Baylor is lining up a non-conference game with Yale for the 2026-27 season, according to CBS Sports insider Jon Rothstein, and the matchup comes with an extra layer of intrigue because the Bears now have one of the Bulldogs’ former standouts in the fold.
Forward Isaac Celiscar, who transferred out of Yale, is set to join Baylor and compete for a starting spot next season. The timing makes the scheduled meeting feel even sharper: Baylor will host Yale, giving Celiscar a chance to face the program where he spent his first two college seasons.
Celiscar’s path at Yale was steady before it turned into a breakout. As a freshman, he appeared in 30 games and averaged a little more than seven points while pulling down five rebounds per game.
Last season, he took a major step forward, earning All-Ivy League honors after putting up more than 13 points and 6.3 rebounds a night. The 6-foot-6 forward also shot better than 40% from three and finished 27th nationally in KenPom offensive rating.
At Baylor, Celiscar gives Scott Drew’s team some flexibility. He could fit as a wing, come off the bench on the perimeter, or settle into a stretch-four role. That last option may be the cleanest fit, since his rebounding and outside shooting would help create room for Juslin Bodo Bodo in the middle.
The Baylor-Yale matchup also carries a little history, and it isn’t pretty for the Bears. The teams have played only once before, when No.
12 Yale stunned No. 5 Baylor, 79-75, in the first round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament.
That game delivered Yale its first NCAA Tournament victory and left Baylor with a tough lesson on the glass, as the Bulldogs out-rebounded the Bears 36-32.
After that loss, Taurean Prince was asked how a program like Yale, which had not had NCAA Tournament success at the time, managed to out-rebound Baylor. His answer became one of the memorable lines from that game: "You go up and grab the ball off the rim when it comes off," Prince said, "and then you grab it with two hands, and you come down with it, and that's considered a rebound. So they got more of those than we did."
Prince led Baylor with 28 points in the defeat, while Yale’s Makai Mason poured in a game-high 31.
If rebounding is the concern this time around, Baylor appears better equipped. Bodo Bodo is back, and UAB transfer Evan Chatman is described as an elite rebounder.
In Other News...
Baylors November Test Suddenly Looks Nothing Like The Iowa State Fans Know
Iowa States offseason has been about change at nearly every turn, and that makes Baylors November trip feel a little different before the season even kicks off. The Cyclones have reshaped the staff, remade the roster with transfers and started leaning into a new identity on both sides of the ball, with Tyler Roehl expected to bring a more physical, run-first approach on offense and a different look defensively as well.
For Baylor, the challenge is not just preparing for a Big 12 opponent, but for one that may not resemble the group the Bears have studied in recent years. Jaylen Raynor is expected to lead the offense, Cameron Pettway is part of an unsettled backfield mix and the questions around how quickly all the moving parts fit together only add to the intrigue. By the time November arrives, the Bears could be facing a version of Iowa State that is still figuring out what it wants to be. [Read more 🡒]
Baylor Fans Will Love What EA Finally Got Right
EA Sports College Football 27 is leaning hard into the kind of campus details Baylor fans have long wanted to see, with the Baylor Line set to be part of the game and the Baylor-TCU rivalry getting a little extra spotlight. The annual matchup has become one of the sports more recognizable grudge games, and hearing it framed as the Revivalry inside the game gives the series a bit more of the texture that has made college football different from every other video game sports title.
The release is still a little ways off, with the game due July 9 and early access opening July 2 for some preorder buyers, but Baylor already has a few familiar names in the mix. DJ Lagway and Hosea Wheeler are both included with ratings attached, giving fans an early look at how the Bears will be represented when the new edition arrives. [Read more 🡒]