Melissa Jones' return lights Lady Bears' fire

By Brice Cherry

When Melissa Jones strode to the scorer's table some 45 seconds into Baylor's 61-53 win over Texas A&M Wednesday, the least-surprised person in the building was Gary Blair.

Asked following the game if he expected Jones to play after missing the previous four games with a stress reaction in her right leg, the veteran A&M coach's eyes widened, as if to say, "What do you think?"

"You betcha," Blair said. "Hey, if I was going to Missouri, playing a team that's supposedly in the bottom, that's a game where the other kids have to step up and give Melissa a little bit more time. Because Melissa's got to get ready for the playoffs and the Big 12 tournament. But when you're 1-3, there's a little bit of a sense of urgency."

"We fully prepared for Melissa," Blair continued. "She did a great job of not stretching when the others stretched down there, (but) she wasn't fooling me. We knew what was coming."

What was coming was exactly what Baylor had been lacking the last four games — a leader. I've compared MJ to Larry Bird before (relatively speaking), given her affinity for diving on the floor for loose balls and her ability to throw dead-eye, no-look passes. But here's the thing. Jones is also a terrific athlete. (Not that Bird wasn't. He just was perceived that way).

Jones actually set a Baylor program record by doing 68 sit-ups in a minute last summer, and she's also blessed with the best vertical leap on the team, a half-inch better than Brittney Griner. (When height and reach are taken into account).

Needless to say, the Lady Bears are ecstatic to have Jones back.

"I look back and think, 'Wow, what if we would have had her,' " BU coach Kim Mulkey said. "But you can't look back. You've got 11 more, you go win as many of those as you can, try to get a good seed for the conference tournament, win as many as you can there, and then go to the NCAA tournament and grow. Gain some experience and grow."

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