Lecomte helps Baylor turn back Oklahoma State 67-56
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) Manu Lecomte scored 18 points and added four assists to help lead Baylor to a 67-56 victory over Oklahoma State on Tuesday night.
Nuni Omot had 14 points and five rebounds and Tristan Clark scored 10 points in just 16 minutes of play for Baylor (14-10, 4-7 Big 12). Mark Vital just missed a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds, as the Bears claimed their first road win of the season.
Kendall Smith scored 15 points with four rebounds and Mitchell Solomon had 13 points and five rebounds for Oklahoma State (14-10, 4-7). The Cowboys, whose 56 points are one off their season low (in a 72-55 loss to Texas A&M back on Nov. 20), are now 1-4 in their last five outings.
Baylor blew open a close game late in the first half, and built a 14-point lead early in the second. Oklahoma State battled its way back to within 57-52 with 5:21 left when Kendall Smith sank a 3-pointer from the right corner, but that was as close as the Cowboys would get.
BIG PICTURE
Baylor: After losing four in a row, the Bears have now won two straight and look like a team that is improving. Baylor's depth continued to play a major role in its success, as it outscored the Cowboys' bench 22-6. That gave the Bears a ridiculous 95-14 edge in bench scoring over their past three games.
Oklahoma State: Another home game, another big second-half deficit. The Cowboys have made a frustrating habit of falling behind in the second half of home games, before mounting stirring comeback attempts. They won three of those in a row, pulling out inspirational victories over Iowa State, Texas and then-No. 4 Oklahoma, before falling short against TCU on Jan. 30. This time, again, after digging a 14-point hole early in the second half, Oklahoma State responded with an 8-0 run, pulling to within 44-38 on Lindy Waters' 3-pointer with 13:03 remaining, but they couldn't complete the job.
UP NEXT
Baylor: The Bears return home to face No. 10 Kansas on Saturday, a team they lost to 70-67 at Allen Fieldhouse on Jan. 20.
Oklahoma State: The Cowboys also have a tough matchup, going on the road to take on No. 19 West Virginia on Saturday.
