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No. 18 Baylor cruises past Chaminade despite early scare

Nov 26, 2013 - 5:20 AM Maui, HI (SportsNetwork.com) - Gary Franklin poured in 22 points to go with six rebounds and four assists to lead No. 18 Baylor to a 93-77 win over Chaminade, in the opening round of the Maui Invitational.

Kenny Chery and Cory Jefferson scored 15 points apiece and Brady Heslip finished with 14 points off the bench for the Bears (5-0), who will face the winner of Gonzaga/Dayton on Tuesday.

Christophe Varidel poured in a game-high 42 points on 10-of-16 shooting from 3-point range to lead the Silverswords (2-1), who will take on the loser of Gonzaga/Dayton in the consolation round.

Chaminade, famous for upsetting Ralph Sampson and top-ranked Virginia in 1983, gave the Bears an early scare as Varidel poured in 31 points over the first 20 minutes.

The Silverswords jumped out to a 21-16 lead following a Varidel jumper. The Bears took a 28-26 lead at the midway point of the half but an 11-7 burst made it 39-33 at the 6:37 mark.

After Chery canned a jumper to make it 42-40 with 3:25 remaining, Varidel buried a 3 for a five-point lead. Baylor, though, closed the half on a 10-2 burst to take a 50-47 lead into the break.

The Silverswords' upset chances quickly evaporated as Baylor opened the second half on a 12-6 swing before pushing the spread to 19, 77-58, following a pair of Chery free throws near the midway point of the half.

Chaminade couldn't get closer than 16 the rest of the way.

Game Notes

Baylor forward Isaiah Austin scored just eight points on 4-of-10 shooting ... The Bears outrebounded the Silverswords by a 45-35 margin ... Varidel set a new tournament record for 3-pointers made and finished one point shy of the tournament record for points in a game.