How sweet it is: Baylor Scheierman still dancing

There was some debate over the weekend about which Baylor was better. Baylor Scheierman or the Baylor Bears?
Heck, Baylor joked in a press conference over the weekend that a lot of fans would have his name on their T-shirts, no matter which side they were supporting.
Yet, Baylor Scheierman is still on the dance floor.
For the second time in the last three seasons, Creighton is headed to the Sweet 16 after a convincing 85-76 win over Baylor in the round of 32 Sunday in Denver.
Sure, we’ve all seen Baylor Scheierman smile. But the look on his face as the game ended Sunday was just a bit more special. He’s still playing in the tournament he grew up dreaming about participating in from his driveway.
Neither of his stat lines from the first two games are going to stand out and wow you. But, he made several huge plays that without them, Creighton may be singing a different tune.
Take for example the Bluejays’ opening-round win over NC State. With the game still very much in question, Baylor buried a pair of triples and sealed the deal with a kiss to the fans.
That’s just Baylor being Baylor.
“It was just an in-the-moment thing,” Scheierman said to reporters afterward. “It wasn’t necessarily to anybody.”
He couldn’t find his shot for most of the previous 37 minutes of that game. The team struggled, too, only making 3 of 20 threes.
“Yeah, obviously when shots aren’t going, that can be frustrating, but you’ve got to find different ways to impact the game,” Scheierman said after the NC State game. “And ultimately my teammates and my coaches have confidence that shots are going to fall eventually.”
Baylor also mentioned after the game that it’s hard not to get excited about playing in the greatest basketball tournament in the world.
And he never doubted himself, even after all those consecutive missed 3s.
“Yeah, it’s March Madness. It’s a great crowd, and atmosphere. And growing up that’s what you dream of playing in,” he said.
Before Sunday’s game against Baylor, Mr. Scheierman told reporters that, if anything, his goal was to prove to people that he could play defense. That was mostly proven true, slowing down a potent Bears backcourt attack.
“With our defense, it’s not necessarily just one-on-one. It’s all five guys working together,” Scheierman said. “Teams have targeted me in the past, and I feel like for the most part, I’ve done a pretty good job this year, and I’m just continuing to prove that as I go along.”
Baylor extended his now Creighton school record streak of 35 consecutive games with made threes, which is also 45 in all.
He nailed a three-pointer to cap off a terrific first half, leading Baylor by 10.
Mr. Scheierman didn’t score in the second half, but his huge moments came playing quarterback for the Jays.
As time ran low, Baylor slapped a full-court press on Creighton. The Bluejays found an easy path to breaking the press with Scheierman making crisp, hot passes, many of them half-court or longer.
Scheierman found gaps in the press from the boundary, seeing things many others wouldn’t.
That’s the quarterback in him.
***
Are you smarter than a Corgi? I’m not, apparently.
Frank the Corgi, the third occupant of the BigRich household, made waves throughout the entire first round of March Madness, correctly picking several opening round upsets.
Furman? Frank called it.
Princeton? Frank called it.
Farleigh Dickinson? A freakin’ 16 seed? Frank called that one too.
I’m sure you’re all mightily intrigued on Frank’s strategy. He watches as much college basketball as I let him, but even these correct picks are disgusting.
The selection process is simple. Frank is all about  fetch, albeit the drop on the return needs a bit of work.
So, we use two balls down the long hallway. The balls are exactly the same, except for a couple lines on one ball to signify a difference for me.
The normal-looking ball was the higher seed pick and the marked ball was the lower seed. The ball he returned to me was his pick.
With this strategy, Frank was correct on the three biggest upsets of the tournament. Unfortunately for Frank, things went a bit sideways after Friday night.
Three of his final four teams are out, including his predicted champion of Baylor. I couldn’t believe it, really, considering he has watched more Creighton basketball than most with how much the Jays have been on TV in our house.
He also selected Marquette and Arizona State to make the final four, though neither survived the weekend. His other choice was Houston, who he had in the finals. We’ll wait and see on that.
He did not, however, have enough gumption to pick Princeton through to the Sweet 16, where the Ivy Leaguers will meet Baylor Scheierman Friday night.  
Honestly, if I could have combined Frank’s correct upset picks with my “normal” winners, it could have been darn near perfect.
It’s not a fluke, either. Frank has finished second in back-to-back years in my football bowl game challenge at the house. I beat him a year, ago but he waxed my you-know-what this year.
And yes, to the winner goes the spoils. While I’m obligated to pay his entry fee, when he wins, he really wins.
Treatos, bones and more. He got his fair share of enjoyment off those three upset selections in the opening round. Don’t ask him, though, because he never thinks it’s enough.
What can I say? Frank knows sports. And before the weekend started, I was convinced that Frank knew March.
But, March always wins. Frank learned that the hard way, like the rest of us.
RICHARD RHODEN can be reached at sports@hamilton.net.