MBB | Opponent Preview: No. 12 Baylor Bears

Who: Oklahoma Sooners (13-4, 2-2 Big 12) at No. 12 Baylor Bears (13-3, 1-2 Big 12)
When: 1 p.m. - Saturday, January 18th
Where: Ferrell Center - Waco, Texas
TV: ESPN2/WatchESPN (Cox 721, U-Verse 606 and 1202 (HD),DirectTV 209, Dish 145)

Starters: (Points, Rebounds, Assists)
Sooners
PG: #10 Jordan Woodard (Fr.) 11.4 - 2.2 - 4.5
SG: #24 Buddy Hield (So.) 16.5 - 4.4 - 1.9
SF: #11 Isaiah Cousins (So.) 10.6 - 4.2 - 2.2
PF: #21 Cameron Clark (Sr.) 17.3 - 6.0 - 1.4
C: #0 Ryan Spangler (So.) 11.5 - 9.5 - 1.2
Bears
PG: #1 Kenny Chery (Jr.) 11.6 - 2.3 - 5.1
SG: #4 Gary Franklin (Sr.)  7.0 - 1.7. - 2.6
SF: #0 Royce O'Neale (Jr.) 6.1 - 3.8 - 2.8
PF: #34 Cory Jefferson (Sr.) 13.2 - 8.4 - 0.7
C: #21 Isaiah Austin (So.) 10.3 - 5.5 - 0.9

Stats (NCAA Rank)
Offense
PPG: Okla. - 85.8 (8) Bay. - 78.6 (51)
RPG: Okla. - 38.4 (42) Bay. - 38.9 (31)
APG: Okla. - 14.5 (74) Bay. - 15.7 (31)
FG%: Okla. - 45.5 (119) Bay. - 48.6 (22)
3PT%: Okla. - 38.0 (61) Bay. - 40.0 (26)
Defense
Pts Allowed: Okla. - 78.2 (327) Bay. - 66.9 (84)
RPG Allowed: Okla. - 34.2 (240) Bay. - 29.3 (53)
APG Allowed: Okla. - 12.8 (213) Bay. - 14.3 (293)
FG% Allowed: Okla. - 43.5 (179) Bay. - 41.0 (85)
3PT% Allowed: Okla. - 33.0 (139) Bay. - 35.0 (226)

For both teams, they're coming off disappointing losses to conference opponents. Oklahoma fell to Kansas State and the Baylor Bears fell to the Texas Tech Red Raiders. So, it's a chance to rebound for both programs.

The Sooners lost tot he Wildcats 72-66 in Manhattan, on Tuesday. Oklahoma just struggled to shoot for most of the game, shooting just 33 percent from the floor. The real bright spot for the Sooners was Ryan Spangler. The sophomore from Bridger Creek, Okla. dropped 21 points, 15 rebounds in the defeat. He's becoming a real force in the post, and really decent on the defensive side of the block.

Baylor (13-3) is in a weird spot. After rocking their way to the top of the Big XII through out the non-conference portion of the season, they fell to a really bad Texas Tech team on Wednesday. They trailed by 21 at halftime. Despite outscoring the Red Raiders by 11 in the second half, they still lost by double digits. It was arguably the biggest win of the season for Texas Tech, and the worst loss for the Bears. Texas Tech came into the game at just 8-8 on the season and losers of five of their last six games.

For the Bears, it's been a tough start for the Big 12 Conference. They opened against Iowa State and got beat, then upset by the Red Raiders. Now they have to play a pretty hot Oklahoma team, then turn around and play the Kansas Jayhawks on Monday. We'll see exactly where this team is at after this next few days.

The Bears are led by Cory Jefferson, a 6-9 senior from Kileen, Texas. He leads the team in points and rebounds. He's averaging 13.2 points per game and 8.4 rebounds per game. He's a jump shooting forward with a lot of work to be done to polish up for the next level. Don't expect him to take a player off the dribble or cross anyone over. However, he is becoming a fluid shooter and can grab a rebound from any where on the floor. His length really gives opponents fits in the paint.

Cameron Clark will have to find his groove if the Sooners are going to find a way to upset the No. 12 Bears in Waco. His performance against the Wildcats is something that we're looking to forget. It was one of his worst games of his career, so I fully expect a bounce back game against Baylor.

Maybe if the Sooners are a little lucky, they'll catch Baylor looking forward to Big Monday and Kansas.

Since 1917, the Oklahoma Sooners have played the Bears 49 times. Oklahoma holds the overwhelming 39-10 series lead. Oklahoma was fortunate enough to steal both games against Baylor last season. That includes the 74-71 win in Waco on January 30th. The two teams have split the last eight games. Oklahoma has a record of 17-5 in Waco. Before last year's win, the Sooners had dropped the previous three contests in Waco.

Make sure you go over to Our Daily Bears and get the up to date Baylor coverage for this game.