Baylor men's basketball forward Jalen Bridges announced he will return to BU for his senior season after exploring professional options over the last few months.

The West Virginia transfer was an integral part of a Baylor squad that eclipsed 20 wins for the fifth-straight season and became one of just four schools to earn a three-seed or higher in three-straight NCAA Tournaments.

The senior was BU's leading rebounder a season ago, pulling down 5.6 boards per game and one of four Bears to average double-figure points (10.3). The Fairmont, W.V., native started all 34 games in his first season in Waco, leading the team in blocks 19 times and rebounds 13 times, both of which were team highs.

The versatile forward scored in double figures 19 times, including a career-high 28 in the Big 12 Championship quarterfinals against Iowa State. In that game, Bridges went 7-of-8 from deep, setting a single-game Big 12 tournament record for three-point field goal percentage (.875) while making 10 of his 11 shots overall.

Bridges returns to a roster that includes returners Dantwan Grimes, Caleb Lohner, Langston Love, Austin Sacks, Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua, and Joshua Ojianwuna. Those returners will be joined by a top-10 recruiting class featuring Ja'Kobe Walter, Miro Little and Yves Missi. The Bears also added a pair of experienced transfers in MAC Player of the Year, RayJ Dennis from Toledo and Jayden Nunn from VCU.

Baylor will open the season in a marquee matchup on Tuesday, Nov. 7, against the Auburn Tigers at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. The matchup will mark the second-straight season that Baylor has played at the Pentagon, topping Gonzaga in a 64-63 thriller as a part of the inaugural Peacock Classic.