Baylor beatdown: Bears win title, hang heavy loss on Gonzaga Share Updated: 10:48 PM CDT Apr 5, 2021 Associated Press AP Photo/Darron Cummings Baylor head coach Scott Drew gets a hug from guard Mark Vital at the end of the championship game against Gonzaga in the men s Final Four NCAA college basketball tournament, Monday, April 5, 2021, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Baylor won 86-70. SOURCE: AP Photo/Darron Cummings
TRACKING THE COVID-19 VACCINE Share Updated: 10:48 PM CDT Apr 5, 2021 Associated Press CNN Heck, everyone’s entitled to an off night. But that beatdown Baylor put on undefeated Gonzaga with the national title on the line nobody saw that coming.The fresh-as-can-be Bears obliterated wobbly-legged Gonzaga’s march to perfection Monday night in an 86-70 runaway that brought this once-downtrodden program’s first national title back home to Wac
INDIANAPOLIS — Everyone’s entitled to an off night. But the beatdown Baylor put on undefeated Gonzaga with the national title on the line — nobody saw that coming.
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Gonzaga s Drew Timme (2), Jalen Suggs (1) and Corey KispertDarron Cummings/Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS From Nov. 26 through the early evening of April 5, the 2020-21 Gonzaga Bulldogs felt like a Death Star laying waste to everything in their path.
They opened the season with an even-more-convincing-than-the-final-margin 102-90 victory over preseason No. 6 Kansas. The following morning, the Zags bludgeoned Auburn by 23 points. Game No. 3 against West Virginia got a little dicey when Jalen Suggs suffered a lower-leg injury and Drew Timme fouled out on an off night, but they still eked out the victory.
From there, it was 27 consecutive wins by double digits.
Baylor denies Gonzaga its undefeated season in NCAA title game, 86-70
Baylor guard Davion Mitchell (45) celebrates at the end of the championship game against Gonzaga in the men s Final Four NCAA college basketball tournament, Monday, April 5, 2021, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Baylor won 86-70. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Baylor players celebrate at the end of the championship game against Gonzaga in the men s Final Four NCAA college basketball tournament, Monday, April 5, 2021, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Baylor won 86-70. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Baylor players celebrate with the trophy at the end of the championship game against Gonzaga in the men s Final Four NCAA college basketball tournament, Monday, April 5, 2021, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Baylor won 86-70. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Not to mention while playing through COVID-19
Instead of being used to question Gonzaga s place in the championship game, that this team nearly ran the table amid the COVID-19 pandemic only strengthens the Bulldogs credentials. Some of the biggest, most foolproof programs in the sport were derailed by the coronavirus, most notably Duke and Kentucky. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs weaved through a midseason pause to team activities and didn t skip a beat.
The roster is loaded with NBA talent
The Bulldogs have never been short on talent. This year s team is simply the most talented of Few s tenure, led by the possible top overall pick in the upcoming NBA draft in freshman star Jalen Suggs and another potential lottery pick in sharpshooting senior Corey Kispert. In fact, the entire starting five is destined for the NBA, with forward Drew Timme and guards Joel Ayayi and Andrew Nembhard firmly on draft radars. Based on this collection of established talent and the underclassmen on the Bulld