NaLyssa Smith #1 of the Baylor Lady Bears reacts against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the third quarter in the championship game of the 2019 NCAA Women’s Final Four at Amalie Arena on April 07, 2019 in Tampa, Florida.
NaLyssa Smith scored 26 points, Dijonai Carrington had 17 and No. 6 Baylor beat TCU 92-55 on Friday to advance to the Big 12 Tournament semifinals.
The top-seeded Lady Bears (23-2) are two wins away from winning their ninth Big 12 Tournament in the last 10 years. Baylor will face Texas on Saturday in the semifinals.
"When NaLyssa is feeling it, you just sit there and are glad she's on your team," Mulkey said.
Tavy Diggs led TCU (10-15) with 22 points, and Yummy Morris had 10. Scoring leader Lauren Heard was held to six. The Horned Frogs got within 10 in the third quarter but faltered late in their second game in two days.
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Both teams had trouble shooting from deep as Baylor was 4 for 19 and TCU 3 of 21. The Lady Bears shot 52% from the field and held the Horned Frogs to 26%.
"If you can hit more 3's obviously it helps but we're going to keep shooting and executing," Mulkey said.
Baylor dominated in the paint, outrebounding TCU 52-34 and scored 58 points in the paint.
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"My team got me the ball and I think everyone just played well today," Smith said.
The game got out of hand in the fourth quarter as Baylor outscored TCU 33-13. The Lady Bears have scored at least 90 in their last three games and have won 10 of their last 11 games by double digits.
"I was so impressed the last five minutes of the game," Mulkey said. "It was good to see them do well on the floor."
BIG PICTURE
TCU: The Horned Frogs hung around for most of the game but needed to shoot better to have a chance at an upset.
Baylor: The Lady Bears looked a little sloppy in the first half, committing 13 turnovers, and have to get a better handle on that in the postseason.
