A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| 2020–21 Baylor Bears basketball | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conference | Big 12 Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 1 |
| AP | No. 3 |
| Record | 28–2 (13–1 Big 12) |
| Head coach |
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| Associate head coach | Jerome Tang (18th season) |
| Assistant coaches |
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| Offensive scheme | Motion |
| Base defense | No-Middle |
| Home arena | Ferrell Center |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 1 Baylor | 13 | – | 1 | .929 | 28 | – | 2 | .933 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 16 Kansas | 12 | – | 6 | .667 | 21 | – | 9 | .700 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 21 Texas † | 11 | – | 6 | .647 | 19 | – | 8 | .704 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 18 West Virginia | 11 | – | 6 | .647 | 19 | – | 10 | .655 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 19 Oklahoma State | 11 | – | 7 | .611 | 21 | – | 9 | .700 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 22 Texas Tech | 9 | – | 8 | .529 | 18 | – | 11 | .621 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oklahoma | 9 | – | 8 | .529 | 16 | – | 11 | .593 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| TCU | 5 | – | 11 | .313 | 12 | – | 14 | .462 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kansas State | 4 | – | 14 | .222 | 9 | – | 20 | .310 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Iowa State | 0 | – | 18 | .000 | 2 | – | 22 | .083 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † 2021 Big 12 Tournament winner Rankings from AP poll | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 2020–21 Baylor Bears basketball team represented Baylor University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bears, members of the Big 12 Conference, played their home games at the Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas. They were led by 18th-year head coach Scott Drew.
The 2020–21 season was the greatest season in Baylor's 115-year basketball history. They finished the season 28–2, 13–1 in Big 12 play to win their first regular season championship of any sort since 1950. In the Big 12 tournament, they defeated Kansas State in the quarterfinals[1] before losing to Oklahoma State in the semifinals.[2] They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed in the South region.[3] The Bears defeated Hartford[4] and Wisconsin to advance to the Sweet Sixteen.[5] They defeated Villanova[6] and Arkansas to advance to the school's first Final Four since 1950.[7][8] In the Final Four, they defeated Houston to advance to the school's second national championship game.[9][10] In the championship, they defeated No. 1 overall seed Gonzaga to win the school's first national championship.[11][12]
Previous season
The Bears finished the season 2019–20 season 26–4 and 15–3 in Big 12 play to finish in second place.[13] The team was scheduled to play Kansas State in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament before the tournament was canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[14] The NCAA tournament was also canceled due to the pandemic.[15]
Offseason
Departures
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Devonte Bandoo | 2 | G | 6'3" | 185 | Senior | Mississauga, ON | Graduated |
| Obim Okeke | 15 | G | 6'0" | 225 | Senior | Las Vegas, NV | Graduated |
| Tristan Clark | 25 | F | 6'10" | 245 | Junior | San Antonio, TX | Retired from basketball due to multiple injuries |
| Freddie Gillespie | 33 | F | 6'9" | 245 | RS Senior | St. Paul, MN | Graduated |
Incoming transfers
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Paterson | 35 | G | 6'1" | 180 | Graduate Student | Dallas, TX | St. Edwards |
Recruiting classes
2020 recruiting class
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LJ Cryer PG |
Katy, TX | Morton Ranch (TX) | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Jun 11, 2019 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 84
| ||||||
| Dain Dainja C |
Brooklyn Park, MN | Park Center (MN) | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 260 lb (120 kg) | Jun 22, 2019 | |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 86
| ||||||
| Zach Loveday C |
Gallipolis, OH | Huntington Prep (WV) | 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Sep 25, 2019 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80
| ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 42 247Sports: 28 ESPN: 22 | ||||||
Sources:
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2021 Recruiting class
| US college sports recruiting information for 2021 recruits | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
| Langston Love SG |
San Antonio, TX | Montverde Academy (FL) | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Jul 15, 2020 | |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 89
| ||||||
| Jeremy Sochan PF |
Southampton, UK | OrangeAcademy (GE) | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Jul 16, 2020 | |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 75
| ||||||
| Kendall Brown SF |
Cottage Grove, MN | Sunrise Christian Academy (KS) | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Jul 20, 2020 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 90
| ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 8 247Sports: 5 ESPN: — | ||||||
Sources:
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Preseason
Big 12 coaches' poll
The Big 12 preseason coaches' poll was released on October 29, 2020. Baylor was predicted to come in first place.
| Big 12 coaches' poll[16] | ||
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Baylor | 79(7) |
| 2 | Kansas | 73(3) |
| 3 | West Virginia | 61 |
| 4 | Texas | 58 |
| 5 | Texas Tech | 53 |
| 6 | Oklahoma | 39 |
| 7 | Oklahoma State | 35 |
| 8 | Iowa State | 19 |
| 9 | TCU | 18 |
| 10 | Kansas State | 15 |
Roster
| 2020–21 Baylor Bears men's basketball team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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