Texas Tech basketball: Numbers to know ahead of West Virginia rematch
The Texas Tech basketball team will meet West Virginia for the second time this season tonight at the United Supermarkets Arena and here are some important numbers to know as you take in this critical game.
Though tonight’s game against No. 12 West Virginia is nowhere near as highly-anticipated as was the Texas Tech basketball team’s game Saturday against Kentucky, it is potentially more critical. That’s because Tech needs secure another resume-building victory, of which they currently have only one, before heading to Lawrence on Saturday for what is almost a nearly unwinnable game at Kansas.
Beating the Mountaineers would put an end to a two-game losing streak and put the Red Raiders back over .500 in the Big 12 at 4-3. That would also draw them even with WVU in the league standings.
It’s also important for Tech to find a way to defend its home court. After losing just one home game in each of the past two seasons, Tech has dropped two of its last three games inside the U.S.A. (to Baylor and Kentucky). But regardless, WVU head coach Bob Huggins expects an uphill battle on the road.
"“It’s hard to go to Texas Tech and win,” he said. “It’s hard to go to Morgantown and win. No matter what, no matter what our record is or whatever, it’s hard to come to Morgantown and win. It’s hard to go to Lubbock and win. It’s damn near impossible to go to Kansas and win. That’s the nature of our league.”"
Despite the truth in Huggins’ statement, his program is 4-3 in the last seven years in Lubbock. However, the Red Raiders have won the last three meetings.
With Saturday’s blowout win over Missouri, Huggins tied legendary former Kentucky head coach Adolph Rupp for 7th on the all-time Division 1 wins list. He’s now won a staggering 876 games in his career.
Of course, one of those came earlier this month against Texas Tech. But in the 66-54 Mountaineer win, Chris Beard did not have the services of freshman forward Terrence Shannon Jr.
"“[Shannon] is a stretch four and they play him sometimes at the five,” Huggins said. “Our bigs, fortunately, our non-conference schedule helped us in that Derek [Culver] and Oscar [Tshiebwe] had to go out on the floor and guard. He’s a mismatch for most bigs because he bounces it so well.”"
The Chicago native is coming off of a nice 12-point, 3-rebound game and he could potentially help balance the Red Raider offense in this game. In game-one, Davide Moretti was the only player in Scarlet and Black in double-digits as he had 16 points.
In the three games since his return from a strained back, Shannon has hit double-digits each time and he’s averaged 11 points per game, right at his season average. It would be fantastic for him to be another weapon around the rim, which is where his team struggled in the first meeting but is also an area where he has been effective. If he can draw some extra fouls on one of the two WVU big men, it could go a long way towards helping the Red Raiders exact some revenge on the Mountaineers.
So as we get ready for this game, here are some numbers to keep in mind. And we will begin with one of the most stunning stats from this season.