Altogether, the team is scheduled for six events, including three individual women’s events, two individual men’s events and one men’s relay.

The Baylor Bears host Illinois this weekend for a three-game series. Illinois and Baylor will square off today at 6:35 p.m. and then Saturday the two teams will meet for a double-header. Game one on Saturday is at 2:05 p.m., and the back end of the double-header is scheduled to start at 6:35 p.m. at Baylor Ballpark.

After nearly two months of traveling to different tryouts across the country, former soccer players Lisa Sliwinski and Hanna Gilmore may have found a new home playing professional soccer.

Sliwinski and Gilmore finished their senior seasons with 10 and seven goals respectively.

The Baylor Bears defeated Louisiana Tech in walk-off fashion 5-4 on Wednesday night. In the bottom of the ninth, the Bears were trailing Louisiana Tech 3-4 and scored two runs in the frame to come away with the 5-4 victory.

No one who races sled dogs is going to get filthy rich any time soon, even if they win Alaska’s 1,000-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

The prize for winning the sport’s premier race is only $50,400 and a new 2013 Dodge Ram pickup truck. That doesn’t even cover the annual dog food bill for many competitive mushers, who keep dozens of dogs in professional kennels geared to breed the sturdiest, fastest runners.

The 26th-ranked men’s tennis team will face its toughest test of the season, taking on the No. 5 Kentucky Wildcats at 2:30 p.m. Friday at the Hurd Tennis Center.

This is the start of a three-game stretch in which the Bears (9-1) will take on three top-five teams in three days.

Monday was an emotional night for the No. 1 Lady Bears as the seniors were honored at the end of their last regular season game with a tribute video on senior night. Many fans wore yellow shirts in support of the winningest seniors in school history.

The Baylor Bears defeated the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs 4-2 Tuesday night at Baylor Ballpark. Senior third basemen Cal Towey and senior shortstop Jake Miller both had RBIs for the Bears, and Baylor scored two more unearned runs off of Louisiana Tech errors. Sophomore right-handed pitcher Sean Spicer was the starting pitcher for the Bears, but junior right-handed pitcher Josh Michalec actually ended up earning the win.