Tyrese Hunter’s last-gasp layup lifts Texas over No. 9 Baylor

Field Level Media|published: Sat 20th January, 14:34 2024

Texas Longhorns guard Chendall Weaver (2) lands on top of forward Kadin Shedrick (5) after catching a defensive rebound in the first half of the Longhorns game against the Baylor Bears at the Moody Center in Austin, Jan 20, 2024. credits: Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

Tyrese Hunter drove the lane for the game-winning layup with 0.1 seconds to play as Texas outlasted No. 9 Baylor 75-73 on Saturday afternoon in a Big 12 Conference contest in Austin, Texas.

The Longhorns (13-5, 2-3 Big 12) led by a point at halftime and by three after a layup by Dylan Disu with 3:18 remaining. Ja'Kobe Walter's two free throws with 3:00 minutes to play brought Baylor to within 69-68 before Disu answered with a pair from the charity stripe with 1:51 left.

Walter hit two more free throws with 50.5 seconds to play that Max Abmas countered with a pair with 14.3 seconds remaining for a 73-70 advantage. Baylor's Jalen Bridges tied the game on a 3-pointer with 5 seconds to play, but Hunter had the answer, scoring the final two of his team-high 21 points and allowing Texas to snap a two-game losing streak.

Disu added 19 points for the Longhorns, with Abmas hitting for 15 and Kadin Shedrick scoring 10.

Walter led all scorers with 22 points while Bridges tallied 17, Jayden Nunn racked up 15 and Langston Love scored 10 for Baylor (14-4, 3-2). When Bridges hit his 3-pointer to tie the game late, it was the Bears' only field goal over the final 9:08 of the game.

The teams traded the lead 15 times over the initial 11 minutes, with the Longhorns eventually going up 25-23 on a layup by Hunter at the 9:18 mark of the first half. Texas extended its advantage to seven points after a dunk by Dillon Mitchell with 6:38 left in the half and then to 36-28 when Disu poured in a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired with 5:43 remaining.

Walter's free throw with 1:37 to play in the half capped an 11-4 run by the Bears that culled the Texas lead to 40-39. Love's driving layup on the ensuing possession pushed Baylor back to the front before Abmas' jumper with 39 seconds left granted the Longhorns a 42-41 edge at the break.

Walter led the Bears with 14 points before halftime, an output that was matched by Hunter. Nunn added 13 points for Baylor while Abmas countered with 11 for the Longhorns. Texas shot 64 percent from the floor in the half and hit 9 of 11 on 3-point attempts but led only by one point.

—Field Level Media

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