WACO, Texas—The Idaho Vandals stepped on the court of the Ferrell Center on Wednesday night looking to prove that there is more to Idaho than just potatoes against the No. 9 Baylor Lady Bears. Baylor walked away with the 88-70 win, but unlike its past five games was unable to really push away from the feisty Vandals.
“I think [Kim] Mulkey figured out there is more than potatoes in Idaho after that pregame we saw,” head coach Jon Newlee commented. “We came in here and we played hard. We showed what we are capable of as a team. We battled hard and I loved our intensity. There are no moral victories but I am really proud of how we came in here and represented the Vandals.”
Senior standout Stacey Barr played her best game of the early season. The Melbourne, Australia native, finished with a season-high 31 points to lead all scorers. Wednesday marked the first time Baylor has allowed a 30-point effort from an opponent since Notre Dame's Jewel Loyd dropped 30 against the Lady Bears in last year's Elite Eight. Barr tied her career-high with 11 baskets, finishing 11-of-24 (45.8 percent) from the field and 5-of-12 (41.7 percent) from long range.
“[Stacey] loves this atmosphere,” Newlee said. “She loves playing against big time people. She is a big time player and she proves it every time we go against teams of this caliber.”
Baylor (7-1) got a boost from its own Australian weapon, Kristy Wallace, who returned to action on Wednesday night after missing the last five games training with Australia's U-19 National Team. Wallace caught fire from behind the three-point line, hitting six of her nine attempts. She finished with 24 point off the bench to lead the Lady Bears.
“For her [Wallace] to go off like she did tonight was unusual,” Newlee noted. “She has not been that great of a three-point shooter for Baylor or when I saw her play in Australia. If she does not play tonight without a doubt we would have had a whole different game.”
Baylor (7-1) started out slow in the first half, hitting just one of its opening seven shots. The Vandals gained an early 3-2 lead off a Christina Salvatore three-pointer. Ali Forde added added n early free throw for the Vandals to get to a 4-2 lead 2:30 into the game. Forde scored six of Idaho's first 11 points, helping the Silver and Gold to an 11-7 lead with 15:49 to play in the opening period. Baylor would regain the lead with an 8-0 run to get to 15-11 with 12:24 to play. Barr would tie the score at 17 with 9:14 remaining, before an Alexis Prince jumper gave Baylor back the lead for good. BU closed the final 8:25 outscoring Idaho 22-13 to lead 39-30 at the break.
Idaho (4-4) took Baylor's best punches in the second half. The Bears opened on a 10-5 run that lasted just over two minutes to gain a 14-point advantage. Back-to-back three's from Salvatore cut the lead to 10 with 16:50 to play. Baylor twice got the lead up to 17 in the second half. Each time the Bears looked for the knockout punch the Vandals came back swinging. Karlee Wilson initiated a 13-5 Idaho run capped off by a Barr three, cutting the BU lead to nine points at 68-59 with 8:41 left to play. The Baylor size wore down the Vandals in the final minutes as Baylor piled on late for the 88-70 victory.
Four of Idaho's starting five finished in double figures. Forde totaled a season-best 14 points while Salvatore and Connie Ballestero finished with 11 and 10, respectively. Forde added nine rebounds to lead the team defensively.
The Vandals held the Lady Bears below their season averages in points and margin of victory on Wednesday night. Baylor entered the night second in the nation with an average of 91.7 points per game. They were first in the NCAA with a +38.1 margin of victory. They Vandals 70 points was also the most allowed by the Lady Bears this season, outside of their 74-64 loss to at then No. 13 Kentucky.
Idaho remains on the road this week as they travel to Toledo to play in the Glass City Tournament, hosted by the University of Toledo. The Tribe from the North with take on the host Rockets on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. PT to kickoff the tournament.
