Baylor coach Scott Drew says a culture of faith, selflessness and humility helped propel his team to the school’s first-ever national championship.
The Bears dominated No. 1 and previously unbeaten Gonzaga in the NCAA men’s championship game Monday night, 86-70, never trailing thanks to a stifling defense and a hot-shooting offense that tallied 10 3-pointers.
Gonzaga (31-1) entered the game as a slight favorite.
During a post-game nationally televised interview on CBS, Drew mentioned his faith – and the faith of his team – as a key to the team’s success. Baylor is a Christian university with a mission to “educate men and women for worldwide leadership and service by integrating academic excellence and Christian commitment within a caring community,” according to its website.
“Our guys have been motivated all year,” he said. “It’s a player-led team. We’re so blessed to have unbelievable upperclassmen in leadership. But we play with a culture of joy. And it’s Jesus, others, yourself. They came out and they fed off of each other. We got off to a great start. And then defensively, we’re pretty good.”
It was Baylor’s first national championship in basketball and its first Final Four appearance since 1950. Drew took over the program in 2003 following a scandal under the previous coach and guided the Bears through multiple years of probation. Baylor made the NCAA Tournament in Drew’s fifth season as coach and the Elite Eight twice (2010 and 2012) before this year’s breakout season.
Baylor has made the NCAA Tournament nine times under Drew. In its previous 90-plus years of basketball, it had made the tournament only four times.
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