# 2021–22 Baylor Bears women's basketball team

The 2021–22 Baylor Bears women's basketball team represented Baylor University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Bears, members of the Big 12 Conference, played their home games at the Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas and were led by first-year head coach Nicki Collen.
This was the first season in which the terms "men's" and "women's" were needed to distinguish Baylor's basketball teams. Before this season, Baylor women's basketball had used the nickname "Lady Bears", but on September 3, 2021, the school announced that basketball, soccer, and volleyball, the last three Baylor women's sports still using "Lady", would use only "Bears" from that point forward.

## Previous season

The Lady Bears finished the 2020–21 season with a record of 28–3, 17–1 in Big 12 to win the Big 12 regular season title. They won the Big 12 women's tournament after defeating TCU, Texas, and West Virginia. In the NCAA tournament, they defeated Jackson State in the first round, Virginia Tech in the second round, and Michigan in the Sweet Sixteen, before falling to UConn in the Elite Eight.

## Offseason

On April 25, it was announced that Kim Mulkey had been hired as the new head coach at LSU, after serving in the position at Baylor for 21 years. On May 3, Atlanta Dream head coach Nicki Collen was announced as Mulkey's replacement.

### Departures

Baylor Departures :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Reason for Departure |
| DiDi Richards | 2 | G | 6'1" | Senior | Converse, TX | Graduated, declared for WNBA draft |
| Trinity Oliver | 3 | G | 5'9" | Junior | Euless, TX | Transferred to Washington |
| Jordyn Oliver | 11 | F | 5'10" | Sophomore | Prosper, TX | Transferred to Duke |
| Moon Ursin | 12 | G | 5'6" | Senior | Destrehan, LA | Graduated, Transferred to Tulane |
| Hannah Gusters | 20 | C | 6'5" | Freshman | Dallas, TX | Transferred to LSU |
| DiJonai Carrington | 21 | G | 5'11" | Graduate | San Diego, CA | Graduated, declared for WNBA draft |

