Baylor Shows Rust After Three-Week Layoff, Remains NCAA Tournament Threat

Baylor has spent the entire season trailing only unbeaten Gonzaga in the all the Top 25 polls. Then came a pause in the season because of COVID-19.

Then Baylor returned and looked nothing like a top-two team. They had to scratch and claw their way to a 77-72 win over lowly Iowa State on Tuesday.

But fear not, say the Bears.

"I like to believe we're going to pick up where we left off," Baylor star Jared Butler told reporters. "I think, ultimately, we're going to get back in the groove."

Baylor (18-0, 10-0 in Big 12) trailed Iowa State (2-17, 0-14) by 17 points at one point in the first half. It looked like a major upset in the making and started to make you think the Bears wouldn't be the same after such a long break.

But then, suddenly, they pulled together and showed what made them a national power before the hiatus.

"It was fun," Baylor guard Adam Flagler said. "But we definitely don't ever want to get down like that."