Baylor Proud

Clear your calendars for Tuesday night: Baylor is playing for another national championship.

For the second time in seven years, the Lady Bear basketball team has reached the NCAA tournament title game — this time, with a perfect record on the line. Undefeated Baylor will attempt to become the first team in NCAA basketball history (men’s or women’s) to win 40 games in a season Tuesday night when BU faces Notre Dame in Denver (7:30 p.m. CT, ESPN).

[LINKS: Highlights, photos and ESPN analysis from win over Stanford || Mulkey diagnosed with Bell's Palsy || Bobby Knight on Griner || RG3 on ESPN pre-game || Features on Mulkey from USA Today and The New York Times || Houston Chronicle: "Could Griner be the best of all time?" || Austin American-Statesman: "From RG3 to hoops, Baylor sports are in the midst of a great revival" || Photos from Friday and Saturday pre-game activities]

With Heisman winner Robert Griffin III, President Ken Starr and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice among the crowd of 19,028, No. 1 overall seed Baylor fought off a tough challenge from No. 2-ranked Stanford Sunday night, pulling away midway through the second half to win 59-47. All year, Kim Mulkey (the 2012 Associated Press Coach of the Year) has insisted that her Lady Bears are more than just a one-person team, that her team’s success isn’t completely dependent on AP National Player of the Year Brittney Griner.

Stanford swarmed Griner all night, challenging other Baylor players to step up, and they did. While Griner recorded “only” 13 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks, senior reserve guard Terran Condrey came off the bench to match Griner’s team-high 13 points (just the fifth double-digit scoring effort in Condrey’s four years at BU). Forward Destiny Williams led all players with 10 rebounds, and the Lady Bears’ team defense held Stanford (the fifth-highest scoring team in the nation) to a season-low 47 points.

[AVAILABLE: Pre-order Baylor Press' book on the Lady Bears' 2011-12 season || Get Lady Bears gear from the Baylor Bookstore || BU men's basketball's "One Team, One God, One Goal" t-shirt also available]

A large Baylor contingent was loud and proud at the Pepsi Center in Denver Sunday night, and more will likely join them for Tuesday. BU fans were also gathered all around the country for Final Four watch parties, and will do so again Tuesday night for the championship. (Visit baylor.edu/nation Monday or Tuesday for a complete list of gatherings.)

Sic ’em, Lady Bears!

Denver-area Bears, get ready — the Lady Bears are headed your way.

Wins in the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight — Baylor’s 37th and 38th of the season without a loss — have propelled the women’s basketball team to its second Final Four in three years. The No. 1-ranked Lady Bears will face fellow No. 1 seed Stanford on Sunday in the national semifinals with an eye toward claiming the program’s second national championship.

Destiny Williams (18 points vs. Georgia Tech in Saturday’s Sweet 16 match-up) and Odyssey Sims (27 points Monday night vs. Tennessee in the Elite Eight) vied for weekend MVP honors, but the best player in women’s college basketball, Brittney Griner, was again the star of the show.

[LINKS: Highlights and photos vs. Georgia Tech || Highlights and photos vs. Tennessee || ESPN breaks down the dunk || BG off the court, kayaking and longboarding || ESPNW: "Mulkey's life a highlight reel of Title IX success"]

In an 83-68 win over the Yellow Jackets, Griner poured in 35 points to go along with 10 rebounds and six blocks, but drew the most eyes when she threw down a two-handed dunk in the second half — her second dunk in as many games. Then against the Lady Vols, the junior just missed a triple-double with 23 points, 15 rebounds and nine blocks as Baylor won 77-58 in what could be the final game for legendary Tennessee coach Pat Summitt, who is suffering from early onset dementia.

Of course, the week couldn’t go by without more honors for the Lady Bears. Griner and Sims were named among the 12 finalists for the State Farm Wade Trophy, given annually to the national player of the year. Head coach Kim Mulkey was announced by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association as one of eight finalists for the WBCA National Coach of the Year award. And Griner’s two dunks were named SportsCenter’s No. 3 highlight of the entire NCAA tournament (men’s or women’s).

[AVAILABLE: Lady Bears Final Four t-shirts (here, here and here) and other Lady Bears gear from the Baylor Bookstore || Pre-order Baylor Press' book on the Lady Bears' 2011-12 season]

As I write, a crowd is expectantly gathering at the Waco airport’s Texas Aero building to greet the team when it arrives home; the Lady Bears are expected back right around midnight late Monday/early Tuesday.

Sic ’em in the Final Four, Lady Bears!

For the fourth year in a row — and seventh time in head coach Kim Mulkey’s 12 seasons at Baylor — the Lady Bears are headed to the Sweet 16.

The No. 1 overall seed in this year’s NCAA women’s tournament, Baylor beat No. 16 seed UC-Santa Barbara by 41 in the first round, then methodically worked past No. 9 seed Florida 76-57 in the second round. But the story getting the most attention Tuesday night was Brittney Griner’s dunk.

The 6-foot-8 junior became just the second women’s basketball player ever to dunk in the NCAA tournament, calmly putting down a drop-step slam early in the second half. The dunk was the sixth of Griner’s career, one shy of the NCAA women’s record held by former Tennessee star Candace Parker.

[LINKS: See Griner's dunk vs. Florida || Obama picks Lady Bears to win it all || Highlights vs. UCSB and Mulkey postgame interview || Highlights vs. Florida and postgame analysis from ESPN (including Trey Wingo, BA '85) || Lady Bears enjoy the day off between games || Griner shows what it's like to fly with the team || Photos from the UCSB and UF games]

Next up for Mulkey’s squad: No. 4 seed Georgia Tech. The Lady Bears and Yellow Jackets will square off Saturday in Des Moines, Iowa; as I’m writing this, no word yet on game time or television coverage. Stay tuned to BaylorBears.com or @BaylorProud on Twitter for those details once they are announced. [3/21 update: Baylor will face Georgia Tech Saturday at 1 p.m. CT on ESPN.]

[AVAILABLE: Pre-order Baylor Press' book on the Lady Bears' 2011-12 season || Lady Bears Big 12 Champion and Road to the Final Four gear]

With such success has also come a host of honors for Baylor… First, President Barack Obama picked the Lady Bears to win it all in his bracket. Then Griner and Mulkey were each named one of four finalists for national awards — Griner for the Naismith Trophy as national player of the year, and Mulkey for the Naismith Coach of the Year. [Learn how you can vote Griner for Naismith here.] And last but not least, Director of Athletics Ian McCaw was announced as one of five finalists for SportsBusinessJournal’s Athletic Director of the Year — a truly deserving honor, given the year Baylor Athletics is enjoying.

Sic ’em, Baylor women’s basketball!