Baylor Blazes Past Southern Behind Yessoufou’s Career Night, Red-Hot Shooting
WACO, Texas - Four days before Christmas, Baylor wasn’t in the mood for holiday generosity. Instead, the Bears delivered a statement performance - sharp, efficient, and ruthless - in a 97-60 dismantling of Southern University at Foster Pavilion.
This was Baylor basketball at its most locked-in. The Bears turned the ball over just four times, a season low, and shot a blistering 53% from beyond the arc.
But the real headline? Freshman Tounde Yessoufou.
The young guard erupted for a career-high 28 points, leading five Bears in double figures and putting an exclamation point on the win with a breakaway dunk in the final minutes that brought the crowd to its feet.
That dunk came courtesy of a block by Cameron Carr, who had himself a day: 22 points, six assists, and plenty of swagger. After the game, Carr didn’t hold back his admiration for the freshman phenom.
“I just tell him every day, ‘Man, the way you go at me in practice, go at these dudes,’” Carr said. “Every day in practice, he’s trying to take my head off.
So I tell him, bring that same energy to the game. Nobody’s gonna be mad at you.
I love the aggression, the poise - he’s growing fast. He’s just a great player.”
Baylor heads into the Christmas break riding a three-game win streak, having won five of its last six. And after putting up 224 points over their last two games, the Bears are clicking in a big way.
But head coach Scott Drew wasn’t taking Southern lightly. The Jaguars may be 4-8, but they pushed Washington to double overtime earlier this season. That had Drew’s attention.
“You’re always a little nervous about the last game before Christmas,” Drew said. “Southern gave Washington all they could handle.
First half, we didn’t do some of the things that have made us successful. But we regrouped, and the second half was much better offensively.”
That second half? It was a clinic.
After a sluggish start that saw Baylor fall behind 12-6 early, the Bears caught fire. They ripped off a 10-point burst in just over a minute, fueled by threes from Carr and Yessoufou, and never looked back.
By halftime, Baylor led 40-31.
Carr, who scored his 22 points in just 23 minutes, pointed to energy - or a lack of it early - as something the team addressed at the break.
“We came out a little slow,” he admitted. “At halftime, we emphasized taking care of what’s in front of us. We started figuring out what they were falling asleep on and kept going back to it.”
The adjustments paid off. Baylor opened the second half on a 24-6 run, hitting six of their first nine shots and stretching the lead to 64-37. The Bears were nearly unstoppable from deep, hitting 12-of-17 (70.6%) threes in the second half and finishing 17-of-32 overall - their highest total since knocking down 17 against Kansas State during their 2021 title run.
Yessoufou was nearly flawless after the break, pouring in 16 second-half points on 5-of-6 shooting, including 2-of-2 from deep and a perfect 4-for-4 from the line. His final bucket - the dunk off Carr’s block - capped a dominant performance and gave Baylor a 97-60 lead with just over three minutes to play.
“Every time he steps on the court, he surprises everybody,” Carr said with a smile.
And the highlights didn’t stop there. With the game in hand, Baylor emptied the bench - and the walk-ons delivered.
Will Kuykendall and Drew Perry each hit a three, combining to go 3-for-3 from deep in the final minutes. Dan Skillings Jr. added another triple in that stretch, finishing with 17 points, six boards, and five assists.
For the team, seeing Kuykendall and Perry get their moment was the cherry on top.
“We’re really happy to get them in the game,” said center Caden Powell, who pulled down 15 rebounds, just one shy of his career high from two nights earlier. “That’s a result of what we did on the court. And then for them to come in and make those shots - it was fun and exciting for everybody.”
Scott Drew agreed: “You could see the bench and the team’s excitement. Will came in and knocked two down, and Drew, that was a tough shot, too. I couldn’t be more pleased and happy for them.”
Now at 9-2, Baylor heads into a well-earned holiday break before returning to action on Dec. 29 against Arlington Baptist. After that, it’s on to Big 12 play, starting with a road trip to TCU - a 9-3 squad that already has a win over then-No. 10 Florida under its belt and is riding a four-game win streak of its own.
For now, though, the Bears can enjoy their Christmas with confidence - and momentum.