Baylor graduate transfer guard Makai Mason, who played previously at Yale, led the Bears with a game-high 22 points in a 58-49 win over Arizona on Saturday night in Tucson.
The Wildcats' loss snaps their 52-game winning streak against nonconference opponents dating to 2011, when San Diego State beat them.
Baylor (6-3) outrebounded Arizona 50-19, allowing it to outscore the Wildcats 19-2 in second-chance points. Baylor forward Mark Vital nearly outrebounded the Wildcats (7-4), tallying a game-high 16 boards.
Mason made 8 of 15 shots in the game, including 5 of 9 in the second half when he scored 13 points and helped the Bears shoot 66.7 percent from the field in the half. Baylor shot only 27.6 percent from the field in the first half.
Arizona was led by Brandon Randolph's 15 points on 6-of-16 shooting. No other Arizona players scored in double figures. The Wildcats' rebounding leader was reserve forward Ira Lee with only five in 20 minutes.
Both teams started shooting cold, with Arizona leading 23-20 at halftime.
Arizona made 39.1 percent of its field goals in the first half and 35.8 percent overall.
Vital's nine rebounds almost equaled Arizona's total in the first half.
After falling behind 26-20 at the start of the second half, Baylor rallied to take a 37-31 lead with 12:27 left in regulation on a Mason jump shot.
A putback by Vital with 3:18 left increased Baylor's lead to 50-39.
Arizona cut the lead to 55-49 with 45 seconds left on a 3-pointer by Randolph. The Wildcats missed two 3-pointers afterward and Baylor, which made only 10 of 20 free throws, converted 3 of 4 in the waning seconds including two by Mason with 18 seconds left.
Arizona next hosts Montana on Wednesday while Baylor hosts Stephen F. Austin on Tuesday.
--Field Level Media
Baylor | Arizona | |
Makai Mason 22 | Scoring | Brandon Randolph 15 |
King McClure 3 | Assists | Brandon Williams 4 |
Mark Vital 17 | Rebounds | Ira Lee 5 |
Mario Kegler 4 | Free Throws Made | Justin Coleman 2 |
King McClure 4 | Steals | Chase Jeter 3 |
Jared Butler 1 | Blocks | Ira Lee 1 |