RayJ Dennis scored 18 points before fouling out late and Jalen Bridges and Ja’Kobe Walter sank key free throws in the final minute as No. 18 Baylor escaped with a 75-70 overtime win over Oklahoma State on Saturday afternoon in the Big 12 Conference opener for both teams in Stillwater, Okla.
The Bears (12-2, 1-0 Big 12) won their third straight game despite shooting just 13.3 percent (2 of 15) from beyond the arc. Oklahoma State (8-6, 0-1 Big 12) had a five-game winning streak snapped.
After Dennis missed a jumper with a second to play that sent the game into the extra period, Brandon Garrison’s dunk with 3:10 left in overtime gave the Cowboys a 66-63 lead. The Bears’ Langston Love pumped in a pair of free throws and Dennis hit a layup, the latter with 2:30 remaining, before Oklahoma State tied it again at 67 on Eric Dailey Jr.’s free throw.
Dennis hit a jumper to put the Bears back on top with 1:40 left. That was answered by Bryce Thompson’s two free throws 13 seconds later. Bridges made a pair from the stripe with 1:01 remaining, but the Cowboys’ Javon Small went just one of two after he was fouled with 45 seconds left.
Walter’s two free throws with 15.2 seconds to play pushed the Bears’ advantage to three points. Thompson then missed a 3-pointer with seven seconds left, and Bridges finished off Oklahoma State with a dunk at the buzzer.
Love added 17 points for Baylor, while Yves Missi had 13 points and took 10 rebounds. Bridges scored 10.
Garrison’s 20 points led all scorers, with Small adding 17 and Thompson 15 points for the Cowboys.
The Cowboys led by four points before Baylor ripped off an 8-2 run culminated by a layup by Josh Ojianwuna with 2:06 to play in the half to push the Bears back in front at 27-25. Baylor carried a 31-27 lead into the break.
Small led all first-half scorers with 12 points, while Love paced the Bears with 10 on 5 of 6 shooting from the floor.
–Field Level Media
