Abilene Christian @ Baylor preview
Foster Pavilion
Baylor coach Scott Drew admitted frustration that his Bears have been playing short-handed for much of the season.
"You've got to be healthy enough to develop," Drew said following the Bears' 76-72 loss at two-time reigning national champion UConn on Wednesday.
"We've been bit from the injury bug from the standpoint we're under five practices as a team together, and it frustrates the heck out of me as a coach, because I think we could be really good. Because if you can't practice together, you can't expect execution and you can't expect to be at your best."
Questions remain on the status of a couple of notable players as No. 15 Baylor (5-3) hosts Abilene Christian (6-3) on Monday night in Waco, Texas.
Bears star freshman VJ Edgecombe (hamstring) was sidelined for the UConn game and the team announced on X his status is day-to-day.
Early in the second half at No. 25 UConn, Baylor's Jeremy Roach, a Duke transfer, exited and went into concussion protocol. Edgecombe's and Roach's availability for Monday's game had not been announced as of early Sunday.
Despite those questions, Baylor still boasts a deep and talented roster. Robert Wright III stepped up with a team-leading 22 points in the loss at UConn. Norchad Omier, a transfer from Miami, is averaging a double-double this season with a team-leading 15.6 points and 10.0 rebounds per game.
As a team, the Bears are averaging 83.4 points per game and holding opponents to 73.4 points per game.
For Abilene Christian, this is a test to see how it stacks up against one of the top teams in the country. ACU coach Brette Tanner talked earlier this season about the importance of playing a strong nonconference schedule. Last season, ACU pulled off an upset by defeating Oklahoma State in the season opener.
"(Playing a strong nonconference) is how you get better," Tanner said last month. "The older you get, the longer you're in this business, you stop worrying so much about trying to stack wins at the beginning of the year.
"You want your team to get better. It's a process. That process doesn't start until you start playing real people. That's the point of it."
The Wildcats are averaging 78.2 points per game. Leonardo Bettiol has been ACU's most consistent scorer, averaging 15.0 points per game, followed by Quion Williams at 14.1. Williams in the team's per-game leader in rebounds (5.3) and assists (3.1).
ACU has played its last five games on the road, starting on Nov. 20. But the Wildcats are riding a two-game winning streak as they return to Texas. They have won back-to-back games at Omaha and New Mexico State.
Against New Mexico State last Wednesday, Hunter Jack Madden had a team-high 24 points. Williams also had an impressive game with 20 points and eight rebounds, while Bettiol added 16 points.
As far as the programs' series history, they played an exhibition game on Oct. 25, 2012, with Baylor winning 103-75.
--Field Level Media