Wreck'Em Red
Fansided

Texas Tech basketball: What we learned about the Red Raiders in the Bahamas

By Matthew Conner

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 08: Texas Tech Red Raiders fans cheer prior to the 2019 NCAA men's Final Four National Championship game against the Virginia Cavaliers at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 08: Texas Tech Red Raiders fans cheer prior to the 2019 NCAA men's Final Four National Championship game against the Virginia Cavaliers at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 5
Next
(Photo by John Weast/Getty Images)
(Photo by John Weast/Getty Images) /

Kyler Edwards’ game is rapidly evolving

Sophomore guard Kyler Edwards is expected to assume a far greater role this season after being a key reserve in his first season as a collegiate.  And in the Bahamas, he showed that he is working on improving his all-around offensive game in preparation for being one of the Red Raiders’ key scorers.

More from Wreck'Em Red

Last year, he was essentially a spot-up shooter as 31 of his 71 made field goals came from 3-point range.  That was especially the case after the start of Big 12 play as 50 of his104 shots attempts came from behind the arc.

But in the Bahamas this week, he was able to be an effective scorer despite the fact that his outside shot frequently failed him.  In game one, he was just abysmal with just four points on 2 of 12 shooting.  However, in the final two games, he scored 17 and 16 points respectively.

Edwards averaged 12.3 points per game (up from the 5.5 he averaged as a freshman) even though he made just five of 23 shots from 3-point range.  Given that he was a 44.9% long-range bomber last year, it is safe to assume that he will shoot better from deep than the 21.7% he shot from the Bahamas.

That’s why his week was encouraging.  Displaying increased confidence in his ability to get to the rim and score off the dribble, Edwards began to look more and more like the type of dynamic all-around scorer that the Red Raiders are expecting him to be this fall.

Tech is tasked with replacing 54.2 points out of the 71 that Beard’s primary eight-man rotation scored per game last season.  So Edwards will need to have a similar sophomore jump that Davide Moretti did in 2018-19 when he increased his scoring by around seven points per game.

dark. Next. Brandone Francis' 5 best games as a Red Raider

If Kyler Edwards is going to be a player that the Red Raiders look to for offense, he must continue to evolve as a scorer.  And though he had some struggles with his shot in the Bahamas, he was able to display an ability to put the ball in the basket in other ways than just bombing away from deep.  That will serve him and this team well come November.  78 days…

Home/Texas Tech Basketball