Makai Mason scored 14 points, the final four coming during a decisive stretch in the final minutes, as Baylor built a big lead, gave most of it back, and then finished strong to post a 57-47 nonconference victory over Oregon on Friday in Waco, Texas.
Oregon trailed by 16 points midway through the second half, but the Ducks forged a desperate comeback, pulling within 47-45 on a 3-pointer by Payton Pritchard with 3:32 to play. But Baylor reeled off the next eight points, with Mason hitting two buckets in that stretch, to put the game away.
Tristan Clark added 13 points and Mark Vital hit for 11 in the win for Baylor (7-4). The Bears have alternated wins and losses over their past five games.
Pritchard led the Ducks (8-4) with 14 points while Will Richardson added 10 for Oregon, which had a four-game win streak snapped.
Oregon played without star freshman center Bol Bol, who remains sidelined due to a foot injury.
Baylor rolled to a 28-16 lead by halftime, getting 26 of its points from the starting five, led by Clark's seven.
Oregon shot just 29 percent in the half and missed 15 of its first 17 shots from the floor. The Ducks trailed by as many as 15 points in the half, at 20-5 with 4:53 to play, before making five of their last seven shots to claw back into the game.
The Bears built their lead to 37-21 on a jumper by Vital five minutes into the second half, but Oregon responded by scoring 13 of the game's ensuing 15 points to pull to within 39-34 with 10:57 to play.
A 3-pointer by Mason with 7:55 remaining pushed Baylor back in from by 10, 45-35, but the Bears missed their next six shots, committed two turnovers and saw Clark miss a pair of free throws over the next four minutes to allow Oregon to close to within 45-42.
Next up for Baylor is a home game versus New Orleans on Dec. 29, the same night the Ducks hit the floor again at Boise State.
--Field Level Media
Oregon | Baylor | |
Payton Pritchard 14 | Scoring | Makai Mason 14 |
Louis King 4 | Assists | Makai Mason 4 |
Kenny Wooten 4 | Rebounds | Tristan Clark 8 |
Will Richardson 3 | Free Throws Made | Mario Kegler 3 |
Will Richardson 4 | Steals | King McClure 5 |
Kenny Wooten 4 | Blocks | Tristan Clark 2 |