No. 4 Baylor women beat Oral Roberts 97-39 for 11-0 start
WACO, Texas (AP) Niya Johnson keeps giving and giving for No. 4 Baylor.
Johnson had 18 more assists, one short of the Big 12 record she set in her previous game, and the Lady Bears wrapped up a lopsided five-game homestand with a 97-39 victory over Oral Roberts on Thursday night.
''I can't get those assists without my teammates making the shots, so I have to give them praise,'' Johnson said. `''But none of that stuff matters to me, just as long as we win.''
Nina Davis had 26 points on 12-of-16 shooting in 23 minutes as the Lady Bears (11-0) ended their stretch of five home victories over 17 days by an average margin of 53 points.
''I just have good teammates like Niya Johnson,'' Davis said. ''Her assist-to-turnover ratio is amazing.''
Johnson didn't have a turnover, after only one turnover during the 19-assist game four days earlier. The senior point guard had 68 assists with three turnovers in the five games, and is again the national assist leader (10.7 per game) after setting a Big 12-record 322 total last season - a national-best 8.9 per game.
Faith Ihim had 15 points with 13 rebounds and Bria Pitts scored 12 for Oral Roberts (2-9), a team with mostly sophomores and freshmen. The Golden Eagles were down 6-0 after two turnovers in the first minute and lost their eighth straight game.
Alexis Jones added 17 points, including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer for a 51-19 halftime lead. Dekeyia Cohen had 12 points.
With No. 23 Miami (10-0) on Saturday night, a trip home to Florida for three Baylor players, coach Kim Mulkey kept pressing.
''You got to keep them focused and that's why we pressed the whole game because I wanted them to get a workout in and make sure they're still thinking about basketball,'' Mulkey said. ''Sometimes it's hard to duplicate 40 minutes like that of pressure. I said I'm not looking at the score. That coach knows me and she knows I'm looking at bigger things in a nonconference game.''
After Pitts made a 3-pointer halfway through the first quarter, Oral Roberts was down only 10-6. But Baylor then scored nine in a row, starting with a three-point play by 6-foot-7 freshman Kalani Brown before three consecutive baskets by Davis.
''I never mind that Kim's pressing the whole game because she's wanting to work on stuff and get better also, and that makes us better at the same time,'' Oral Roberts coach Misti Cussen said. ''She's responsible for getting her program better, and however she needs to do that at game time, it's open season.''
DIPLOMA DELIVERY: Baylor redshirt junior Alexis Prince this semester completed her degree in communication studies. Prince will be on the road with the Lady Bears when winter commencement is held Saturday. Ken Starr, Baylor's president, joined Mulkey in presenting Prince her diploma during a pregame ceremony complete with the 6-foot-2 forward walking out in a cap and gown.
GOING HOME: Johnson is from Gainesville, Fla., about an hour from where the Lady Bears will play, and Miami was another of her final choices before deciding on Baylor. ''It's going to be fun playing against Miami,'' she said. ''They recruited me and I know a few girls that play on that team, and one of them from Gainesville who I played with in middle school and against in high school.''
TIP-INS
Oral Roberts: The Golden Eagles had a nine-game losing streak early in the 2013-14 season. ... Oral Roberts had 20 turnovers, leading to 33 Baylor points.
Baylor: The closest game for the Lady Bears in the five-game home stretch was a 42-point victory over Northwestern State on Dec. 4. ... Baylor has won 159 consecutive home games vs. unranked opponents since losing to Auburn in the WNIT final
UP NEXT
Oral Roberts: at Kansas on Tuesday night.
Baylor: vs. No. 23 Miami on Saturday night in the Florida Sunshine Classic in Winter Park, Florida.
