Well before stepping on the floor inside the historic Jimmy Duke Arena versus an archrival, Baylor sophomore Eli Sparkman was counting down the seconds until the opening tip in a region home game Saturday.
For the second time this season, McCallie could not stop Sparkman’s hot hand as he and senior Gehrig Ebel led a 51-45 victory in front of a crowd that had sold out the game two nights before.
“This rivalry is one of a kind,” said Sparkman, who was 5-of-8 on 3-point shots and scored a team-high 19 points. “I have been nervous, at the same time pumped up, since about 3 o’clock today. The team has been hyped up all day just waiting for the big moment, and it worked out for us.”
Including his star performance in a Best of Preps championship victory over the Blue Tornado, Sparkman has torched them for 44 points and 11 3s this season.
After draining a 25-footer at the first-quarter buzzer in front of the visitors’ fans, Sparkman hit a trio of 3-pointers in the second quarter. His final 3 built his team’s largest lead to 36-25 with 3:06 left in the third quarter.