Flagler, Akinjo lead No. 3 Baylor past No. 21 Texas 68-61

Updated Feb. 28, 2022 11:44 p.m. ET

Associated Press

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Adam Flagler and James Akinjo each scored 19 points to send No. 3 Baylor over No. 21 Texas 68-61 on Monday night, as the Bears spoiled the final Longhorns men's game in the 45-year-old Frank Erwin Center.

Flagler scored 16 in the second half and made four 3-pointers after halftime, while Akinjo provided the scoring punch late for the Bears (25-5, 13-4 Big 12).

Baylor also got 13 points from Kendall Brown and 12 from Flo Thomba.

Texas (21-9, 10-7) tied it 54-all on Christian Bishop's tough layup in traffic with just over five minutes to play before Flagler answered with a twisting layup, then a 3-pointer to push the Bears' lead to five.

After Texas called a timeout, forward Timmy Allen got too close on a layup and hit the underside of the rim. Another Baylor basket and two free throws from Akinjo pushed the Bears' lead to 63-54 with just under two minutes left.

Baylor held Texas scoreless for nearly five minutes in building the lead.

Bishop and Marcus Carr each scored 13 points to lead Texas.

BIG PICTURE

Baylor: The Bears shot up the rankings from No. 10 to No. 3 after last week's Nos. 1-6 all lost on Saturday. Now it's all about how the defending national champions finish the regular season and perform in the Big 12 Tournament if they hope to get a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. That could include a possible path to the Final Four through the San Antonio regional, just a 3-hour drive from their campus.

Texas: The Longhorns are leaving the Erwin Center after this season for the new $340 million Moody Center being built on campus now. Texas is 549-143 all-time in the building nicknamed “The Drum.” The new arena will be cozier, with basketball seating at about 10,000 compared to the Erwin Center's 16,450.

UP NEXT

Baylor hosts Iowa State on Saturday.

Texas plays at No. 6 Kansas on Saturday.

___

More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25