Predictable Big 12 Tournament Gets a Dash of the Unexpected

Since its inception in 1997, the Big 12 Tournament has been predictable. And really, that is an understatement. In the 12 years of its existence, The Big 12 Tournament has only been won by four teams. Kansas has won 6, Oklahoma 3, Oklahoma State 2, and Iowa State 1 in what can only be described as their Marcus Fizer/Jamaal Tinsley glory year(singular). No seed below #3 has ever won the crown.

So I should say that the Big 12 Tournament is as predictable as April showers, more predictable than May flowers, and only slightly less predictable than a Missouri loss in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. So it should not be surprising that I'm currently searching for evidence that I've entered the Twilight Zone. Allow me to recap.

Tournament action began on Wednesday afternoon, and things looked about normal as Nebraska ducked out in the first round. Despite being seeded higher than Baylor, was there any doubt that the Huskers would make a first round upset? Chalk that up there with predictable things that happen during the Big 12 Tournament, along with Kansas State losing their first game in demoralizing fashion*. So no one was shocked to see Baylor pull the "upset", because lets face it, they were supposed to be the better team anyway.

*Four words for you: The Pervis Pasco game.

It was business as usual the rest of the afternoon as Texas and Oklahoma State took care of business, sealing enticing match-ups in Round 2 against Kansas State and Oklahoma, respectively. So when Texas A&M began handling Texas Tech, taking an easy 48-29 halftime lead, yours truly and others let out a collective yawn and prepared ourselves for the next days action. Unfortunately for us, we missed the creepy Twilight Zone intro music that started up at about the same time.

Because after the break, the Texas Tech Mike Singletary's exploded for 58 points, including 29 consecutive points for Mr. Singletary himself that surged the suddenly dangerous Red Raiders to an 88-83 victory. It was a virtuoso performance, from a distinctly un-virtuoso type of player. In essence, it was exactly what this Tournament needed. And it didn't end there.

Thursday provided the most impressive string of upsets in Big 12 Tournament history, with 3 of the 4 higher seeds going down. The onslaught began when Kansas faced Baylor in the 11:30 a.m tipoff game. Baylor took advantage of the early start and raced out to a 17 point first half lead. Luckily, a frantic University of Kansas employee was able to coerce the drowsy Kansas team from their rooms to play the second half, and things stabilized for the Jayhawks. They stormed back and took a five point lead with a few minutes to play, all but ensuring that they would make the Semifinals for the umpteenth consecutive year. But Baylor forgot that they were supposed to collapse and fought until the final buzzer, pulling out an impressive 71-64 victory.

Kansas State (predictably) went on to lose to #5 seed Texas, trying to restore order to a tournament that threatened to go haywire at any moment. But their efforts simply were not enough to keep things on track, as Oklahoma State upended Oklahoma in a one point victory and secured a semi-final berth. Texas Tech ran out of gas in their matchup against Missouri, making the Tigers the only top seed to advance to the semi-final round.

So here we were with the conventional #9-#5 and #3-#7 matchups in Friday's games, with Baylor and Texas kicking things off and Missouri-Oklahoma State as the nightcap. Remember that no team seeded lower than #3 has ever won the Big 12 Tournament. Even this round is a significant event in a tournament that up until this year has been anything but a crapshoot.

And what happened? Well, Baylor continued its odyssey by winning against Texas and advancing to the Big 12 Title game. They will face Missouri there, a Missouri team which has everything to play for. And by everything, I mean a possible placement in Kansas City from the NCAA Tournament Selection. But Baylor, they've got a thing or two left to say to. There's nothing quite like playing a basketball game in Oklahoma City that's watched by college basketball coaches, pundits, and players all across the country. The University of Wisconsin will watch it. And Kentucky, Florida, and South Carolina. USC will be interested, as will Saint Mary's, Texas A@M, and Providence.

Baylor could very well take a much coveted NCAA Tournament spot from any of those teams, all of which will likely be sitting on the edge of their seats for the duration of the game. They will watch because all these teams know, deep down in their hearts, that anything is possible...in the Twilight Zone.