The opening game of the Sprouts Farmers Market espnW Invitational featured a Big 12 showdown. No. 2 Texas faced No. 13 Baylor. Both teams entered the season strong. But only one walked away with a statement win. And that team was Texas.

The Longhorns delivered Baylor its worst loss since January 30, 2006, a shocking 30-point defeat. The Bears started fast. They opened the game on a 10–2 run and briefly held a 9–4 lead midway through the first quarter.

Then Texas took over. The Horns answered with a dominant 16–0 run. While Baylor quickly fell behind 29–13, the momentum never returned. Texas carried a 45–27 lead into halftime, even while scoring just 16 points in the second quarter.

The Bears went nearly five minutes without a basket. Meanwhile, Texas capitalized on timely three-pointers that stretched the lead. The Bears tried to adjust, switching from man-to-man defense to a zone. But nothing worked.

Texas controlled the paint early, scoring 26 points inside in the first half. While the Bears shot 50% in the third quarter and 40% in the fourth, the gap was already too large. The Longhorns pushed the lead to as many as 38 points late in the game.

Even defensively, Texas was just as dominant. They forced Baylor into a season-high 30 turnovers. They committed only seven themselves. They even recorded 24 assists on 36 made field goals and shot 36-for-73 from the floor. And that was enough to power an 89–54 blowout win. But the damage wasn’t just limited to a loss. 

Baylors struggle with injury to leading scorer

Taliah Scott went down in the second quarter after rolling her right foot while driving to the basket. She stepped on the foot of Texas guard Jordan Lee near the baseline while splitting two defenders.

She remained on the floor in visible pain. After play stopped, Scott covered her face with a towel as trainers attended to her. She was eventually helped off the court and taken to the locker room.

Scott finished with nine points in 13 minutes, shooting 2-for-8 from the field and 3-for-3 from the free-throw line. She was one of three Baylor players to score nine points.

Entering the game, Scott was averaging 23.8 points per game, the second-highest mark in the Big 12. She is the engine of Baylor’s offense. As of now, there is no update on her return.

Written by

Yashika Dutta

Edited by

Oajaswini Prabhu