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Texas Tech Basketball Lands Top Grad Transfer Matt Mooney

By Matthew Conner

DURHAM, NC - DECEMBER 02: Matt Mooney
DURHAM, NC - DECEMBER 02: Matt Mooney /
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Monday, the Texas Tech basketball team added a huge piece to its 2018-19 team when grad transfer Matt Mooney announced that he will be a Red Raider next season.

Chris Beard got his man, though it took longer than many expected.  Almost two months after Texas Tech began to recruit him and following weeks of deliberation on the heels of his official visit to Lubbock, Matt Mooney, a talented graduate transfer who played at South Dakota last year, decided to become a Red Raider.

Mooney was also considering Creighton and Northwestern but could have gone to virtually any program in the nation.  That is because last season, Mooney was one of the most talented scorers in the nation putting up 18.7 points per game.

And it is that offensive prowess that made him the top offseason target of Chris Beard and the Red Raiders who are trying to replace 53.1 points per game from last season’s team.  With six of the team’s top eight scorers from last season no longer on the roster, Mooney figures to be a huge part of the Texas Tech game plan next season.

Most assume Mooney will step into the starting lineup and pair with sophomore-to-be Jarrett Culver to form a potent one-two punch at the top of the roster.  And the fact that Mooney played at a small mid-major school last year does not mean he can not perform against some of the top teams in the nation.

Last season, Mooney had 31 points on the road at TCU while dropping 23 on UCLA.  Against Duke, he scored only three points but he will get another shot at the Blue Devils in December.

Mooney hit 76 threes last season, 21 more than Culver’s team-leading 55 from last year.  He is also an 83% free-throw shooter which will help a team that struggled at the line at times in 2017-18 converting at just a 70% rate last year.

Now the excitement for Texas Tech fans lies in thinking about what next year’s team will look like.

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Mooney will likely be joined in the starting lineup by another grad transfer, center Tariq Owens of St. John’s who committed to Texas Tech earlier this offseason.  Along with Culver, this trio will form the core of the team next season.

That leaves two sports in the starting lineup to be filled and those will be won when practice begins this fall.  Returners Davide Morretti and Brandone Francis could start at point guard and forward respectively but that seems a bit unlikely as that would constitute a very small lineup with only Owens over 6-foot-6.

Norense Odiase, a senior forward could start at power forward to give the team extra rebounding and interior defense, especially when facing Big 12 teams with size inside.  That would be an interesting choice for Beard because it would leave sophomore Malik Ondigo as the only remaining big man on the bench and could put Tech in a tough spot if either Owens or Odiase were to get into early foul trouble.

Keep an eye on two freshmen signees.  Kyler Edwards, a point guard from Arlington, Texas is ranked the No. 4 player in the state and could be an option at point guard.  He is an explosive scorer and capable passer who could blossom by playing next to veterans like Culver and Mooney.

Another potential freshman starter could be forward Khavon Moore from Georgia.  As at top 50 player in the nation, the 6-foot-8 do-it-all player is the most highly rated player to ever sign with Texas Tech.  His presence in the lineup would give Texas Tech a similar feeling to last season when Beard relied on lineups consisting of multiple 6-foot-6 to 6-foot-9 players capable of filling all roles in a “position-less” scheme that paid dividends.

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Thankfully, Mooney is now squarely in the mix.  He will make the Red Raiders a true contender in the Big 12 and increases the likelihood of a return to the NCAA Tournament, which would be the first consecutive trips for the program since 2004-05.

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