Texas Tech has fared well against elite offenses this year
Buffalo
Prior to their second-round game against Tech, the Buffalo Bulls came across as a bit cocky in regards to their offensive prowess. But after putting up a meager 58 points, the No. 5 scoring team in the nation was humbled and humiliated.
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The Bulls managed just 36.5% shooting from the field and many of their made baskets came in garbage time. But when Tech pulled away, they did so by forcing the Bulls to go without a field goal for 18-straight possessions.
Buffalo wanted to push the tempo against the Red Raiders but instead, they were just another team that succumbed to Tech’s ground-and-pound style. Tech was effective in limiting live-ball turnovers and controlling the glass, two factors that helped keep the pace of play in an acceptable range.
And as Tech has done all year, they shut down Buffalo’s star, C.J. Massinberg. Though he scored 14 points, the 18.6 p.p.g. scorer was held to just four points until he rattled off ten late points after his team’s deficit had swelled to over twenty points.
Next. Five reasons Tech was able to beat Michigan. dark
It will be unlikely that Tech will hold Gonzaga’s star Rui Hachimura down that well today because he is a much…much better player than Massinburg. But if Tech can make him as inefficient as it has made other leading scorers this year, they will have an opportunity to put the Gonzaga offense in a clamp like they have so many other high-powered offenses this year.