Thanks to a huge performance from star freshman Cade Cunningham, Oklahoma State has reached a spot in the Big 12 championship game.
The Cowboys, behind a 25-point night from Cunningham, knocked off top-seeded Baylor 83-74 on Thursday night at the Sprint Center in Kansas City.
The two teams were in a dog fight for most of the contest on Friday, and Baylor held a five-point lead with just less than six minutes to go. With just more than two minutes to go, however, Oklahoma State made its stand.
The Cowboys ended the night on a 10-2 run over the last 2:33 of the game, and held Baylor scoreless for more than two minutes in that stretch to take the nine-point win.
Cunningham dropped 25 points in the win while shooting 7-of-16 from the field. Avery Anderson added 20 points, and Rondel Walker added 11 off the bench. Macio Teague led Baylor with 17 points and six rebounds, and Jared Butler finished with 16 points.
Oklahoma State will square up with Texas in the title game on Saturday. Texas was set to take on Kansas in their semifinals game on Thursday night, however Kansas had to pull out of the tournament after a positive COVID-19 test. Its status in the NCAA tournament is now in question.
Baylor should still keep No. 1 seed
Though the Bears fell short of the conference title game, they should still keep a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
Baylor lost just twice this season, the first coming at the hands of No. 11 Kansas. That loss, however, came just after a lengthy coronavirus shutdown — and four days after a near-loss to Iowa State, who didn’t win a single game in conference play.
While it will undoubtedly depend on how the Big Ten tournament shakes out — both Illinois and Michigan held No. 1 seeds in ESPN’s latest Bracketology, and Iowa and Ohio State held No. 2 seeds — the Bears’ spot should be safe.
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