The big story all tournament has been how unfair it was to the Texas A&M Aggies that they would have to face their Big XII conference rival Baylor Lady Bears for the right to go to the Final Four.
After one half, it appears that it might be more unfair to Baylor as TAMU is up 32-21 by using the same aggression on both ends of the floor.
Defensively, TAMU's combination of backcourt pressure and strong play on 6-foot-8 center Brittney Griner in the post created 10 turnovers and generally kept Baylor out of rhythm. But the bigger story is Baylor's inability to hit shots as a result of that lacking rhythm, shooting only 26.9 percent from the field in the first half while TAMU shot 41.2 percent.
Leading the way for TAMU was Sydney Carter who had a game-high 15 points in the first half, including 2-for-3 shooting from beyond the arc. Tyra White contributed seven rebounds as well, including all five of TAMU's offensive rebounds.
As might be expected, rebounding is where Baylor did well in the first half winning that battle 21-16, with Brittney Griner leading the way with a team-high six to go along with a team-high 10 points on 3-for-10 shooting. But a major factor for Baylor might not have been foul trouble for Baylor's versatile glue player Melissa Jones who scored the team's first four points and plays a major role in the team moving the ball. Given that TAMU has played Baylor well in previous games without Danielle Adams playing well - she also played limited minutes due to picking up two early fouls - Jones might be a bigger loss than Adams.