N.C.A.A. Final Four March Madness: Live Updates
What counts as good news for Houston: more than a few Cougars have scored. Although Houston is trailing by plenty, six of its players now have points to their names — up from three in the first half.
Houston isn’t going away quietly, and why would they? The Cougars are outscoring Baylor 16-9 in the second half. Marcus Sasser still leads the way with 19 of 36 points. They’re going to need to get some stops and some baskets in transition here to get this thing competitive. Otherwise, it’s over.
With a barrage of 3-point shooting and a stifling defensive effort, Baylor opened up a commanding halftime lead on Houston, 45-20, in the first national semifinal at Lucas Oil Stadium.
It was the most points Houston has allowed in a first half this season.
The Bears are halfway to the school’s first N.C.A.A. men’s championship game appearance since 1948.
“First and foremost, we know that this is only 20 minutes, so there’s 20 more minutes to go.” Baylor coach Scott Drew said on CBS. “We couldn’t ask for a better start the first 20 minutes, but it’s a 40-minute game. So we’ve got to come out, we’ve got to do what we did the first half, that’s share the basketball and get high-percentage shots and then we’ve got to do a great job on the defensive end.”
Jared Butler, a first-team all-America selection, had a masterful first half with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including 4-of-5 from deep, along with 4 rebounds. Davion Mitchell distributed the ball brilliantly with 7 assists and 9 points. And Matthew Mayer also contributed 9 points off the bench.
Houston had been holding opponents to 28.3 percent shooting from behind the 3-point arc, while Baylor’s 41.1 percent clip from deep leads Division I. So far, Baylor is leading this battle by making 8-of-15 from deep. The Bears also had 12 assists on 16 baskets.
The Bears’ stingy defense also held Houston to 7-of-26 shooting. Marcus Sasser made six of Houston’s seven shots, with five 3-pointers, en route to 17 points.
Houston guard Quentin Grimes went scoreless after coming in averaging 18 points.
Baylor’s only losses this season were to Kansas and Oklahoma State. The Bears are seeking their fifth straight win since falling to Cade Cunningham and the Cowboys in the Big 12 Tournament.
With a 25-point advantage, Baylor has amassed the fourth-largest halftime lead in the history of the Final Four. More bad news for Houston: No team has overcome more than an 11-point deficit at the intermission to win a national semifinal.
No, Houston will not be setting a record for fewest points in a half of a Final Four game. That mark belongs to Villanova, which scored 10 against Ohio State in a Final Four matchup in 1939.
Houston’s Marcus Sasser made eight 3-pointers in a game against Tulane in January. He’s already 4-of-6 from deep for 12 of Houston’s 14 points in this game. He’s really been their offense at this point.
Houston’s Marcus Sasser has 12 points and has made half of his shots. The rest of the Cougars? Well, DeJon Jarreau is the only other one to have scored — and he has just 2 points. Five players have scored so far for Baylor, which leads, 25-14, with 7:48 to play before the intermission.
Davion Mitchell is already filling up the stat sheet for Baylor, with 4 points, 4 assists and a key steal under the basket as the Bears lead 17-11. Marcus Sasser has accounted for 9 of 11 points for Houston, which will need to get Quentin Grimes and DeJon Jarreau going.
As in recent years, the men’s Final Four games are being broadcast on CBS. The official way to stream the tournament is through the N.C.A.A.’s March Madness Live app, which requires logging in through a TV provider.
The Paramount+ app will also carry the games.
Baylor’s Highlights
After its 81-72 win against Arkansas, Baylor (28-3) made it to its first Final Four since 1950 and the Bears look as ready as ever. The Bears, the top seed in the South region, are a strong defensive team that is going to give Houston its most challenging matchup in the tournament. The Bears also have great 3-point…