Matt Weir / Collegian File Photo
Fresno State Bulldogs vs. Baylor Bears
Breakdown: Bulldogs
The ‘Dogs enter its third straight NCAA tournament, but not in the same way as 2008 and 2009.
After falling to Louisiana Tech in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Tournament championship game, Fresno State was granted the at-large 13 seed to the Big Dance.
Matt Weir / Collegian File Photo
Fresno State now must travel to Berkeley, Calif. for its first-round matchup with the fourth-seeded Baylor Bears. The two teams met in the first round of the 2008 NCAA tournament, with Baylor winning handedly 88-67.
The Bulldogs (27-6) will look to rely heavily on WAC Tournament All-Tournament selections Jaleesa Ross and Hayley Munro. Ross has paced the ‘Dogs all season, with an average of 17.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.9 assists-per-game.
Senior Joh-Teena Filipe will have the tall task of defending Baylor’s 6-foot-8-inch freshman Brittney Griner.
If the ‘Dogs are going to pull the upset victory, they must make the shooting woes that plagued them in the conference tournament a thing of the past. Fresno State shot well below its season field goal average of .423 during the tournament.
Breakdown: Bears
The Bear’s strength comes from inside the paint, anchored by Brittney Griner’s 18.8 points and 8.6 rebounds-per-game. Junior guard Melissa Jones is the only other Baylor player to average in double figures with 10.8 points-per-game.
Griner served a two-game suspension after punching a Texas Tech player on March 3. Ranked 14th nationally, Baylor (23-9) also received an NCAA at-large bid after falling in the Big 12 Championship tournament 59-54 to Oklahoma in Griner’s return.
Baylor boasts five wins over top-25 competition this season, including two wins over second-seeded Texas A&M. The Bears have outscored opponents this season by an average of nearly 16 points-per-game.
The Bears bring plenty of tournament experience to Berkeley on Saturday. In the 2009 NCAA Tournament, Baylor reached the Sweet 16 before falling to Louisville. Head coach Kim Mulkey’s squad won the national championship in 2005.