There are no days off in the Big 12 Conference, as even after a death march through the likes of Texas Tech, Arizona, and Kansas, BYU basketball must once again take to the road to challenge yet another Big 12 basketball team, the Baylor Bears.
Recent memory has been favorable to the Cougars in matchups with Baylor, as Kevin Young's squad managed to topple the visiting Bears, featuring a freshman Robert Wright III (yes, that Robert Wright III). This year, Waco plays host to the traveling Cougars, but instead of catching BYU on the upswing like last year's clash, this edition of BYU basketball is crumbling in the weeks leading up to this game.
BYU is losers of four straight games and five of their last six, winning only a home contest against the league-worst Utes of Utah. They entered the season with high expectations, exceeding even that of last year's peak, and those expectations held water after starting the year 16-1 (a lone loss to UConn in Boston), and 4-0 in Big 12 play.
But a team that relies on three players for nearly 80% of its offensive production is bound to suffer on both ends of the floor. Such has been the case as the Cougars' schedule ramps up in difficulty.
Scott Drew's Bears promise another challenge for the tumbling Cougars, despite their 13-10 record. Of Baylor's losses, only four came at the hands of unranked teams. In a contest against the biggest and baddest, however, the Bear's weaknesses were easily visible. Double-digit defeats against Iowa State, Kansas, Arizona, St. John's, Texas Tech, and Houston suggest that the Bears are a hop, skip, and jump separated from the elites.
But that's really not Baylor's fault, and it shouldn't give BYU comfort despite remaining in the AP top 25.
This was a team that had been torn down to its studs thanks to collegiate free agency -- I mean, the transfer portal -- and forced to rebuild from ground zero. Considering this, Coach Drew has done a bang-up job of delivering a competitive team.
BYU has also proved to be out of its depth when facing the best teams in the country. Final scores aside, each of their narrow losses to ranked teams consisted entirely of a come-from-behind effort, where poor play in the opening 20 led to a frantic comeback in the final 20.
The wheels came off on the road against Oklahoma State, where BYU allowed 99 points and a VIP pass to the rim all game long.
If the Cougars want to compete for a Big 12 title and a run at the NCAA Tournament, these are the games that BYU has to win if they want to be taken seriously in March.
In the Rob Wright revenge game, I expect the Cougars to do just that. Watch for increased production from players like Keba Keita, Kennard Davis, Mihailo Boskovic, and Bido Ahmed to take some of the pressure off the Big 3. BYU wins this game, finally righting the ship, but don't be surprised when it's a dogfight to the final buzzer.