How to Watch (and bet)
Date: Sunday, 11/9/25
Tip-Off Time: 5:30 pm PT
TV: ESPN
Radio: Huskies Gameday App, Sports Radio KJR
Location: Seattle, WA
Betting Line: Washington Huskies +5.5
Baylor Bears 2025-26 Statistics:
Record: 1-0
Points For per Game: 96.0 (26th)
Points Against per Game: 81.0 (225th)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 118.0 (18th)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 96.0 (29th)
Strength of Schedule: 225th
Baylor Bears Key Players:
G-Obi Agbim, Sr. 6’3, 183: 16.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 5.0 apg, 45.5% FG, 44.4% 3pt, 100.0% FT
Agbim transferred in from Wyoming where he averaged 17.6 points and 3.4
assists per game on 43.7% 3-point shooting last year after coming up from the JUCO level. He’s maybe a little more of a combo guard than a true point but is still a decent facilitator and is a knockdown shooter. In their opener he took 9 shots from deep and just 2 inside the arc so whoever is guarding Agbim on the perimeter has to be ready that he could open fire at any point.
G- Cameron Carr, So. 6’5, 175: 28.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.0 apg, 64.3% FG, 50.0% 3pt, 77.8% FT
Carr was the #56 national recruit coming out of high school and then spent two seasons at Tennessee where he played just a combined 101 minutes. Then he had a ridiculous coming out party in the opener against UTRGV that has him 2nd in the NPOY race at KenPom (through the sample size of one game). Carr scored from every level in that game, drew fouls, and blocked 3 shots as a 6’5 wing. We’ll see how real the performance was but if the rest of the season he’s anything close to what he was on Monday then Baylor’s ceiling raises a level.
G- Tounde Yessoufou, Fr. 6’6, 215: 24.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 1.0 apg, 62.5% FG, 40.0% 3pt, 66.7% FT
If there was going to be a breakout wing most would’ve projected it to be Yessoufou who was a 5-star and the #14 ranked true freshman in the 2025 class. He has an NBA body right away and is generally viewed as an athletic but slightly undersized forward more than a big shooting guard. And Yessoufou was only the 2nd banana because Carr went absolutely nuts. On most nights a 24 and 7 on 63% shooting would more than qualify as the most impressive debut.
F- Dan Skillings Jr., Sr. 6’6, 210: 15.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 3.0 apg, 50.0% FG, 33.3% 3pt, 50.0% FT
Skillings transferred in from Cincinnati where he averaged 9.2 points and 3.8 rebounds per game last year. Those numbers were down from a breakout sophomore campaign where he averaged 12.9 points and 6.4 rebounds. Skillings is a bit undersized as a power forward and is an underwhelming shooter having made between 26% and 30% of his long-range shots each of the last 3 years. He rebounded effectively on Monday but we’ll see how he copes against the size of Washington’s front court if he is playing the 4.
F- Michael Rataj, Sr. 6’8, 230: 5.0 ppg, 97.0 rpg, 3.0 apg, 16.7% FG, 25.0% 3pt, 33.3% FT
This should be a familiar name for Husky fans as Rataj transferred from Oregon State where he averaged 16.9 points and 7.2 rebounds on 35.1% 3-point shooting last year. If he ends up matching up against Hannes Steinbach it will be a German vs. German battle. Rataj is capable of being a small ball 5 that can stretch the floor but he still prefers to work near the basket. He’s not a great rim protector and is an average rebounder but his passing and shooting threat make him a weapon on offense even if he had a poor offensive game in their opener.
The Outlook
The importance of continuity has been extra-emphasized in the modern era of college basketball where it has tended to be lacking since the advent of the transfer portal. Baylor will be an interesting test case as they are guaranteed to finish at best tied for last in the country in minutes continuity at 0.0%. Every single player from last year’s Baylor roster which earned a #9 seed in the NCAA tournament is gone (including #3 draft pick VJ Edgecombe who has been an early revelation in the NBA) and Scott Drew put forth a hard reset on the program in year 23 as the head coach.
Things started off on a mostly positive note in game #1 as Baylor’s offense absolutely hummed to the tune of 96 points while shooting 60% on 2-pointers and 36.7% on 3-pointers. They dominated on the glass in that game and currently lead the country rebounding 93.8% of opponent’s misses. They allowed UTRGV to shoot 56% inside the arc and 41% from deep though which raises eyebrows but still managed a 15 point win.
Given the complete turnover, it shouldn’t necessarily be a surprise that the depth isn’t quite there for Baylor yet. They played just 7 players more than 8 minutes per game and their starting guards/wings all played 30+ minutes per game. That’s partly because the Bears are without 7’0 High Point transfer Juslin Bodo Bodo who injured his arm in the offseason and is expected to miss a large chunk of the season. Bodo Bodo was the Big South DPOY averaging 8.4 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game and had finished top 2 in the country in offensive rebounding rate each of the past two seasons.
Without him, there’s not a traditional rebounder/shot blocker on the roster which might give Washington a chance to dominate inside. The 6’8 Rataj and 6’9 Caden Powell (Rice transfer) split the center minutes against UTRGV in their opener. Powell is the better rebounder/shot blocker and plays exclusively around the rim but if he gets in foul trouble then the paint is wide open for Washington. Three-star 6’10 true freshman Mayo Sosoye is the only other center on the roster but it seems like he may be headed for a redshirt.
Washington is of course dealing with injury concerns of their own. Desmond Claude has yet to make his season debut due to an ankle injury sustained last month. Maybe he comes out and gives it a go in a high profile game. But my guess is if he couldn’t at least play 10-15 minutes on Thursday against Denver it likely means he won’t be ready to play against the step up in competition that Baylor represents just a few days later. My guess is they give him the extra 5 days to heal before playing at Washington State next Friday.
This game likely comes down to who is better able to assert their style of play. Danny Sprinkle wants to play two of the Steinbach/Kepnang/Sommerville trio at almost all times to control the glass and draw fouls. We may see Baylor counter with some minutes of Rataj at the 4 and Powell at the 5 but they don’t have the depth to do that all game. Washington ended up hardly playing Kepnang in the 2nd half trying to go a little smaller to match Denver on Thursday night. If the Huskies do that again then it’s a sign that Baylor’s wings are dominating the game and probably does not bode well for the Dawgs.
I can definitely see a version of this game where Washington prevails. If Carr/Yessoufou/Skillings combine to shoot closer to 30% from deep than 50% it will go a long way. If Steinbach is the best player on the floor and the Huskies are able to get Baylor’s bigs in foul trouble while hammering the paint there’s a clear road to victory.
But I need to see it before I’m quite willing to go there. Baylor hasn’t played since Monday while Washington will be travelling across multiple time zones on less than 72 hours rest with two players that averaged 15+ points per game likely unavailable (Claude maybe, Ognacevic definitely). If this were being played in Seattle then I take the Dawgs but I’ll expect Washington to keep it close before Baylor pulls away in the final 10 minutes.
Prediction
Washington Huskies– 77, Baylor Bears- 84
Season picks: 2-0 straight up, 1-1 against the spread
