Kansas City, Mo. ? Cade Davis scored 24 points and Oklahoma hit nine 3-pointers en route to an 84-67 victory over short-handed Baylor in the first round of the Big 12 tournament Wednesday.
A few hours before tipoff, Baylor’s standout freshman, Perry Jones, was declared ineligible by the NCAA. The issue is whether he or his family received preferential treatment or improper benefits before he enrolled. Baylor said it would appeal.
The 6-foot-11 Jones, one of the nation’s top freshmen, averaged 13.9 points and 7.2 rebounds and had been a forceful defensive presence.
The 10th-seeded Sooners (14-17) split with Baylor in the regular season but have dominated over the years. They took charge with an 18-2 run in the first half, fueled by 3-pointers from Davis and Steven Pledger, and seized a 27-15 lead. Oklahoma has beaten seventh-seeded Baylor (18-13) in 32 of their last 35 meetings.
Baylor guard LaceDarius Dunn, the Big 12’s all-time leading scorer, spent much of the first half on the bench with three fouls and had only two points when he canned a 3-pointer with 11:10 to go in the second half and Oklahoma leading 56-34. Dunn, who led the Big 12 this year with 19.8 points per game, finished with 11 points on 3-for-14 shooting.
He extended his school record to 45 straight games with at least one 3-pointer. But he was 1 for 7 from behind the arc and needs two more 3s to set the Big 12 record.
Carl Blair had 14 points and 11 assists and Clark Cameron had 10 points for Oklahoma, which faces No. 10 Texas on Thursday in the second round. Quincy Acy had had 21 points and Anthony Jones had 13 for Baylor.
Jones’ 3-pointer put Baylor on top 13-9 before Clark’s bucket ignited the 18-2 run. Pledger hit a 3-pointer, Davis drilled a 10-footer and the Sooners were off, outscoring the Bears 30-9 the rest of the way to take a 39-22 halftime lead.
After Andrew Fitzgerald’s jumper put Oklahoma on top 23-15, Dunn was whistled for an intentional foul and Pledger made both free throws.
Less than a minute later, Dunn was called for a second foul and Davis scored for a 27-15 Oklahoma lead.
Clark’s 3-pointer was followed by Dunn’s third foul with 4:11 to go in the half. Davis quickly hit another 3-pointer.
The Bears went into the locker room thinking they were trailing 39-25 after Jones made a 3-pointer at the buzzer. But after the teams left the floor, officials reviewed the shot on television and waved it off.
Oklahoma lost twice to Texas in the regular season.
