Texas Tech basketball: Red Raiders regress in loss to Oklahoma State

Both T.J. Holyfield and Terrence Shannon Jr. struggled mightily

Three of the five Texas Tech starters, Davide Moretti, Jahmi’us Ramsey, and Kyler Edwards were able to get to double-digits.  The other two, T.J. Holyfield and Terrence Shannon Jr. struggled mightily and that proved to be a huge problem.

That duo combined for just eight points (five from Holyfield) and attempted just three field goals.  What’s more, they only got to the line four times between them, all being Holyfield attempts.

The senior was neutralized by foul trouble as he picked up his second foul just five minutes into the game and sat the rest of the first half.  He then picked up foul No. 3 early in the second half and sat again for a huge chunk of time.  That was also a reason Tech was dominated on the glass as the stronger OSU forwards had their way with the Red Raider 5-guard lineup.

For that reason, Shannon needed to step up but he had one of his worst days of the season.  Frequently drawing the ire of his head coach because of defensive lapses and a lack of effort on the boards, the true freshman had only one rebound and didn’t get to the line one time.

On a day when Tech was absolutely boat-raced at the line, Shannon needed to help balance the scales as he leads the team in free-throw attempts on the year at four per game.  That never happened and Shannon was essentially a ghost on both ends of the floor.

In fact, Beard was so frustrated with Shannon that he opted to start Kevin McCullar Jr. in Shannon’s place to begin the second half.  McCullar was again solid with 15 points, five rebounds, and three steals.  But that wasn’t enough to make up for the no-shows by both Holyfield and Shannon and in Big 12 play, not many teams can survive on the road when 2/5 of their starting lineup gives them virtually nothing.