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 27, 2021* 7:00 p.m. | No. 7 | Texas A&M–Commerce | W 88–52 | | 27 – Smith | 15 – Smith | 6 – Lewis | Ferrell Center (4,052) Waco, TX |
| November 3, 2021* 7:00 p.m. | No. 7 | West Texas A&M | W 92–37 | | 34 – Smith | 8 – Smith | 6 – Bickle | Ferrell Center (3,971) Waco, TX |
| Regular Season |||||||||
| November 9, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 7 | Texas State | W 77–70 | 1–0 | 23 – Smith | 11 – Egbo | 7 – Lewis | Ferrell Center (4,180) Waco, TX |
| November 11, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 7 | at UT Arlington | W 81–54 | 2–0 | 21 – Smith | 16 – Smith | 4 – Lewis | College Park Center (2,182) Arlington, TX |
| November 15, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 6 | New Orleans | W 78–39 | 3–0 | 22 – Egbo | 11 – Egbo | 6 – Andrews | Ferrell Center (4,109) Waco, TX |
| November 21, 2021* 12:00 p.m., BTN | No. 6 | at No. 3 Maryland | L 76–79 | 3–1 | 30 – Smith | 15 – Smith | 15 – Andrews | Xfinity Center (8,395) College Park, MD |
| November 25, 2021* 10:00 a.m., FloSports | No. 6 | vs. Fordham Cancún Challenge | W 68–45 | 4–1 | 19 – Smith | 15 – Smith | 6 – Lewis | Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya (103) Puerto Aventuras, Mexico |
| November 26, 2021* 10:00 a.m., FloSports | No. 6 | vs. Arizona State Cancún Challenge | W 62–52 | 5–1 | 17 – Smith | 12 – Smith | 5 – Lewis | Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya (155) Puerto Aventuras, Mexico |
| November 27, 2021* 12:30 p.m., FloSports | No. 6 | vs. Houston Cancún Challenge | W 74–58 | 6–1 | 21 – Smith | 19 – Smith | 9 – Andrews | Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya (129) Puerto Aventuras, Mexico |
| November 30, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 5 | Morehead State | W 73–28 | 7–1 | 20 – Andrews | 16 – Egbo | 4 – Tied | Ferrell Center (3,939) Waco, TX |
| December 4, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | No. 5 | Missouri Big 12/SEC Women's Challenge | W 70–68 | 8–1 | 25 – Smith | 17 – Smith | 7 – Lewis | Ferrell Center (4,160) Waco, TX |
| December 8, 2021* 11:00 a.m., ESPN+ | No. 5 | Alcorn State | W 94–40 | 9–1 | 25 – Smith | 10 – Smith | 6 – Bickle | Ferrell Center (5,838) Waco, TX |
| December 19, 2021* 12:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 5 | vs. No. 13 Michigan Naismith Women's Challenge | L 68–74 $^{OT}$ | 9–2 | 21 – Smith | 14 – Smith | 7 – Lewis | Mohegan Sun Arena (8,204) Uncasville, CT |
| December 29, 2021* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 10 | North Texas | W 86–65 | 10–2 | 28 – Smith | 11 – Tied | 7 – Lewis | Ferrell Center (4,158) Waco, TX |
| January 2, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 10 | at Kansas State | L 59–68 | 10–3 (0–1) | 14 – Tied | 7 – Smith | 4 – Lewis | Bramlage Coliseum (2,393) Manhattan, KS |
| January 5, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 14 | TCU | Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols from Baylor | Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols from Baylor | Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols from Baylor | Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols from Baylor | Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols from Baylor | Ferrell Center Waco, TX |
| January 12, 2022 6:00 p.m., BSOK | No. 14 | at No. 23 Oklahoma | L 77–83 | 10–4 (0–2) | 30 – Smith | 11 – Lewis | 5 – Lewis | Lloyd Noble Center (2,002) Norman, OK |
| January 16, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 14 | Kansas | W 82–79 | 11–4 (1–2) | 25 – Andrews | 10 – Tied | 8 – Lewis | Allen Fieldhouse (1,688) Lawrence, KS |
| January 19, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 15т | Oklahoma State | W 67–49 | 12–4 (2–2) | 19 – Egbo | 13 – Smith | 7 – Lewis | Ferrell Center (4,078) Waco, TX |
| January 23, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 15т | No. 7 Iowa State | W 87–61 | 13–4 (3–2) | 24 – Lewis | 21 – Egbo | 6 – Lewis | Ferrell Center (4,541) Waco, TX |
| January 26, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 11 | at Texas Tech | W 88–80 | 14–4 (4–2) | 23 – Smith | 9 – Smith | 3 – Asberry | United Supermarkets Arena (4,504) Lubbock, TX |
| January 29, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 11 | at West Virginia | W 87–54 | 15–4 (5–2) | 20 – Tied | 10 – Lewis | 11 – Lewis | WVU Coliseum (3,836) Morgantown, WV |
| February 2, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 9 | No. 18 Oklahoma | L 77–78 | 15–5 (5–3) | 23 – Andrews | 12 – Smith | 6 – Andrews | Ferrell Center (4,274) Waco, TX |
| February 4, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 9 | No. 13 Texas Rescheduled from January 9, 2022 | W 75–63 | 16–5 (6–3) | 25 – Smith | 8 – Smith | 8 – Andrews | Ferrell Center (5,435) Waco, TX |
| February 6, 2022 3:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 9 | at No. 13 Texas | W 63–55 | 17–5 (7–3) | 28 – Smith | 13 – Smith | 4 – Andrews | Frank Erwin Center (5,300) Austin, TX |
| February 9, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 10 | Kansas State | W 95–50 | 18–5 (8–3) | 24 – Lewis | 16 – Egbo | 7 – Tied | Ferrell Center (4,181) Waco, TX |
| February 12, 2022 5:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 10 | West Virginia | W 75–57 | 19–5 (9–3) | 30 – Smith | 12 – Tied | 7 – Andrews | Ferrell Center (5,240) Waco, TX |
| February 16, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 7 | TCU | W 80–55 | 20–5 (10–3) | 22 – Egbo | 13 – Egbo | 9 – Andrews | Ferrell Center (4,660) Waco, TX |
| February 19, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 7 | at TCU | W 78–59 | 21–5 (11–3) | 23 – Smith | 12 – Egbo | 7 – Andrews | Schollmaier Arena (2,330) Fort Worth, TX |
| February 23, 2022 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 5 | at Oklahoma State | W 65–58 | 22–5 (12–3) | 19 – Smith | 15 – Smith | 4 – Andrews | Gallagher-Iba Arena (423) Stillwater, OK |
| February 26, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 5 | Kansas | W 85–77 | 23–5 (13–3) | 33 – Smith | 16 – Smith | 8 – Lewis | Ferrell Center (5,639) Waco, TX |
| February 28, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 5 | at No. 8 Iowa State | W 87–62 | 24–5 (14–3) | 28 – Smith | 20 – Smith | 6 – Tied | Hilton Coliseum (13,907) Ames, IA |
| March 6, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 5 | Texas Tech | W 82–57 | 25–5 (15–3) | 35 – Smith | 12 – Smith | 6 – Tied | Ferrell Center (5,110) Waco, TX |
| Big 12 Tournament (2-1) |||||||||
| March 11, 2022 1:30 p.m., ESPNU/ESPN+ | (1) No. 4 | vs. (9) Oklahoma State Quarterfinals | W 76–36 | 26–5 | 16 – Asberry | 13 – Egbo | 5 – Lewis | Municipal Auditorium (3,642) Kansas City, MO |
| March 12, 2022 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | (1) No. 4 | vs. (4) No. 21 Oklahoma Semifinals | W 91–76 | 27–5 | 37 – Smith | 11 – Smith | 6 – Lewis | Municipal Auditorium Kansas City, MO |
| March 13, 2022 12:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (1) No. 4 | vs. (3) No. 7 Texas Championship | L 58–67 | 27–6 | 21 – Smith | 10 – Smith | 4 – Lewis | Municipal Auditorium (3,442) Kansas City, MO |
| NCAA tournament (1–1) |||||||||
| March 18, 2022* 3:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (2 W) No. 7 | (15 W) Hawaii First Round | W 89–49 | 28–6 | 23 – Lewis | 14 – Tied | 6 – Andrews | Ferrell Center Waco, TX |
| March 20, 2022 5:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (2 W) No. 7 | (10 W) South Dakota Second Round | L 47–61 | 28–7 | 13 – Egbo | 8 – Tied | 5 – Tied | Ferrell Center (3,684) Waco, TX |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking т = Tied with team above or below :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Final |
| AP | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 15т | 11 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 7 |
| Coaches | 8 | 8* | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 11 | 11 |
*Coaches did not release a week 1 poll.