1949–50 Baylor Bears basketball team

The 1949–50 Baylor Bears men's basketball team represented the Baylor University as a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1949–50 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by 7th-year head coach Bill Henderson, the team played their home games at Marrs McLean Gymnasium in Waco, Texas.

1949–50 Baylor Bears men's basketball
Southwest Conference champions
NCAA tournament, Fourth place
Conference	Southwest Conference
Record	14–13 (8–6 SWC)
Head coach	Bill Henderson (7th season)
Home arena	Marrs McLean Gymnasium

1949–50 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Baylor	8	–	4		.667			14	–	13		.519
Arkansas	8	–	4		.667			12	–	12		.500
SMU	7	–	5		.583			10	–	13		.435
Texas	6	–	6		.500			13	–	11		.542
Texas A&M	6	–	6		.500			10	–	14		.417
TCU	5	–	7		.417			13	–	11		.542
Rice	2	–	10		.167			8	–	15		.348
Rankings from AP poll

After a February 3 loss to Texas A&M, the Bears were 8–11 overall and 3–4 in SWC games. They ran off five consecutive wins to close the regular season and tie for the conference title with an 8–4 record. Due to a season sweep of Arkansas, Baylor was selected to play in the 8-team NCAA tournament. The Bears defeated BYU before losing to the No.1 ranked, eventual National champion Bradley Braves. Baylor would travel to New York City for the National consolation game, where they were defeated by No. 5 NC State to close the season with a 14–13 record.

This season marked the second Final Four for the Bears in three seasons (1948). Baylor would not return to the Final Four until winning the National championship in 2021.

Roster

1949–50 Baylor Bears men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown F 14 Bill DeWitt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) — Sr C Don Heathington 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) — Sr	Head coach Bill Henderson Assistant coach(es) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site city, state
Non-conference regular season
Dec 5, 1949*		North Texas	W 59–37	1–0	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Dec 8, 1949*		Texas Tech	W 58–37	2–0	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Dec 10, 1949*		at Stephen F. Austin	W 57–47	3–0	Nacogdoches, Texas
Dec 13, 1949*		Texas Wesleyan	W 52–51	4–0	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Dec 16, 1949*		at Kansas State	L 30–78	4–1	Nichols Hall  Manhattan, Kansas
Dec 17, 1949*		at Nebraska	L 55–69	4–2	Nebraska Coliseum  Lincoln, Nebraska
Dec 20, 1949*		vs. Tulane	L 53–86	4–3	San Antonio, Texas
Dec 27, 1949*		at Oklahoma City All-College Basketball Classic	L 32–43	4–4	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Dec 28, 1949*		vs. Vanderbilt All-College Basketball Classic	W 61–53	5–4	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Dec 29, 1949*		vs. Texas All-College Basketball Classic	L 41–49	5–5	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Dec 30, 1949*		vs. Saint Louis Cotton Bowl tournament	L 50–58	5–6	Dallas, Texas
Dec 31, 1949*		SMU Cotton Bowl tournament	L 37–61	5–7	Dallas, Texas
Southwest Conference regular season
Jan 7, 1950		Texas	W 49–43	6–7 (1–0)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Jan 14, 1950		at SMU	L 47–50	6–8 (1–1)	Perkins Gym  Dallas, Texas
Jan 18, 1950		at TCU	L 54–64	6–9 (1–2)	Will Rogers Memorial Center  Fort Worth, Texas
Jan 21, 1950		Rice	W 52–43	7–9 (2–2)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Jan 27, 1950		Texas A&M	L 45–56	7–10 (2–3)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Jan 28, 1950		at Arkansas	W 60–49	8–10 (3–3)	Men's Gymnasium  Fayetteville, Arkansas
Feb 3, 1950		Texas A&M	L 54–56	8–11 (3–4)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Feb 4, 1950		Arkansas	W 52–42	9–11 (4–4)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Feb 15, 1950		at Rice	W 60–59	10–11 (5–4)	Houston, Texas
Feb 21, 1950		at Texas	W 43–41	11–11 (6–4)	Gregory Gymnasium  Austin, Texas
Feb 25, 1950		TCU	W 57–42	12–11 (7–4)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Feb 28, 1950		SMU	W 70–61	13–11 (8–4)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
NCAA tournament
Mar 24, 1950*		vs. BYU National Quarterfinal – Elite Eight	W 56–55	14–11	Municipal Auditorium  Kansas City, Missouri
Mar 25, 1950*		vs. No. 1 Bradley National Semifinal – Final Four	L 66–68	14–12	Municipal Auditorium  Kansas City, Missouri
Mar 28, 1950*		vs. No. 5 NC State Third place game	L 41–53	14–13	Madison Square Garden  New York, New York
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.