By JASON ORTS , Associated Press
WACO, Texas (AP) — Mario Kegler scored 24 points, including a pair of free throws with three seconds remaining in overtime, and Baylor rallied from 19 down in the second half to beat Texas 84-83 Wednesday night.
The Bears (19-9, 10-5 Big 12) trailed by as many as six in overtime before scoring nine of the final 11 points. Jaxson Hayes was called for traveling with seven seconds to go and, after Kegler’s free throws, Texas’ long inbound pass was knocked away and Jase Febres’ desperation heave was well off the mark as time expired.
Devonte Bandoo had 18 points and was 4 for 5 from 3-point range for the Bears, who shot 50 percent (12 for 24) from beyond the arc. Jared Butler and Mark Vital added 15 and 13 points, respectively, for Baylor.
Texas, which dropped its second straight, was 15 for 27 from 3-point range. Febres made seven of those shots from distance to lead the Longhorns with 23 points. Courtney Ramey had 17 points, including 15 in the first half, and 10 assists.
Kamaka Hepa and Matt Coleman III had 11 points apiece for Texas, which shot 59 percent in the first half.
BIG PICTURE
Texas seemingly couldn’t miss for long stretches of the first half. No play illustrated that better than Ramey’s off-balance heave as the shot clock expired that fell with 11 seconds left and gave Texas a 14-point lead. But the driving lanes to the basket their guards enjoyed in during that time became harder to come by in the second half.
Baylor was seemingly out of it, trailing 62-48 after a Ramey basket with 9:47 to go. But the Bears’ win clinches at least a top-six seed in the Big 12 tournament, which guarantees they won’t have to play on the first day. Freddie Gillespie came back from a tough game against West Virginia on Saturday with eight points and 11 rebounds to anchor Baylor in the paint.
UP NEXT
Texas will return home to meet Iowa State on Saturday.
Baylor travels to meet No. 16 and Big 12-leading Kansas State on Saturday.