Texas Tech basketball: Why the Red Raiders lost to Kentucky

In the Texas Tech basketball team’s 76-74 loss to Kentucky on Saturday, the box score reads like a game that should have gone the Red Raiders’ way with a few huge exceptions.

Last Thursday, Chris Beard said that regardless of how his Texas Tech basketball team fared against Kentucky on Saturday, the university was going to be a winner.  In hindsight, that sentiment remains true.

Still, the game would have been a monumental step forward for his team this year.  Though there is still a way that Tech can turn the 76-74 OT loss to Kentucky into a building block, a win would have potentially sent the still-emerging team to the type of level that we’ve been waiting to see it get to all year.

"“It was a big-time college basketball game,” Beard said. “We played 20 minutes; they beat us by two. We play another 20 minutes we beat them by two. Then we play five minutes and they beat us with a couple of free throws. I wish we could have played another five minutes. I felt like it was one of those games whoever had the ball last wins. We were in that situation and it just didn’t go our way tonight.”"

Essentially, this game came down to the fact that Kentucky got a little bit more done in the final minute of regulation and in the final minute of OT, essentially proving those remarks correct.

In the final minute of the second half, both teams scored just one point.  During that time, both teams were 0-1 from the floor.

But in the final minute of the OT period, UK had a 4-2 edge.  While we all are going to focus on Moretti’s missed free throw at the end of regulation, another miss at the line proved to be huge in OT.

When Kevin McCullar tied the game at 74 with just 0:31 to play, he was also fouled.  However, he was unable to hit the free throw.

Amazingly though, he was able to grab the offensive rebound off of that miss and give Tech another shot.  But Terrence Shannon Jr. was forced into a nearly unmakeable shot near the rim when he tried to drive against 6-foot-11 Nick Richards.

That was a tremendous missed opportunity for the Red Raiders as they had two different opportunities to take the lead in the final 30 seconds and couldn’t capitalize.  Those are the types of plays that this young team has to learn how to make and we would all hope they learn how to do that as soon as possible.

But as we look inside the box score, most of the stats seem like they went Tech’s way.  For instance, the Red Raiders forced 20 turnovers while committing only 13.

What’s more, the two teams were equal in regards to offensive rebounds, with each grabbing 10.  To that extent, UK held just a 14-13 edge when it came to second-chance points.

Meanwhile, Tech scored 18 points from the bench while Kentucky had only 13.  And most surprisingly of all, the Red Raiders outscored the Wildcats in the paint 34-20.

So where did this game get away from Tech?  As we look at why the Red Raiders lost, the answer will become painfully obvious.  And we will start with the fact that Kentucky’s weakness proved to be its strength.