For 29:43 Boston College went punch for punch with one of the most skilled and athletic teams in the country. The Eagles went cold for just a few minutes but it was enough for #16 Baylor to go on 14-5 run to pull away. The final score was 84-74.

Despite losing by 10 there were several positives to take away in this one:

-For the second straight game, the team didn't collapse when their opponent went on a run. In the first half, the Bears went on a 10-0 run and it looked like the Eagles might get run out of the building. BC countered with a 14-3 run of its own to take the lead 31-30. Perhaps the most impressive part of the run is the points were scored by guys like Van Nest (4), Rubin (3), and Odio (2).

-Ryan Anderson continues to be a force. The sophomore led the way 25 points and 6 rebounds in the loss. The highlights from Anderson included a thunderous dunk he threw down in the first half which sent the message to Baylor "we are better than you think". Also, who can forget Anderson's half court shot to end the 1st half which went in gave BC a 43-41 lead.

ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla commented on Twitter that Anderson looks like a "1st Team All-ACC" performer.

-As good as Anderson was, Baylor PG Pierre Jackson was better. Jackson finished with 31 points and 7 assists. The Baylor forwards kept coming to the top of the key and setting screens for Jackson, which was a surprise to no one. Donahue's game plan was for the BC defenders to run under the screen to cutoff Jackson from going to the hoop and blowing by everyone with his world class speed. The result of course was that Jackson would have open looks for threes. What Donahue didn't anticipate was Jackson going 6-of-10 from beyond the arc.

-Freshman Olivier Hanlan continues to impress. He had 16 points in the loss. I'm sure Donahue wants him to cut down on his turnovers, but right now he is consistently creating offense off the dribble and is making many more positive than negative plays.

-Andrew Van Nest continues to give Donahue a lot of bang for his buck. In 14 minutes, Van Nest had 13 points, including two treys. The Harvard transfer also had 3 assists. Van Nest is quickly establishing himself as the best sub for Anderson and Dennis Clifford.

-Speaking of Clifford, he had another quiet game. In 26 minutes Clifford had 2 points and 4 rebounds. Everyone keeps saying he's OK physically, so for now we just have to assume that he's off to a slow start.

-The 3 spot was a weakness in this game. Lonnie Jackson and Patrick Heckmann combined for 10 points in 45 minutes. Jackson's weakness was his shooting, going 2-for-9 from the floor. Heckmann committed 4 turnovers and 2 assists. To pull off an upset like this the team needs one of these guys to support Anderson and Hanlan with scoring.



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