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Texas Tech basketball classics: Red Raiders shatter Tar Heels in 1996 Tourney

By Matthew Conner

17 Mar 1996: Darvin Ham of the Texas Tech Red Raiders halted the NCAA East Regional Tournament game in the first half with a backboard shattering dunk at the Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, Virginia. The Red Raiders went on to defeat the Tar Heels 92-73
17 Mar 1996: Darvin Ham of the Texas Tech Red Raiders halted the NCAA East Regional Tournament game in the first half with a backboard shattering dunk at the Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, Virginia. The Red Raiders went on to defeat the Tar Heels 92-73 /
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Jason Sasser was the best player on the floor

Darvin Ham gets all the glory but Jason Sasser was the best player in the arena that day.  The third-team All-American had a game-high 27 points to go along with three rebounds and four assists.

The UNC scouting report on Sasser was to make him shoot from beyond 15 feet.  The problem for the Heels was that in this game, he shot 4-6 from behind the three-point arc.  When a player of Sasser’s size (6-foot-7, 225-pounds) gets hot with his jumper, it’s almost impossible to stop him given how easy it becomes to attack the rim off the bounce.

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That year, he was just a 30.7% shooter from deep and averaged just one three per game.  What’s more, in this game, he accounted for 12.9% of his total three-point makes for that entire season.

It was a crowning moment for the 1996 SWC Player of the Year.  Though he was also a three-time all-conference selection and he ranks 4th in Tech history in scoring, he never had a better showing in a more important game.

"According to the official Texas Tech Athletics website, “Sasser sits as the only player in program history to amass over 2,000 points, 500 rebounds, 300 assists and 100 steals. He racked up a streak of 71 consecutive games in doubles figures, the longest streak for a Red Raider dating back to the 1956-57 season. The Dallas native currently checks in second in free throws made (554), fourth in field goals made (736), fifth in rebounds (895), eighth in steals (144) and 12th in assists (307) inside the Texas Tech record book.”"

Playing Robin to Sasser’s Batman was Carr.  Adding 19 points to the cause off of the bench, the team’s second-leading scorer was nearly as unstoppable as Sasser and it was that duo that caught fire near the end of the first half to give the Red Raiders the lead for good.

In all, Tech had five double-digit scorers, including four starters (guard Koy Smith had 14).  But interestingly, Carr was the only reserve to register a point in the game.

As for UNC, McInnis had a team-high 19 points.  Jamison had 16 and Vince Carter managed 12 though most of his contributions came after the game had been put to bed.

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Ultimately, Tech fans will forever remember the Ham Slam that wound up on the cover of Sports Illustrated.  But aside from that moment, this game belonged to Jason Sasser, who was the best player on the 1995-96 Red Raider team and who led the way to the program’s historic Sweet 16 run 24 years ago.

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