Spokesman-Review
National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Baylor 67, Stephen F. Austin 51
When: 8:00 PM ET, Monday, November 24, 2014
Where: Ferrell Center, Waco, Texas
Officials: # Jeff Malham, # Ray Natilli, # Bret Smith
Attendance: 5503

Baylor 67, Stephen F. Austin 51: Royce O'Neale tallied 19 points and a career-high 14 rebounds as the host Bears downed the Lumberjacks in the first meeting between the Texas schools since 2003.

O'Neale shot 7-of-9 from the field – including a pair of 3-pointers – and added five assists, two steals and two blocks for Baylor, which is off to its seventh 4-0 start in the last eight years. Taurean Prince scored 15 points and recorded four of Baylor’s eight blocks while Lester Medford finished with 12 points and Rico Gathers grabbed 11 rebounds for the Bears.

Jared Johnson paced Stephen F. Austin (1-3) with 16 points and Thomas Walkup contributed 11. Jacob Parker rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 for the Lumberjacks, who have dropped three in a row and two straight away from home after seeing its 12-game true road unbeaten streak snapped at Xavier on Friday.

O’Neale got Baylor going after a slow and sloppy start, scoring five points during a 12-0 first-half surge. Walkup converted a pair of layups as Stephen F. Austin answered with 14 of the next 20 points to tie it at 18-18, but the Bears held the Lumberjacks without a field goal for nearly seven minutes and regained control as Prince drained a 3-pointer at the start of a 15-1 run to send Baylor into the break with an 11-point edge.

The Bears saw their lead dip to 35-27 early in the second half before a jumper from Johnathan Motley and a three-point play from O’Neale restored a double-digit advantage they would not relinquish. O’Neale capped off his spectacular all-around effort with a 3-pointer with just under three minutes remaining.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Baylor has held each of its three opponents at home to 51 points or fewer and is allowing an average of 45 points in those games. ... Stephen F. Austin is on its first three-game skid since Dec. 20-22, 2011. … The Bears improved to 31-4 in November since 2009-10.
Top Game Performances
 
Stephen F. Austin   Baylor
Jared Johnson 16 Scoring Royce O'Neale 19
Jacob Parker 3 Assists Kenny Chery 5
Jacob Parker 8 Rebounds Royce O'Neale 14
Jared Johnson 6 Free Throws Made Taurean Prince 5
Demetrious Floyd 2 Steals Lester Medford 3
Tanner Clayton 2 Blocks Taurean Prince 4
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Stephen F. Austin 51 33.3 5-26 10-16 13 26 6 6 15
Baylor 67 43.4 6-13 15-24 14 39 8 9 14