Baylor Bears
From College Basketball Wiki
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| School Name: | Baylor University |
| Location: | Waco, TX |
| Arena: | Ferrell Center |
| Capacity: | |
| Conference: | Big 12 |
| Head coach: | |
| 2007-08 record: | |
The Baylor Lady Bears won the NCAA in 2005. Coached by Kim Mulkey, at that time Mulkey-Robertson, the Lady Bears defeated the Spartans of Michigan State University 84–62. Mulkey became the first women's coach and only the third coach in history to win an NCAA Division I basketball championship as both a player and a coach, joining Dean Smith and Bob Knight.
The men's basketball program was plagued by Baylor University. Patrick Dennehy, a player for the team, was murdered by a former player for the team, and then-coach Dave Bliss was forced to resign amidst allegations that he had made improper financial payments to players and planned to cover his actions by characterizing Dennehy as a drug dealer. The school placed itself on probation, limited itself to 7 scholarships for two years and imposed a post-season ban for one year. Additionally, the NCAA further punished the team by initiating a non-conference ban for the 2005-2006 season and extending the probationary period during which the school would have limited recruiting privileges.
The 2005 Bears were hindered by only having 7 scholarship players and recorded only one win in conference play. In spite of these challenges, head coach Scott Drew was able to put together a 2005 signing class ranked No. 7 nationally by HoopScoop. The 2006 Bears include Aaron Bruce, the highest scoring freshman in the NCAA in 2005, and Mamadou Diene, rated one of the top 10 centers for the 2007 NBA draft. The program's recovery has culminated in an at-large NCAA Men's Tournament berth in March 2008.
Baylor men's teams won five conference championships in the former Southwest Conference (1932, 1946, 1948, 1949*, 1950*; * denotes shared title). The Bears reached the Elite Eight in 1946 and the Final Four in 1948 and 1950. The 1948 team advanced to play the Kentucky Wildcats for the NCAA championship, but fell 58-42 to Adolph Rupp's first national championship team.
Both the men and women call the Ferrell Center home, which was built in 1988. Previously they played in the Heart of Texas Colieseum.
[edit] Conference championships
- Men's Basketball
- Regular Season: 1932, 1946, 1948, 1949, 1950
