Eddie Pells
Baylor guard Davion Mitchell (45) and Baylor guard Mark Vital (11) 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) April 05, 2021 - 10:53 PM
INDIANAPOLIS - There was another team out there that was marching through the season undefeated, that looked unstoppable at times, that had all arrows pointing toward a national title.
COVID-19 put a halt to the undefeated dream. Nothing could stop Baylor from cutting down the nets.
Not even Gonzaga.
The fresh-as-can-be Bears obliterated wobbly-legged Gonzagaâs march to its own undefeated season Monday night. It was an 86-70 runaway that brought this once-downtrodden programâs first national title back home to Waco, Texas.
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After running to a 19-point lead early, the Bears never let Gonzaga get any closer than nine. Guard Davion Mitchell nicknamed “Off Night” because so many opponents encounter one when they go against him finished with 15 points and did his best on Suggs. The freshman finished with 22 points, most of them after the Zags were well into desperation mode and he will most likely be heading to the NBA lottery next.
Gonzaga’s first loss in 32 games this season leaves Indiana’s 1975-76 team as the last to go undefeated. If Bob May, Quinn Buckner and the rest of coach Bob Knight’s team were keeping champagne cold to celebrate they could have uncorked it by halftime.
From the opening tip, the Bears showed that
they were the nation’s best team, scoring the game’s first nine points and quickly building a double-digit lead. MaCio Teague sparked the Bears with 14 first-half points, while on the defensive end, Mark Vital, Flo Thamba and Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua clamped down on Gonzaga’s vaunted front court.
When the Bulldogs cut the lead to nine, the Bears responded with three-pointer after three-pointer, stop after stop, and rebound after rebound in a true team effort. Tournament Most Outstanding Player Jared Butler led the way with 22 points, while Mark Vital pulled down 11 rebounds. In the waning minutes, Drew pulled the starters from the floor into a huge embrace that embodied the team’s culture of J.O.Y., and the Bears soon celebrated a national title.
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