DURHAM, N.C. — Taliah Scott scored 15 points and Baylor rallied from a nine-point deficit in the fourth quarter, making 11 of 14 free throws down the stretch, to beat Nebraska 67-62 on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Division I women’s basketball tournament.
After leading 19-11 entering the second quarter, the Big 12’s sixth-seeded Bears (25-8) went cold and were down 50-41 with 9:33 to play in their March Madness opener. Baylor then turned up the full-court press and forced six turnovers by 11th-seeded Nebraska (19-13) of the Big Ten in the final quarter.
“I thought that we got tough at the end,” Bears coach Nicki Collen said. “When time was running out, I thought that’s about as tough a five minutes as we’ve ever played. It was our defense. It was our intensity. Our ball pressure in the full court, we turned it up. So a really hard-fought battle against a really good team. Happy to survive and advance.”
The turning point came on a jumpball with the game tied at 53 with 3:48 to play. Baylor coach Nicki Collen appealed for officials to review the play for a flagrant foul on Nebraska junior forward Jessica Petrie, who appeared to have pulled down Baylor’s Bella Fontleroy.
Baylor won the appeal, and Scott made two free throws to give Baylor the lead for good. Petrie, who had 10 points for the Cornhuskers, fouled out on the next play.