Baylor @ West Virginia preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 8, 2018 ) Baylor 65, West Virginia 78

The season looked bleak for Baylor when leading scorer Tristan Clark went down for the season with a knee injury Jan. 8, but freshman Jared Butler has stepped into the starting lineup and looked nothing like a rookie. After a stunning upset against No. 9 Texas Tech on Saturday, Butler will try to lead the Bears to their third straight victory when they travel to West Virginia on Monday to face a Mountaineers team that is coming off an equally stunning upset.

Butler, a 5-10 guard, had 19 points and five assists (14 points, two assists and three steals in the second half) as the Bears put up 73 points - most this season against the Red Raiders - in an 11-point home victory, and is averaging 16.3 points, 4.3 assists and shooting 10-of-23 from beyond the arc in the last three games. "Jared has gotten better and better. I think the guys on the team have done a great job of helping him along, and he's learned a lot from Makai (Mason) and they have really helped each other," Baylor coach Scott Drew said after the victory. "He's a winner. He comes from a great program. ... You feel when he's got the ball, he's going to make a win." The Bears' biggest improvement has come from beyond the arc as the club is shooting 48 percent (13.0 made 3-pointers per game) in its last two contests after shooting 29 percent (6.6) in its first 15. West Virginia, suffering its worst defeat in Big 12 history in a 98-67 loss to TCU on Tuesday after blowing a 21-point lead to Kansas State earlier in conference play, stunned No. 8 Kansas 65-64 on Saturday for its first conference win when Jermaine Haley capped a 7-0 closing run with a driving layup with 8.5 seconds left.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, ESPNU

ABOUT BAYLOR (11-6, 3-2 Big 12): Mason (team-leading 14.7 points and 2.8 assists) added 16 points against the Red Raiders and has scored in double figures in a career-best nine straight (15.6 points). Despite being undersized at 6 feet 5, Mark Vital (6.2 points) slid to the starting center spot with Clark out and has 30 rebounds (19 offensive) in three games, and for the season leads the Big 12 in offensive rebounding (3.9) while placing fourth in total rebounding (7.7). Senior King McClure (10.8 points, 5.5 rebounds), Baylor's lone player with three years in the program and the third player to change positions in the lineup since the Clark injury, is averaging 13.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.0 steals in the last three games.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA (9-9, 1-5): Haley led the Mountaineers with 13 points on 5-of-5 shooting while James Holden battled an illness to record 12 points and four steals for a team coach Bob Huggins has criticized all season long for lack of offensive and defensive efficiency, especially its passing. "Jim Harrick told me once I'd rather have the ball than not, I'd rather be up than down, and I'd damned sure rather win than lose," Huggins told reporters. "We needed a win. We've kind of given a few away and hopefully we get on a roll now." The Mountaineers defense even looked a bit like the "Press Virginia" teams of the past, holding the Jayhawks to 43.6 percent shooting while forcing 18 turnovers.

TIP-INS

1. Baylor leads the series 8-7, but West Virginia has won six of the last seven meetings, including all three last season.

2. Butler, a consensus Top 100 national recruit, was a member of three state title teams at Riverside Academy (La.) and averaged 27.4 points, 8.8 rebounds, 8.4 assists and 3.0 steals to lead the Rebels to a 33-2 record as senior in 2017-18.

3. West Virginia freshman Derek Culver has given the Mountaineers something to look forward to as the 6-10 forward is averaging 11.9 points on 58.1 percent shooting and 8.4 rebounds in 23.6 minutes off the bench.

PREDICTION: Baylor 74, West Virginia 69