BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) — Moments after winning the NCAA Tournament, the Baylor Bears remained on the floor to celebrate, but then started chanting “Jada, Jada, Jada.”
Jada Walker certainly deserved to be serenaded — and more.
Jada Walker scored 26 of her career-high 28 points in the second half to lead Baylor to a 75-72 victory over Virginia Tech in the second round of the women's NCAA Tournament on Sunday night.
The fifth-seeded Bears (26-7) advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2021. Walker, playing in his home state, was 9-of-16 from the floor and 9-of-10 from the foul line.
“Obviously, Jada did it in the second half,” Baylor coach Nikki Collen said. “She was incredible the entire time.”
Matilda Ek topped fourth-seeded Virginia Tech (25-8) with 19 points, while Georgia Amoore and Clara Strzok each finished with 18 points. Strzok again filled in for All-American Elizabeth Kitley. Who tore her ACL? In the final game of the regular season.
Walker made a big play late and the Bears won for the eighth time in their last nine games. She scored the team's final nine points, but none were bigger than her 3-point play that gave Baylor a 73-69 lead with 19.1 seconds left.
Amoore made a 3-pointer with 16 seconds left, and Walker made two free throws with 5.9 seconds left to give the Bears their final margin.
When asked if he was nervous at the free-throw line, Walker said “a little bit.” “But throughout the game, Sarah (Andrews) told me I was made for this moment. That's why I'm going to step up and beat them and wipe out the noise.” It really gave me confidence.”
Virginia Tech couldn't get a shot off in the final seconds. After conceding a foul, Baylor committed a foul with less than two seconds left. The Bears then fumbled the Hokies' inbounds pass. The ball went into Amoor's hands, but he couldn't get a clean look.
“When Liz's injury happened, there was a good chance our kids would have been upset and hung their heads down, but they didn't,” Virginia Tech coach Kenny Brooks said. “They stayed focused, locked themselves in and reinvented themselves. It wasn't for lack of effort that we lost tonight. We didn't always play great. There were some things that didn’t work out, but I’m so proud of them and their efforts.”
Andrews added 16 points and Dariana Littlepage-Bags finished with 10 points for the Bears.
big picture
Baylor: The Bears survived despite missing nine free throws in the game. Walker completed all four attempts in the fourth quarter, helping Baylor survive and advance. The Bears were eliminated from the tournament in the second round each of the past two seasons.
Virginia Tech: A great season comes to an end for the ACC regular season champions. They fell behind the Bears early and struggled to overcome obstacles, ending their winning streak on their home court at 26. Virginia Tech led only once in the game, late in the third quarter, and led throughout the fourth quarter.
Free throw troubles
Baylor entered the game shooting 70 percent from the free-throw line, while the Bears were only 16-of-25 from the free-throw line for the game. Perhaps their struggles at the stripe kept Virginia Tech in the game.
“I thought if I had made the free throws, I could have made them further away,” Collen said. “That was probably my biggest frustration.”
From sadness to sweetness 16
Baylor officials thought they had a chance to host the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament before the selection committee decided on Baylor as the No. 5 seed, which ultimately went to Blacksburg.
“It feels great to be able to celebrate with a group of girls,” Koren said. “We started this journey in July, summer school actually. When we were going overseas and playing, winning games this close was all about building camaraderie. was.”
next
Baylor will play the winner of Monday's game between Southern California and Kansas State in the Portland 3-district semifinals on Saturday at Oregon State.
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AP March Madness Bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket/ And scope of application: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
