Latest news with #RobertWrightIII
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
BYU five-star transfer wasn't chasing NIL, wanted NBA enviroment under Kevin Young
Robert Wright III was sold on BYU even before he got to Provo. While many following the program were shocked he took a spot with the Cougars, it wasn't driven by NIL. Deseret News reporter Jay Drew recently explained Wright's thoughts behind transferring to BYU "I kinda just thought that coming to BYU and being around guys who have seen the NBA at the highest level and just what they are building and everything, it is just, I didn't want to pass that up," Wright said. "It didn't really have too much to do with NIL.' Advertisement The former All-Big 12 honorable guard is coming off his freshman season at Baylor. He averaged 11.5 points, 4.2 assists, and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 41.4% from the field and 34.2% from beyond the arc in 35 games for the Bears. NIL money wasn't the driving force, but it didn't hurt either. Wright reportedly pulled in $3.5 million to join Dybantsa and the Cougars. He'll play with the top recruit in the nation with a bright NBA future in 2026, along with Tater Tot King Richie Saunders and Keba Keita. Two key pieces from BYU's Sweet 16 run with Egor Demin testing the NBA waters. 'There were a lot of ups and downs, just on the basketball side," Wright told Drew. "I had a lot of fun at Baylor. I appreciate their fanbase and everything like that. But I just felt like I was ready for something different ... It wasn't personal." Wright and Dybantsa have history together in a few circles. They're both top recruits separated by a year and will now make BYU a force in the new era of college basketball. Add in Kevin Young and his NBA-style coach staff and the sky is the limit in the Big 12 and beyond.
USA Today
23-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
March Madness: Baylor vs. Duke odds, picks and predictions
The No. 9 seed Baylor Bears (20-14) and the No. 1 seed Duke Blue Devils (32-3) meet Sunday at Lenovo Center in Raleigh for an NCAA Tournament East Region second-round game. Tip-off is scheduled for approximately 2:40 p.m. ET (CBS). Let's analyze BetMGM Sportsbook's lines around the Baylor vs. Duke odds, and make our expert college basketball picks and predictions. The Bears ousted No. 8 seed Mississippi State 75-72 in a Friday first-round tilt, winning as 1-point underdogs with the Under (148) cashing. Baylor hit 43.5% (27-for-62) from the field, including 25.0% (6-for-24) from behind the 3-point line. Freshman G Robert Wright III scored a game-high 19 points, while fellow frosh G VJ Edgecombe added 14 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, while grabbing 5 boards. Baylor is on a 3-0 against-the-spread (ATS) run, which included covers in their 2 Big 12 Tournament games. It's a stark contrast from how the Bears finished the regular season as they went 3-5 straight up (SU) and 0-6-2 ATS in their final 8 games. The Blue Devils had very little trouble with 16th-seeded Mount St. Mary's out of the MAAC Friday. Duke won 93-49, covering as a 32-point favorite with the Over (140.5) slightly coming through. The Blue Devils hit 50.0% (35-for-70) from the field, and 37.8% (14-for-37) from the 3-point line. G Tyrese Proctor was good for 19 points, including 6-of-8 from behind the arc. Duke, No. 1 in the USA TODAY Sports Men's Basketball Coaches Poll, has won 12 in a row since a 77-71 loss at Clemson Feb. 8, and it is 9-2 ATS in the past 11 contests with the Over going 8-3. Duke has also won 5 in a row on neutral floors — with a 3-2 ATS showing. Stream select live college basketball games and full replays: Get ESPN+ Baylor vs. Duke odds Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Saturday at 11:05 p.m. ET. Moneyline (ML) : Baylor +575 (bet $100 to win $575) | Duke -900 (bet $900 to win $100) : Baylor +575 (bet $100 to win $575) | Duke -900 (bet $900 to win $100) Against the spread : Baylor +12.5 (-115) | Duke -12.5 (-105) : Baylor +12.5 (-115) | Duke -12.5 (-105) Over/Under (O/U): 143.5 (O: -115 | U: -105) Baylor vs. Duke picks and predictions Prediction Duke 77, Baylor 66 Backing Duke (-900), risking 9 times the potential return, is not a recommended betting strategy. A $100 wager returns just $11.11 of profit. That's not worth playing straight up or part of a multi-leg wager. PASS. BAYLOR +12.5 (-115) is a solid play catching all of these points. The Bears have the dynamic duo of Edgecombe and Wright, tremendous young building blocks. Are they ready to etch their names into Baylor lore with an upset of the No. 1 seed? It's unlikely. But, Baylor certainly has the depth to make Duke work hard to advance to the Sweet 16. The Blue Devils are 1-1 SU/ATS against Big 12 teams this season. UNDER 143.5 (-105) is the lean, but go with a half-unit play at most. The Over cashed in the Blue Devils' game against Mount St. Mary's, but the Under is 2-1 in their past 3 games, and 3-2 in the previous 5 outings. The Bears will try to slow the tempo to a crawl. The Under is 6-1 in their past 7. They limited the opposition to 72 or fewer points in 6 of those 7 outings. Play our free daily Pick'em Challenge and win! Play now! For more sports betting picks and tips, check out and BetFTW. Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter/X. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter/X and like us on Facebook. College sports coverage from USA TODAY Sports Media Group: Alabama / Auburn / Clemson / Colorado / Duke / Florida / Florida State / Georgia / Iowa / Kentucky / LSU / Michigan / Michigan State / Nebraska / North Carolina / Notre Dame / Ohio State / Oklahoma / Oregon / Penn State / Tennessee / Texas / Texas A&M / UCLA / USC / Washington / Wisconsin / College Sports Wire / High School / Recruiting
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
No. 9 Baylor survives and advances to Round of 32
WACO, Texas (FOX 44) — The entire city of Waco held their breath collectively as a resilient Bears team survived a late Mississippi State charge to escape the Round of 64 with a 75-72 win over No. 8 Mississippi State. The Bears took a 37-32 lead into the halftime break, shooting 39 percent from the field on 13-33 from the field. Baylor widened that lead in the second half, extending the Bears advantage to double digits but the Bulldogs would not go away, cutting the deficit to just one point with 1:19 remaining. Two clutch free throws by Robert Wright III extended Baylor's advantage to three with 42.3 seconds left before the Bulldogs cut it to one. Two more clutch free throws from V.J. Edgecombe put the Bears up three, giving the Bulldogs a chance to tie with under 10 seconds remaining. Mississippi State had a look but Claudell Harris Jr.'s three pointer fell short off the rim but a missed free throw from Norchad Omier gave the Bulldogs .2 seconds to get a shot off which proved to be not enough time, sealing a narrow Baylor win. This is the sixth-consecutive Round of 32 appearance for Baylor Men's Basketball as the Bears advance to play the winner of No. 1 Duke/No. 16 Mount St. Mary's on Sunday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
