No. 2 Baylor earns 60th home win in row
WACO, Texas – Nalyssa Smith matched a career high with 30 points on 12-of-15 shooting to led six players scoring in double figures for No. 7 Baylor in a 136-43 win over Northwestern State on Friday, extending the Lady Bears’ national-best home winning streak to 60 games.
The 136 points was four short of the school record set four years ago.
Hannah Gusters, a 6-foot-5 freshman center, added 22 points on 11-of-14 shooting and Queen Egbo 21 points on 10-of-15 shooting for the Lady Bears (6-1), who shot 67.9% overall (57 of 84).
Dijonia Carrington added 13 points while Jordyn Oliver and Sarah Andrews each had 12. Oliver also had 10 assists, while Caitlin Bickle had 11 rebounds.
All 11 Baylor players scored and had rebounds, including UCLA transfer Jaden Owens (three points, one rebound in 10 minutes) in the sophomore guard’s debut for the Lady Bears. Gusters was the only player who didn’t have one of their single-game record 45 assists.
Tristen Washington had 12 points on four 3s to lead Northwestern State (0-3). The Lady Demons made 10 3s but were only 4-of-19 shooting (21.1%) inside the arc, with their first made twopoint basket not coming until more than 2 minutes into the second half.
Baylor scored the game’s first six points on three field goals in the opening minute, and already had a 23-point lead after the first quarter. They led 7421 at halftime, and had 102 points after a 3-pointer by Carrington just before the end of the third quarter.
The Lady Bears came up just short of their previous records of 77 first-half points and total points set in a 140-32 win over Winthrop four years ago. They outscored Northwestern State 86-2 in the paint, had a 33-0 advantage in fastbreak points.
The Lady Demons had 29 turnovers that led to 48 Baylor points, and the Lady Bears outrebounded them 56-15, including 24 offensive boards.