Sorry, Samhan: Bears shut up big man
All week, he talked. And we, the media, ate it up, unable to get enough of Omar Samhan.
He talked about President Obama. He talked about Taylor Swift. He talked about toddlers. He talked about Twitter.
The Saint Mary’s center talked so much he referred to himself, on several occasions, in the third person, which, as we know, is the domain of the very great or the very delusional.
Samhan, bless his heart, is neither.
What he is, though, is fun, and he was a nice distraction, a clever diversion from the usually dull pre-game buildup at these events. And now, after a complete and thorough 72-49 demolition Friday at Reliant Stadium at the hands of No. 3 Baylor, Samhan and the rest of the Gaels will fade once again into the periphery, a satisfying tale with a tidy ending.
It’s on to the Elite Eight for the first time for the Bears, who heard a little too much about their opponent this week, so much so it’s amazing that they failed to be baited into a battle of sound bites.
“Nothing changes,” Baylor forward Ekpe Udoh said Thursday. “We’re here on a business trip, so we’re going to try to pick up these two wins.”
One down, maybe another to go.
And Baylor left little doubt Friday, storming out to a 46-17 halftime lead that didn’t even feel that close.
The Bears drilled six of their 10 three-point attempts, including two by the incomparable LaceDarius Dunn (game-high 23 points), who has to be the nation’s finest contested shot-maker. On defense, the Gaels’ guards -- St. Mary’s only chance with Baylor able to contend with Samhan because of its length in the frontcourt -- struggled against the Bears’ zone and made just two of their 12 threes.
Overall, the Gaels’ shooting percentage was 35.2.
“When you hold a team as good as Saint Mary’s to 35 percent, you’re doing something well,” Baylor coach Scott Drew said.
It was almost over shortly after it started, or at least it felt that way. When the final buzzer sounded, making everything official, senior point guard Tweety Carter (14 points) conducted a radio interview courtside and then hollered in the direction of a large section of Baylor fans. He was enjoying this, but the last time out, he admitted he didn’t know how to react.
“I can’t enjoy it that much,” he said. “Like at the last game we played against Old Dominion – you know, I wanted to just cry, jump, do something. But at the same time, I know we didn’t come here to just play in the Sweet 16."
“We came here to win games.”
We get it, Tweety. The message was there all along, but maybe we weren’t listening. We were consumed with all things Omar, oblivious to how good Baylor, which won its school-record 28th game Friday, really is.
The Bears are tremendous. Dangerous, really, and their season continues.
“We didn’t listen to any of that talk, man,” Udoh said Friday. “We know how good we are.”
St. Mary’s (28-6), the 10th seed, heads back to Moraga, Calif., but can do so feeling little shame. The Gaels were ousted by a superior foe, which is why Baylor didn’t crow or do any talking of its own.
But that doesn’t mean its supporters resisted the same urges.
“I don’t hear you talking, Samhan,” a Baylor fan mockingly taunted the St. Mary’s big man. “Say something, Samhan.”
Samhan didn’t have much to say, during the game or afterwards – he apparently ducked out on media interviews.
He scored 15 points, 12 in the second half, and grabbed nine rebounds, but he was mostly a non-factor. Afterwards, he sat on the bench, dejected, his college career over. Solemnly, he shook hands with the Bears, bending down to embrace Carter.
But others – on Twitter, no less – said plenty.
“Quincy Acy scoring on Omar Samhan w/that kind of ease is just flat out insulting,” said Jonathan Givony, founder of DraftExpress.com, a Web site dedicated to college and professional basketball scouting. “Fifteen minutes of fame are over (he used it well)…”
Harsh, but probably true.
Jeffrey Martin is a contributor to FOXSports.com. He also writes for the Houston Chronicle. He can be reached at reyheath@gmail.com.