title. One year later, the Baylor Lady Bears basketball team beat Michigan State in the championship game and was subsequently named as the only women's team to be nominated for a 2005 "Best Team" ESPY. In 2012, the Baylor Lady Bears basketball team beat the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the NCAA National Championship; the first college basketball team to ever finish with a perfect 40–0 record. The Bears men's basketball team won the 2021 NCAA National Championship after beating the Gonzaga Bulldogs 86–70. It is the university's first men's national championship. The Baylor men's basketball team advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA 'March Madness' Championship tournament in 2010, 2012, and 2021. Under the direction of head coach Scott Drew, Baylor achieved a record of 121-55 (.688) between the 2008–2012 seasons and reached post-season play in four of those years. Four former Baylor basketball players were drafted in the first or second round of the NBA draft in the 2011 and 2012 seasons: Ekpe Udoh (first round) Perry Jones III Quincy Acy (second round) Quincy Miller (second round) Year of the Bear The Year of the Bear is the name given to the 2011–2012 year in Baylor Athletics. During this year, the Baylor Bears football team defeated Big 12 rival Oklahoma (No. 5 AP) for the first time ever, as well as future bitter Big 12 rival TCU (No. 14 AP), ending the season at 10-3 ranked at No. 12 (No. 13 AP). Junior quarterback Robert Griffin III gained recognition throughout the year and was awarded both the 2011 Heisman Trophy and National Player of the Year honors. Meanwhile, the men's basketball team started with 17 straight wins en route to a 30–8 season (the best in school history), a berth in the NCAA Elite Eight (its second in three seasons) and a No. 10 final ranking. The women's basketball team won the program's second national title, becoming the first basketball program – men's or women's – to finish 40–0. Center Brittney Griner was named the National Player of the Year, while Coach Kim Mulkey was awarded National Coach of the Year. The baseball team won 49 games (one shy of its all-time best), including a Big 12-record 18-game conference winning streak and school-record 24-game winning streak. Although ranked at No. 1 for two weeks (a program first), the baseball team finished in the NCAA Super Regionals and