Texas Tech Basketball Beats Kansas State For Sixth Win In A Row
The Texas Tech basketball team was victorious 66-47 Saturday night in Manhattan, Kansas to take sole possession of first place in the Big 12.
The road to the Big 12 regular season title looks like it might just go through Texas Tech. Following the Red Raiders’ 66-47 road win at Kansas State, Chris Beard’s team now sits alone atop the Big 12 standings with six games to play.
Keenan Evans’ 19 points led four Red Raiders in double figures but the story was once again the stifling Texas Tech defense. The Big 12’s best defense held Kansas State to its lowest point total of the season and forced the Wildcats to shoot just 29% from the floor.
"“Defensively we dialed in. I think we played our fullest 40 minutes of the year defensively.” Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard said."
The Wildcats jumped out to an early 11-5 lead with 14:21 to play in the first half. But The Red Raiders turned up the defense allowing Kansas State to score just 36 points the rest of the game.
The focal point of the Texas Tech defense was containing talented Kansas State junior Dean Wade. The versatile 6-foot-10 big man came into the game averaging 16.7 points per game and 18.2 points in his past four games.
But the athletic Texas Tech defense, which comes at opponents in waves, harassed Wade into 4-12 shooting including 0-3 from behind the arc. Wade finished with just 13 points of which only three came in the second half.
And it was in the second half that the Red Raiders took control of the game. Tech scored the first seven points of the second half to break open what had been a 27-27 tie.
The lock-down Red Raider defense forced 11 Kansas State turnovers in the second half while allowing just five successful field goal attempts. In the process, Tech continued its recent trend of defending the three-point shot to near perfection.
The Wildcats were just 3-17 (17.6%) from deep on the night. Meanwhile, Tech hit 7-15 from long range (46.7%)
Four of the Texas Tech three-pointers came via their own 6-foot-10 big man, Tommy Hamilton IV. The senior transfer from De Paul was a perfect 4-4 from long range as he put up a season-high 14 points off the bench. Hamilton’s big night was the reason Tech had an 18-7 advantage in bench points.
On a night when Big 12 contenders Kansas, West Virginia and Oklahoma all lost, the Red Raiders could have relaxed knowing that their seat atop the Big 12 would be secure for another game. However, that is not how Chris Beard coached teams think.
Instead, the Red Raiders were focused, disciplined and physical as they won their third-consecutive road game and took a huge step towards a conference crown. Texas Tech now returns to Lubbock for a Tuesday night game against a struggling Oklahoma team that has lost three in a row and four of its last five. The Sooners will bring a six-game road losing streak to Lubbock where the Red Raiders are undefeated on the season.
Next: Texas Tech Must Be Road Warriors To Win Big 12
Another win would virtually eliminate the Sooners from the Big 12 title race and set the Red Raiders up with sustained momentum as they continue their improbable run towards what would be the programs first conference title since 1996.