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Prince, Baylor hold off Texas Tech

Feb 18, 2015 - 2:25 AM Lubbock, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - Taurean Prince had 22 points and No. 20 Baylor held off Texas Tech 54-49 on Tuesday night.

Baylor escaped Lubbock despite getting just two points and six rebounds from its star Rico Gathers, who came in averaging 11.5 points and 12.4 boards per game.

Lester Medford supplied 10 points for the Bears (19-7, 7-6 Big 12), who avoided their first three-game losing streak of the season.

Devaugntah Williams provided 15 points for Texas Tech (12-15, 2-12), which has dropped four consecutive contests.

The teams were tied at 43-43 with less than eight minutes left before a Prince layup and Royce O'Neale's 3-pointer from the left corner staked Baylor to 48-43 advantage with 4:10 to play. Toddrick Gotcher's tip-in at the other end whittled the gap to three, but Texas Tech could never get over the hump as both teams struggled to score down the stretch.

With the Red Raiders trailing 50-46 with less than a minute to go, Keenan Evans air-balled a 3-point try and Baylor's Kenny Chery sunk two foul shots. A Williams pull-up trey from the right wing clawed the hosts within 52-49 with 15 ticks on the clock, but Chery hit two more bonus shots and an empty Texas Tech possession sealed the outcome.

Earlier, Williams netted seven quick points as the Red Raiders raced out to a 15-9 lead midway through the opening half.

Baylor, though, answered with a 13-0 run. Prince poured in the first eight points during the burst, including a 3-point play and a beyond-the-arc shot, before capping the surge with a jumper for a 22-15 Bears' advantage with 5:45 left in the period.

Baylor took a 34-26 margin into the break.

Consecutive 3-pointers from Williams and Gotcher jump-started an 8-0 Texas Tech spurt, which was finished off when Zach Smith put back his own miss after misfiring on a pair of free throws to tie the game at 41-41 midway though the second half.

Game Notes

Baylor has won six of its last seven games against Texas Tech, although the Red Raiders defeated the then-12th ranked Bears 82-77 in Lubbock on Jan. 15, 2014 ... Texas Tech fell to 12-5 at home this season ... The Bears scored just 20 points in the second half.