Baylor guards carry Bears into Sweet 16 for second time in three years

For the second time in three years, Baylor’s men’s basketball team has reached the Sweet 16.

Through the first two rounds, it’s been head coach Scott Drew’s guards who have led the Bears. Pierre Jackson and Brady Heslip combined for 35 points Thursday as Baylor slipped past No. 14 seed South Dakota State 68-60, and Heslip followed that up with a career-high 27 points (all on 3-pointers) Saturday as the Bears beat former Big 12-foe Colorado, the No. 11 seed, 80-63.

Heslip’s barrage of 3-pointers caught the nation’s eye, as the sophomore guard’s name was trending worldwide on Twitter Saturday night and fans across the country were copying Brady’s “3-point goggles” (pictured). The Bears were also featured on the front pages of sites like ESPN.com and NCAA.com throughout the evening Saturday, and CBSSports provided this great story on Heslip.

[LINKS: SDSU highlights and postgame interviews || CU highlights and postgame interviews || Heslip talks with ESPN’s Mike and Mike Monday morning || See all nine of Heslip’s 3’s vs CU || Photos from the SDSU, CU and the Bears’ time in Albuquerque]

Next up for Baylor: No. 10 seed Xavier, which reached the Sweet 16 by beating No. 7 seed Notre Dame and No. 15 seed Lehigh (who had already upset No. 2 seed Duke). The Bears and Musketeers will tip off Friday night in Atlanta’s Georgia Dome (6:15 p.m. CT on CBS); the winner will face either Indiana or No. 1 overall seed Kentucky on Sunday in the Elite Eight.

[AVAILABLE: Baylor 2012 Sweet 16 t-shirts and other Bears and Lady Bears gear from the Baylor Bookstore]

In the women’s bracket, the No. 1-seeded Lady Bears won their first-round match-up versus UC-Santa Barbara on Sunday, 81-40, and now will face No. 9 seed Florida Tuesday night (6 p.m. CT, ESPN2) for the right to move on to the Sweet 16.

Sic ’em, Baylor basketball!