The Bears made a start to their foreign exhibition games with a staggering win against Concordia. Although this isn't nearly comparable competition to the Big 12, there are still plenty of positives to look forward to from this game. The Bears had six players score double digits in points, and shot for over 57 percent as a team.
Isaac Williams Steals The Show
I'm predicting this man to become the true leader of this team for the year. Isaac made it very clear in his past interview that in order to take on the role of becoming one of the veteran players, he needs to be more vocal. And that's exactly what he did; Isaac had over 23 points and excelled at setting his teammates up, adding seven assists, while grabbing four steals.
Again, this is a small-school exhibition game, but I still think it shows the effort and the dirty work Isaac is willing to do to get the Bears some wins in the future. Being able to do everything and almost lead the team in every stat shows he's ready to put the team on his back if ned be at any time in the season.
Buckets From Deep
Scott Drew went shopping in the portal and has seemed to come back with some major firepower on the offensive side. The Liberty transfer Brett Decker Jr. shot 47.1 percent from deep in his previous year and wasted no time showing Concordia his hot hand, torching them with 18 points on 4-of-6 shooting from downtown.
Another addition, Isaac Celiscar, who found his stroke in the Ivy League last year and continued it in this exhibition, going a perfect 5-for-5 from distance for a strong 21 -point performance. Throw in Kayden Mingo and suddenly this roster looks to be a defensive nightmare. If you leave shooters like this with an inch of daylight, they can make your team pay from just about anywhere on the floor.
Setting The Tone on Defense
Beyond the explosive offensive run the Bears went on, they were able to have complete control of the game due to the abundance of rebounds they collected, finishing with a +14 margin on the night. Players like Caden Powell and Even Chatman set the tone with a combined 21 rebounds and gave Baylor multiple second chances on offense.
Baylor was able to keep Concordia out of rhythm all night long, forcing over 25 turnovers. An imposing defense like this could completely flip the season from what the Bears had last year, an unusual 134th nationally ranked defense. If this newly built squad can continue to spread the floor, give all players opportunities to get open looks, and play a ruthless effort on defense, I think we are looking for a major bounce-back year for the Bears.
Even with the departure of NBA draft pick Cameron Carr and top transfer Tounde Yessafou, this team looks exciting on offense and has a different feel on the defensive side of the ball. We can only hope they can keep this up when the competition ramps up once the season is a go.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/baylor as 3 Key Stats to Know From Baylor Basketball's Dominant Exhibition Win Over Concordia.