After senior guard RayJ Dennis powered through contact and ended a scoring drought that lasted just over two minutes, No. 3 seed Baylor men’s basketball was down by 13 with just over six minutes to play.

Ja’Kobe Walter could’ve coasted through his one-and-done season. Baylor could’ve been a pitstop. He didn’t have to care. That’s never been Walter, though — that’s not his style.

In late February, Brownell said on the Tigers’ flagship radio station that Big 12 teams would adjust their nonconference schedules to play softer opponents with the idea that more routs would take place. Thus, those larger-margin victories would boost how Big 12 teams are reflected in metrics like the NET, which is the NCAA Evaluation Tool used by the selection committee.

Inked in familiar territory, head coach Scott Drew takes his Bears (24-10) into the round of 32 for the ninth time in his career, and he holds a 5-3 record in those previous contests. However, Drew’s teams have faced second-round exits in back-to-back seasons. But with all the underlying emotions, Drew said that at the end of the day it’s still basketball at the biggest stage.

As good as No. 3 seed Baylor’s offense was throughout its 92-67 win over No. 14 seed Colgate on Friday afternoon in the FedExForum, the team knows its fate relies on the defensive end.