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Texas Tech basketball: Why the Red Raiders were able to beat Kansas State

By Matthew Conner

DALLAS, TX - MARCH 17: The Texas Tech Red Raiders mascot performs during the game against the Florida Gators during the second round of the 2018 NCAA Tournament at the American Airlines Center on March 17, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
DALLAS, TX - MARCH 17: The Texas Tech Red Raiders mascot performs during the game against the Florida Gators during the second round of the 2018 NCAA Tournament at the American Airlines Center on March 17, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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The Red Raiders won the battle on the glass

Kansas State is one of the worst rebounding teams in the Big 12 so had the Red Raiders been dominated on the glass again Tuesday night the way they were against Baylor and West Virginia, they would have given us serious cause to panic.

But that didn’t happen as Tech won the rebounding battle 31-23.  Most importantly, they held a 14-6 edge on the offensive glass.  That led to a 16-6 advantage in second-chance points.

Not surprisingly, Chris Clarke led the way with eight boards.  Meanwhile, Holyfield pitched in with five.

What was a pleasant turn of events though was that Kevin McCullar gave his team four offensive rebounds, three on one possession, and five boards overall.  That set a new career-high on the glass for the redshirt freshman and was a huge component of this win because all four of his offensive rebounds came in the stretch when Tech pulled away and he had two second-chance buckets.

The offensive glass was the difference in this game because the teams actually tied with 17 defensive boards.  But by cleaning up on their own misses better than their opponent was able to, the Red Raiders finally proved to be able to be the bully in an aspect of the game that has plagued them in recent contests.

That will be a key in Saturday’s contest against Iowa State.  The Cyclones are even worse on the glass than the Wildcats. With rebounding margin on the year of -1.8 per game, they are the worst rebounding team in the Big 12.  Hopefully, these two games will help the Red Raiders rediscover their confidence and aggression on the boards because that’s likely going to be what determines how this season plays out.

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