Texas Tech basketball set to take on West Virginia in Big 12 Tournament

Make West Virginia live and die from 3-point range

In the modern era of college basketball, it seems odd to suggest that it would be best to force a team to take a ton of 3-point shots.  But that is what Tech should try to do to the Mountaineers.

WVU gets lots of points in the paint, especially from Culver.  But on the other hand, they are the worst 3-point shooting team in the Big 12 at just 31.7%.  What’s more, two of their top four 3-point shooters, Bolden and Harris, are no longer on the team.

The one player that Tech will need to keep close tabs on from deep is McCabe.  Of all the Mountaineers to play at least 20 games this year, he is the leader in 3-point percentage at 35.6%.

But Tech must be careful not to let WVU have tons of wide open looks from behind the arc.  In their last three wins, the Mountaineers have made at least nine 3’s in each game and if they get especially hot from deep, they can pull off the huge upset.

In the two meetings with the Red Raiders this year, WVU is just 8-35 (22.8%) from deep.  Tonight, Tech might play a bit of a cat-and-mouse game in which they pay a little more attention to Culver and possibly Konate in the post to bait the WVU guards into shooting a ton of 3’s.  But when doing that, defensive rotations and timely close-outs on the open shooters will play a big role in the Red Raiders’ success.