Wreck'Em Red
Fansided

Texas Tech basketball: Turning points in Red Raiders upset of No. 1 Cardinals

By Matthew Conner

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 10: Chris Clarke #44 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders reacts after a basket during the first half of their game against the Louisville Cardinals at Madison Square Garden on December 10, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 10: Chris Clarke #44 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders reacts after a basket during the first half of their game against the Louisville Cardinals at Madison Square Garden on December 10, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 6
Next
Chris Clarke #44 and Avery Benson #24 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
Chris Clarke #44 and Avery Benson #24 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) /

Benson’s and-1 was a dagger

Just a little over a minute after Clarke’s unlikely bomb, Benson made another huge play to keep the cushion intact.  With Tech up 51-46 with seven minutes to go, Clarke drove to the rim and found Benson lurking in the paint.

More from Wreck'Em Red

Using his right hand, the lefty gingerly lofted a shot that found the bottom of the net while also drawing a foul.  Converting the 3-point play he gave his team an eight-point lead as Tech continued to answer every Louisville bucket.

It’s fair to wonder if this old-school three-point play took the last bit of steam out of Louisville because after Benson hit his foul shot, the Cards went over two minutes without a bucket, something that a team trailing in the final ten minutes of a game just can’t afford.

Lost in the excitement of this play was the fact that Benson hit about a five-foot jumper with his right hand.  It wasn’t a textbook shot but rather something that looked like he was trying to just get the ball towards the rim in order to draw a shooting foul.  But he did have to use his off-hand because a defender was right on his left shoulder and the fact that he made the shot was nothing short of unlikely.

This was the final big moment of the night for Benson who ended the game with a career-high 10 points.  Along the way, the improbable player of the game proved that he is going to be a critical factor for Chris Beard for the remainder of the season.

"“Part of that is that I have to give credit to my teammates for the past three years and the coaching staff,” Benson said.  “They never stopped believing in me, my teammates help me get better every day…They help me become a better player and the coaches never give up on me…It’s not like I have something special but they put me in and believe in me, especially in ‘The Mecca of Basketball’ so that’s something I’ll never forget.”"

It was a performance that no Red Raider fan will soon forget either.

Home/Texas Tech Basketball