The Baylor Bears won their first national championship with a wire-to-wire 86-70 victory over previously unbeaten Gonzaga in a matchup that was brewing the entire season. The Zags were denied a chance to become the first undefeated champions since Indiana in 1976.

Baylor, who was ranked No. 2 on the country for 15 of the 17 weeks this season, won both games in the Final Four by 15+ points.

“If you’re going to war, and I’m coaching, I’m taking these guys,” Baylor head coach Scott Drew told CBS’ Tracy Wolfson.

Baylor limited Gonzaga – the nation’s highest scoring offense at 91.6 points per game – to a season-low point total despite shooting 51% from the floor. The Zags went 5-of-17 from 3-point land and did not hit their second triple until there were less than 10 minutes left in the game. They looked out of sorts on offense the majority of the game as a result of Baylor’s defensive pressure.

“We couldn’t get anything going on either end,” Gonzaga head coach Mark Few told Wolfson. “We couldn’t get consecutive stops on the defensive end and when we did get stops, it was really hard to generate offense on the other end consistently because they were so aggressive with their coverages. They dominated both ends of the ball pretty much all night.”

The Bears – the nation’s best 3-point shooting team – were hot from deep. They converted on 10 of their 23 attempts from 3-point range. They scored the first nine points of the game and converted on each of their first five 3-pointers.

Baylor opened up a 19-point led in the first half, and then the Bulldogs worked their way back into the game and closed the gap to 10 at halftime. Midway through the second half, the Bears pushed the lead to 20 – its largest of the game.

“It’s harder to win [the national championship] in this year than ever before,” the tournament’s most outstanding player Jared Butler said. “With the stoppages, the testing, and the sacrificing your social life just so you can play basketball games, having no fans sometimes, it’s just hard sometimes to get up for these games. I’m just so thankful that we were able to play so the tournament can still go on. It’s just really cool to say that we did that in the midst of adversity, in the midst of tribulations, and to bring it home for Baylor is amazing.”

Butler tallied 22 points and seven assists.  The last player with a 20-point, seven-assist performance in the title game was Syracuse’s Carmelo Anthony in 2003.

MaCio Teague posted 19 points. Davion Mitchell recorded 15 points, six rebounds and five assists. Adam Flagler added 13 points off the bench.

“[We’re] a player-led team,” Drew said. “Those guys didn’t want to lose for each other. They wanted to play for each other. They’re winners; they’re experienced; they’re tough.”

The Bears also controlled the glass. They outrebounded the Zags 38-22 and had 16 offensive rebounds, which turned into 16 second-chance points. The Baylor reserves outscore Gonzaga’s bench 21-7.

The Zags were led by Jalen Suggs, who had 22 points. Corey Kispert and Drew Timme were also in double figures with 12 points apiece. Timme also pulled down five rebounds.

Gonzaga became the third team to enter the championship game undefeated and lose. The others were Ohio State in 1961 and Indiana State in 1979.

“You can’t go 31-0 and get to the last night and get beat and feel bad about it,” Few said. “It was just an unbelievable run we’ve been on. The way they handled themselves with the character and class and grace, and they’re so easy to coach and so easy to travel with and be with during some really difficult times.”

Baylor and Gonzaga were scheduled to play Dec. 5, but they were forced to postpone the game due to a pair of positive Covid tests with the Bulldogs. They had hoped to reschedule but did not find a mutually convenient date.

Baylor joins the 1966 Texas Western team as the only teams from Texas to win the championship.

This year was Baylor’s third trip to the Final Four and first since 1950. When Drew, who had one year of head coaching experience, took over in Waco, Texas, before the 2003-04 season, the program was in shambles. The program was in trouble with the NCAA for several rules violations and was in the wake of one player killing a former teammate.

In his first three years, the Bears won a total of 21 games and just eight conference games. Since then, they have made either the NCAA Tournament or the NIT a total of 12 times, including four Sweet 16 appearances, an NIT title and an NIT runner-up finish. This title for Baylor was not a year in the making; it was nearly two decades in the making.