Omier, Bears make light work of overmatched Arlington Baptist

There were a lot of Baptists in the house on Friday night, so Baylor decided to feast like it was a pot luck dinner.

The 25th-ranked Bears devoured the visiting Arlington Baptist Patriots, then went back for seconds.

Seven players scored in double figures as Baylor made short work of the Patriots, 107-53, in the final nonconference game at the Foster Pavilion.

Norchad Omier looked like he could have bench-pressed a couple of the smallish ABU players, and he used his physical prowess to his advantage.

The senior transfer forward from Miami tossed in 19 points and snatched a season-high 24 rebounds to lead all players in both categories.

Omier finished only two rebounds shy of matching his career high, which he achieved during his days at Arkansas State in the 2021-22 season.

He also eclipsed the 2,000-point milestone for his career in this game.

Even better? (He) just got engaged over Christmas, so he's had a pretty good week, Baylor coach Scott Drew said, laughing.

Yeah, thats a pretty good week, indeed.

Ive just got to give thanks to God first of all, said Omier, who is now averaging 16.2 points and 10.6 boards and has racked up six double-doubles.

Without him, none of this would be possible.

Just being in this program, with all these great people, we put God in first place always, and Ive just got to give him all the glory.

Omier was far from the only showstopper.

Baylor overpowered Arlington Baptist (1-10) everywhere on the court, and broke off a dominating 23-0 run in the first half to go with two separate 11-0 spurts in the second.

I would say the goal was getting our rhythm back, said BU center Josh Ojianwuna, who also tallied a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.

We all went home for six days.

Some guys probably didnt touch a basketball, just hanging out with their families.

This game, the goal was to help us get our rhythm and get ready for the Big 12 Conference.

If the Bears were carrying any residual holiday weight, they shook loose of it with lots of high-flying jumping jacks in this one.

Omier was the beneficiary of an alley-oop dunk off the feed from Jeremy Roach just 17 seconds into the game, setting the tone for a slew of highlights for the Bears.

That included a two-handed, first-half flush from senior guard Jayden Nunn in which he hung onto the rim and swung his feet high into the air after scoring.

Kick your feet up and have some fun, why don't you, Bears? Oh, they did, for sure.

Freshman guard Robert Wright picked up 13 points, nine assists and three steals.

Nunn, Langston Love and Jalen Celestine all chipped in 11 points apiece, with Celestine banging in three first-half 3-pointers.

VJ Edgecombe rounded out Baylors double-digit scorers with 10 points while adding six rebounds, six assists and three steals.

From a coaching standpoint, I think this game accomplished everything that we wanted it to, Drew said.

(We were) able to get the rust out (and) able to try a bunch of different lineups, work on a couple things, and at the same time, be able to play a lot of guys and get a chance with the long break to have a game before conference.

So, really pleased with a lot of the things, and especially the fact that we only had one practice before we played, and that was great to be able to let guys stay home Christmas Day.

ABU, a school from the National Christian College Athletic Association with a student enrollment of 220, just couldnt keep pace.

The Bears outrebounded the Patriots, 66-31, and limited the visitors to just 27.9% shooting.

Baylor built a 51-28 lead by halftime, and pushed the gap to as many as 58 points late in the game.

Omier tallied a double-double by the halftime break, with 13 points and 11 boards in the first 20 minutes.

I really dont think about it.

It just comes natural, said Omier, when asked about his mindset as a rebounder.

Like I said, its a gift from God, I really dont think about it.

I just try to play the hardest, rely on instinct, and do what I can do to just get the rebound.

As Drew alluded, the Bears were able to tinker with a variety of different lineups prior to Tuesdays Big 12 opener against Utah.

Best of all, the Bears didnt get anyone hurt in this one.

Roach made his return to the lineup following a two-game layoff for concussion protocol, producing eight points and seven assists in 25 minutes.

With just over four minutes to play, Drew emptied his bench.

Wright stayed on the court and capably played facilitator for some of those little-used deep reserves, making sure everyone that saw the court also cracked the scoreboard.

One of his sweetest feeds came on a two-man breakaway where he could have laid the ball in himself but instead hesitated and lofted an alley-oop find to former walk-on Omar Adegbola for the jam.

For me, were a team that celebrates culture of JOY Jesus, others, yourself, Ojianwuna said.

So, we know when were winning the game (the backups are) cheering for us and happy for us playing the game, so weve got to do the same.

Thats the team bonding that we need, the team win.

No one is being selfish about not playing or coming out of the game.

You know when youre in the game your teammates have your back, theyre cheering for you.

Youve got to do the same for when your teammates goes in.

Added Omier, We love each other.

Were happy when theyre doing something great.

The win tied a bow onto the nonconference season for Baylor, which played five Top 25 teams and went 2-3 in those contests.

Now theyll turn their attention to the Big 12 slate, beginning with a home game at 1 p.m.

Tuesday against Utah, a team that features a pair of their former teammates in guard Miro Little and forward Caleb Lohner.

Baylor plans to give out up to 5,000 free tickets for that one as an enticement for Bear fans who might not be making the trip to Houston for Baylor footballs game against LSU in the Texas Bowl that same day.

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