ADAM FLAGLER

Scott Drew uttered the far-fetched idea of Baylor being national champion when he was introduced as coach nearly 18 years ago.

Baylor knew it would need to play to near-perfection to end Gonzaga’s flawless season.

The fresh-as-can-be Baylor Bears obliterated wobbly-legged Gonzaga’s march to perfection in an 86-70 runaway in the national title game.

Jared Butler scored 17 points to lead five Baylor players in double figures, and the Bears roared to a 78-59 victory over Houston in the Final Four.

Davion Mitchell, a 46% shooter from 3 this season, went 0 for 3 from long range on a 14-point day. Jared Butler scored nine points on 1-for-9 shooting from 3, and MaCio Teague had five points without a 3. The guards did a great job of not settling and probing more.”Because of that, Baylor shot 53% in the second half, even though it made only one 3. Constantly harassing Villanova shooters who'd carved out space in the first half, Baylor held Villanova to 37.5% shooting in the second and 0 for 9 from 3. Forward Brandon Slater left the game about midway through the second half after landing awkwardly during a fight for a rebound.

Two days after the Bears clinched their first Big 12 title with an overtime win at No. 17 Oklahoma State on Thursday night, ending the Cowboys' five-game winning streak. “You want to be content with winning the Big 12, but at the same time you don’t want to lose a game,” Butler said. AdFreshman standout and Big 12 leading scorer Cade Cunningham had 20 of his 24 points after halftime for Oklahoma State (17-7, 10-7), whose winning streak was the longest active in the Big 12. I didn’t see anything unusual other than stepping on a guy’s foot,” Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton said.

6 West Virginia 94-89 Tuesday for the Bears' first Big 12 regular-season title. Ad“At the end of the day, they just did more of the little stuff at the end to win the game," West Virginia coach Bob Huggins said. But the Bears went scoreless for nearly six minutes before halftime, allowing West Virginia to keep it close the rest of the game. They shot 51% (36 of 70) from the floor against West Virginia. West Virginia hosts TCU on Thursday.

Baylor then had six consecutive games postponed because of COVID-19 issues in the program, and hadn't even had another full practice until Sunday. With 6-foot-8 forward Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua out of the Baylor lineup, Mark Vital had 15 rebounds and three blocks. “Congrats to Baylor for figuring our a way to win, that’s why they’re No. But to come away get a win and be able to perform like we did, very very pleased with that. Coming into the game second in the Big 12 averaging 17 points, Butler had three turnovers and took only one shot before halftime.

(AP Photo/Eric Gay)AUSTIN, Texas – Texas played Baylor tougher than most teams have this season. 2 Baylor used a big run to pull away for an 83-69 victory over sixth-ranked Texas on Tuesday night. Texas (11-4, 5-3) was within six points late before Baylor pulled away behind open 3-pointers from Adam Flagler and Mitchell. Two free throws by Butler and consecutive driving baskets by Mitchell quickly had Baylor back up by 10 with 12 minutes left. Butler made two free throws and another quick basket put Baylor up by 10.

(AP Photo/Chuck Burton)WACO, Texas – This Baylor win was for Davion Mitchell, and the junior guard did his part against his former team. Mitchell swished a 3-pointer after losing a shoe and finished with 13 points and seven assists, helping the Bears stay undefeated with an 84-72 win over Auburn in the Big 12/SEC Challenge on Saturday. “And that’s OK, because Butler, and Teague and Davion Mitchell and Flagler are all really good,” Pearl said. "That conversation down the court, that was pretty cool.”AHEAD TO STAYButler made two free throws with 4:50 left in the first half for a 23-22 Baylor lead. Baylor: Baylor is 7-1 in Big 12/SEC Challenge games, the best record by any team in either league in the annual showdown.

And after an uncharacteristic first half, Drew understood why his players might have been a little unnerved. “It was a frustrating night," Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. Baylor forward Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua started the decisive stretch by making two free throws with 12:51 left. After Illinois made a 3-pointer, Baylor scored five more points and then took control with another run, this time 9-0. ... MaCio Teague added 11 points and Tchamwa Tchatchoua had nine points and nine rebounds.

FILE - Gonzaga players celebrate after defeating Saint Mary's in an NCAA college basketball game in the final of the West Coast Conference men's tournament in Las Vegas, in this Tuesday, March 10, 2020, file photo. Gonzaga will begin the college basketball season No. 1 for the first time after coach Mark Few's bunch earned 28 first-place votes in the preseason AP Top 25 poll released Monday, Nov. 9, 2020. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)

Iowa was picked fifth behind national player of the year front-runner Luka Garza, its highest preseason ranking in school history. The Bears, who also have their highest preseason ranking, spent five weeks at No. THE REST OF THE POLLCreighton lost Ty-Shon Alexander to the NBA and Davion Mintz to Kentucky but still landed the highest preseason ranking in school history at No. 17, its highest preseason ranking since the final Phi Slama Jama team of Hakeem Olajuwon began the 1983-84 season at No. 6 in the final poll last season but losing Mountain West player of the year Malachi Flynn and two other elite producers.