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Baylor bowls over UCSB in NCAA

Mar 18, 2012 - 9:30 PM Bowling Green, OH (Sports Network) - Brittney Griner scored a game-high 14 points, leading five players in double figures, as Baylor remained undefeated with a resounding 81-40 win over UC Santa Barbara in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the Stroh Center.

Griner, who played just 22 minutes in the meeting, registered a mere three rebounds and three blocked shots for the top-seeded Lady Bears (35-0) as they continued their quest towards 40 wins this season. Brooklyn Pope dropped in 13 points and cleared seven boards off the bench for Baylor, followed by Destiny Williams with 12 points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting from the field. Reserves Sune Agbuke and Odyssey Sims accounted for 11 and 10 points, respectively.

The 16th-seeded Gauchos (17-16) were paced by Emilie Johnson who emerged as the lone double-digit scorer for the group with 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting from the field.

Baylor opened the meeting on a 12-0 run and never looked back, shooting a staggering 63.0 percent from the field in the first half in order to take a 46-16 lead into the break. UCSB converted just 6-of-27 (.222) from the floor through the first 20 minutes.

The second half was more of the same on both sides as the Lady Bears easily cruised to the 41-point victory thanks to 52.6 percent accuracy from the field.

Baylor, which is now set to meet ninth-seeded Florida in the second round of the Des Moines Regional, outscored the Gauchos at the charity stripe by a 23-6 margin.