Baylor rolls past Southern, 85-43

• By JOHN WERNER
• Special to The Advocate
• Published: Nov 23, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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WACO, Texas — Southern knew it was entering a Bear trap Saturday afternoon.

With Henry Dugat nearly recording a triple-double, Baylor romped to an 85-43 win over the Jaguars before 6,000 fans at the Ferrell Center.

Dugat was among five Baylor players who scored in double figures as he finished with 13 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. The senior guard also triggered Baylor’s defense by collecting three steals.

Heavily pressured by the Bears, Southern shot just 25.9 percent and committed 28 turnovers. It was the lowest shooting percentage by a Baylor opponent since Troy hit 19.7 percent in 1997.

“It was just our second game, but I expected us to compete a lot harder,” SU coach Rob Spivery said. “We gave them too many opportunities by turning the ball over. We couldn’t get the ball to the areas where we needed it.”

The Jaguars (0-2) didn’t have any players in double figures as Jazz Williams scored a team-high seven points on two-of-10 shooting. Forward Barry Honoré also had a tough day as he hit just two of 11 shots.

It was a much different scenario than last year when the Jaguars gave the Bears a competitive game in a 71-60 loss in Baton Rouge.

“We want to play teams like Baylor because we want to get our guys to the point where they can compete at the highest level,” Spivery said. “While Baylor forced some of the turnovers, we had some that were unforced. We contributed to our own nightmare.”

Southern didn’t just have trouble offensively, the Bears often got inside for close baskets as they shot 61.3 percent in the first half and opened up a 49-23 lead. The game could have been even more lopsided if the Bears (3-0) had hit more than 19 of 35 free throws.

The Jaguars had no success stopping Baylor freshman Quincy Acy, who nailed all five of his field goals and finished with a game-high 15 points. Acy has set a Big 12 record by hitting 18 straight field goals this season, breaking the old mark of 17 straight by Texas A&M’s DeAndre Jordan last season.

All of Acy’s field goals have come from point-blank range, including 11 dunks. Acy threw down three dunks against the Jaguars.

“Quincy hit two of nine shots in our exhibition game (against Tarleton State),” Baylor coach Scott Drew said. “But he’s settled down and taken high percentage shots, and doesn’t turn the ball over. Every game, our guys have more confidence to pass the ball to him, and he knows how to finish.”

With Curtis Jerrells collecting five steals, the Bears finished with 17 steals. The Bears also blocked 11 shots as Mamadou Diene picked up three and Acy, Anthony Jones and Josh Lomers had two apiece.