No. 10 Baylor women beat Providence 61-36 in game hampered by 40 fouls, 41 turnovers

Dec 20, 2023, 05:36 pm

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- — Bella Fontleroy scored 14 points, Sarah Andrews added 12 points and No. 10 Baylor routed Providence 61-36 on Wednesday in the West Palm Beach Classic.

The game was hampered by 40 fouls and 41 turnovers — with 27 miscues by the Friars. Baylor shot just 39% from the field and Providence didn’t make its 10th field goal until the 5:56 mark of the fourth quarter.

Baylor led 36-12 at halftime after holding Providence to 3-of-20 shooting (15%) and forcing 17 turnovers. Providence made just one of its first 15 field-goal attempts and trailed 22-6 with 5:27 left in the second quarter. The Friars reached double-figure scoring with 3:23 left.

Dre’Una Edwards had 10 points and eight rebounds, and Yaya Felder added 10 points, nine rebounds and five assists for Baylor (10-0). Darianna Littlepage-Buggs, averaging 10.8 points and 7.8 rebounds, and Aijha Blackwell, the fifth Baylor player with a double-figure average, did not play due to injuries.

Olivia Olsen had 12 points and 10 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season for Providence (6-6), which played Baylor for the first time in program history. Olsen has led the Friars in scoring in nine of 12 games this season. No other Providence player scored more than five points.

Baylor was coming off its second top-25 win of the season, handing No. 24 Miami its first loss of the season. The Bears wrap up the nonconference portion of their schedule on Thursday against South Florida. Baylor plays at No. 5 Texas on Dec. 30 to begin Big 12 play.

---- Get alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here ------ AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball