Texas Tech basketball: Strong 2nd half efforts fueling Red Raiders’ success

One of the keys to the Texas Tech basketball team’s 15-1 start has been the Red Raiders’ ability to play well in the second half as they crank up the intensity.

Coaches in any sport are known to preach about the importance of finishing the game strong.  Certainly, that is a message that Chris Beard’s Texas Tech basketball team has heard and taken to heart this year as the Red Raiders have been a fantastic second-half team.

Though 16 games, Tech is heading into halftime averaging a lead of 6.5 points per game.  But in the second half of games, Tech’s average scoring margin increases to 10.6 points.

What’s more, the Red Raiders are undefeated this year when trailing at intermission.  In those five  games, Tech’s average margin in the second half is an impressive 13.6 points.

In game four, Tech played an awful opening 20 minutes against USC and entered the locker room down 32-23.  But in the second half, the Red Raiders hit 16 of 19 shots to outscore the Trojans by 24 points.

When taking on Memphis in Miami, the Red Raiders again struggled to begin the game and found themselves down 37-28 at the break.  But behind Tariq Owens six second half blocks (part of a school record eight), Tech reeled off a 33-10 run in the second half to down the Tigers 78-67.

Life in the Big 12 has put Tech’s ability to come back in the second half to the test.  Tech has trailed in three of the four conference games it has played thus far but has found a way to prevail each time.

Against West Virginia, the Red Raiders were atrocious in the first half scoring just 20 points to trail by two after twenty minutes.  In that game, Jarrett Culver was held scoreless in the first half shooting 0-6 but he took over after the break scoring 18 points to lead the Red Raiders to their first ever win in Morgantown, 62-59.

A week later, Oklahoma came to Lubbock and out-played the Red Raiders in the first half to lead 35-31.  But Tech was able to pull away late thanks to its trademark defense and some timely shooting en route to a 66-59 win.

And Saturday in Austin, Tech was again sluggish in the first half trailing 30-26 at the half.  But Matt Mooney scored 14 of his 22 points after the break as Tech was able to secure a 68-62 win.

What makes Tech’s second-half excellence rather unusual is that the Red Raiders are not a particularly deep team.  Relying on just an eight-man rotation, Tech is not going to wear teams down by sending waves of fresh players at them.

In fact, on two occasions, Tech’s depth has been an issue in Big 12 play.  At West Virginia, the Red Raiders had three players, Tariq Owens, Norense Odiase and Kyler Edwards foul out.  But even when faced with having to play without Owens for the final 7:39 and Odiase for the final 2:21, Tech was the better team down the stretch making just enough plays.

More from Wreck'Em Red

• Texas Tech football: Red Raider fans need to know about these Mountaineers
• Texas Tech football: Red Raiders land first commit for class of 2025
• Texas Tech football: Why have the Red Raiders struggled on the road under McGuire?
• Texas Tech football: Why the Red Raiders can compete for a Big 12 title
• Texas Tech football: Plenty of questions remain as conference play arrives

And against the Longhorns, a calf injury to DeShawn Corprew in the first half left Beard with only two regular subs on the bench.  But The Red Raiders were able to get better as the game wore on and there could be a simple explanation as to why.

It is tough to play against the Red Raider defense for an entire game.  Getting any offense against them can be a chore so as the game wears on, opponents either loose the will to continue to grind out possessions or become fatigued to the point that they start to take the easy way out by settling for long jumpers.

As Chris Beard has become famous for saying, the mental aspect of the game is four times as important as the physical (thus the 4:1 staying that he has become known for), and when games come down to crush time, this Red Raider team has proven to have the mental toughness to prevail.

Often, second-half comebacks are the result of hot shooting, especially from the 3-point line.  But Texas Tech is using a different formula to prevail in the second half.

By placing a premium on every defensive possession, the Red Raiders have made teams work for 40 full minutes.  And usually, those 40 minutes look like they feel more like 60 minutes to the opposition.

Tech has found success in the second half by ratcheting up its intensity as the game progresses and thus far, few teams have been able to match them down the stretch.  If the way a team finishes is any indication of its character, there may be no tougher or more resilient team in the nation than the Red Raiders.