The Baylor Lady Bears are far from a one-woman team, but they’ve got one woman you can certainly build a team around.

That lady, obviously, is Brittney Griner.

Griner proved more than Colorado could handle, recording her second career triple-double to vault the 15th-ranked Lady Bears past the Buffaloes, 76-42, Saturday night at the Ferrell Center.

Baylor post Brittney Griner, who recorded her second triple-double of the season with 24 points, 10 rebounds and 11 blocks, shoots over Colorado’s Courtney Dunn.
Rod Aydelotte/Waco Tribune-Herald

Asserting herself defensively from the start, Griner rejected 11 shots to go with 24 points and 10 rebounds, notching the 15th triple-double in Big 12 history.

“Look how far Brittney Griner has come since she’s been here,” Baylor coach Kim Mulkey said. “I can only imagine when she becomes a senior like Morghan Medlock. The thing that will always help Brittney Griner is that she has the most wonderful disposition to be coached. She doesn’t think she’s a prima donna or the next best thing to sliced bread. She just comes out here and wants to get better every day.”

For Baylor (17-5, 4-4), it was a significant win, allowing the team to get back to .500 midway through conference play. “This may end up being the most important game of our season,” Mulkey said.

Griner blocked a pair of shots in a six-second span in the first half, and stuffed one Colorado shooter without even leaving her feet, delighting the partisan crowd of 7,350.

Mulkey said Colorado’s offensive strategy allowed Griner to play kind of a free safety role, roaming around to swat or alter shots.

Griner said she sensed the Buffaloes’ tentativeness after a while.

“They really didn’t want to come in,” said Griner, who also tallied a career-high three steals. “When some of the guards would come in, they’d turn around and throw it right back out real quick.”

Griner was no less impressive offensively. After dropping in a free throw at the 11:01 mark of the second half, Griner had singlehandedly outscored Colorado’s team, 24-23, prompting a “Brittney’s winning!” cheer from the BU band.

But she also had plenty of help. Medlock scored five of BU’s first nine points and finished with 13 points and nine boards, denting double figures in scoring for the first time in Big 12 play.

“I thought Morghan Medlock set the tone for the game,” Mulkey said. “The first play was run for her, and she’s getting back in the groove and playing better and has put some games together that has allowed her to get just back to being Morghan.”

Shanay Washington chipped in nine points for Baylor on 4-of-6 shooting. Kelli Griffin had a rough shooting night, hitting just 2 of 9, but finished with seven points, eight assists and three steals.

Colorado defender Bianca Smith reels backward as Baylor freshman Shanay Washington puts up a shot in the paint.
Rod Aydelotte/Waco Tribune-Herald

In the game’s early stages, Colorado used the 3-point shot to hang around. Alyssa Fressle and Brittany Spears both knocked down 3-point bombs in the first few minutes for the Buffaloes, and when Spears scored in transition at the 14:57 mark, the Buffs actually led, 10-9.

But then the Lady Bears floored the accelerator, increasing the pace on their fast-break game. Over the next four minutes, Baylor broke off a 14-0 run, capped off by a herky-jerky runner off the glass from Washington.

The play turned sloppy near the end of the first half, but Baylor managed to increase its lead. When Medlock crashed the boards for a putback to beat the first-half buzzer, Baylor upped its lead to 18 at 33-15.

Baylor’s defense was fierce, forcing 17 first-half turnovers and harassing Colorado’s top two scorers on the season, Spears and Bianca Smith, into a collective 3-for-27 shooting performance.

No Colorado player cracked double figures, as Spears and Courtney Dunn led the team with nine points each.

Baylor returns to the court Wednesday at No. 13 Oklahoma.

bcherry@wacotrib.com

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