Battle 4 Atlantis 2021: Teams, Schedule, Live Stream, Bracket, TV Info

The Baylor Bears face the first true tests of their men's basketball title defense at the Battle 4 Atlantis. 

They have put up four nonconference victories to prepare for the eight-team tournament in the Bahamas. Their lone win over a power conference side was an 86-48 blowout of the Stanford Cardinal, which are not expected to compete for much in the Pac-12. 

Baylor opens its slate in the Bahamas against the Arizona State Sun Devils in one of four first-round games that will take place on Wednesday. 

The Auburn Tigers, Michigan State Spartans, Syracuse Orange and UConn Huskies are among the notable programs spread across the bracket for the three-day tournament. 

The Top 25 clash between Auburn and UConn is expected to be the best matchup of the opening round. They reside on the same side of the bracket as Michigan State and the Loyola (Chicago) Ramblers, with the VCU Rams, Syracuse and Arizona State in the bottom half alongside Baylor. 

Battle 4 Atlantis Schedule

Butch Dill/Associated Press

Wednesday, November 24

Michigan State vs. Loyola Chicago (noon ET, ESPN)

Auburn vs. UConn (2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)

Syracuse vs. VCU (7 p.m. ET, ESPN2)

Baylor vs. Arizona State (9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2)

Thursday, November 25

Michigan State/Loyola Chicago winner vs. Auburn/UConn winner (noon ET, ESPN)

Michigan State/Loyola Chicago loser vs. Auburn/UConn loser (2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN or ESPN2)

Syracuse/VCU winner vs. Baylor/Arizona State winner (7 p.m. ET, ESPN or ESPN2)

Syracuse/VCU loser vs. Baylor/Arizona State loser (9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2 or ESPNU)

Friday, November 26

Championship Game (11 a.m. ET, ESPN)

Third-place game (1:30 p.m. ET, ESPN or ESPN2)

Fifth-place game (4:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2 or ESPNU)

Seventh-place game (7 p.m. ET, ESPN2 or ESPNU)

All games can live-streamed on ESPN.com and the ESPN app. 

Baylor Faces First True Nonconference Tests

Jerry Larson/Associated Press

If you watched Baylor's first four games, you would think it hasn't missed a beat from its title-winning season.

However, much has changed with the Bears' roster. Davion Mitchell, MaCio Teague and Mark Vital have all departed the program for the professional ranks. 

Sophomore guard LJ Cryer took over the title of top scorer. He has three 20-point performances and is shooting 63 percent from the field. 

Kendall Brown, Matthew Mayer, James Akinjo and Jeremy Sochan have filled in beneath Cryer in the scoring department to give Baylor five players who average over double digits. 

The players in the Baylor system are different, but the style of play is the same. The Bears stifle opponents with fantastic defense and spread the ball around to a handful of versatile scorers. 

They will be put to the test by the athleticism of Arizona State on Wednesday. If they win, they could face Syracuse's stingy zone defense. 

A matchup with one of Michigan State, Auburn or UConn should await Baylor in the championship game. 

The trio of high-profile matchups allows Baylor to increase its intensity ahead of clashes against the Villanova Wildcats and Oregon Ducks in the middle of December. 

Baylor then has to embark on the difficult Big 12 schedule when the calendar flips to 2022. 

The tough games in the Bahamas should allow Scott Drew to see where his squad is at. And if it passes those tests, its title credentials will only grow. 

Auburn-UConn Clash Headlines Opening Round

Butch Dill/Associated Press

Auburn and UConn started their respective seasons off well to set up an anticipated clash on Wednesday afternoon.

Bruce Pearl's Tigers held three opponents to an average of 57 points per game. They come into the Atlantis  tournament with three players who average over 11 points per contest. 

UConn handled four weaker mid-major rivals through strong defense of its own. The Huskies gave up 51.3 points per game in the first two weeks of play. 

They rank in the top 20 in eight defensive categories on KenPom.com, including adjusted efficiency and effective field-goal percentage, while Auburn sits in the top 70 in eight defensive stats. 

The talent on both rosters will try to prove those numbers were a bit skewed because of the mismatches both programs faced. 

Adama Sanogo and Tyrese Martin both average over 13.5 points and six rebounds per contest for UConn, while Auburn freshman is averaging 13.3 points and 8.7 rebounds per contest. 

The rebounding battle could determine which team heads into the winner's bracket, while the loser could easily finish 2-1 and feel good about itself going into December. 

Statistics obtained from KenPom.com.