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Texas Tech basketball: Transfer who once spurned Red Raiders again hearing from Chris Beard

By Matthew Conner

TUCSON, ARIZONA - JANUARY 16: Both Gach #11 of the Utah Utes handles the ball during the second half of the NCAAB game against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Center on January 16, 2020 in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
TUCSON, ARIZONA - JANUARY 16: Both Gach #11 of the Utah Utes handles the ball during the second half of the NCAAB game against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Center on January 16, 2020 in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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The Texas Tech basketball program has been in contact with Utah transfer, Both Gach, who turned the Red Raiders down as a high school recruit.

In an unusual story from the recruiting trail, the Texas Tech basketball program is once again recruiting a player that turned down Chris Beard two years ago.  Utah forward Both Gach is in the transfer portal and has reportedly been in contact with the Red Raiders after picking the Utes over Tech back in the class of 2018.

At that time, he was a 4-star prospect and the No. 149 player in the nation.  Since then, he’s played two years at Utah where he’s averaged 9.1 points and 2.8 points per game in 57 career appearances.

He put his name in the transfer portal on Monday and now a bevy of teams are courting him.  That list includes Minnesota, Arkansas, Nevada, BYU, Utah State, Auburn, Maryland, Vanderbilt, Creighton, Illinois, Georgetown, Oregon, New Mexico, DePaul, Gonzaga, USC, and Texas Tech according to 247Sports.com.

This past season, he took a step forward averaging 10.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.9 assists a game, and shooting just under 40-percent from the field.   In addition to entering the transfer portal, he’s also put his name up for consideration in the NBA Draft but he has not hired an agent meaning that he may still return to school.

If he does come back, as expected, he will have to either sit out a year or file for an eligibility waiver.  Texas Tech fans know how frustrating the waiver process can be after seeing UNLV transfer Joel Ntambwe denied a waiver three times between October and February.

Gatch is a 6-foot-6, 183-pound wing who has a nice outside touch despite shooting just 25% from the 3-point line last year.  He put up 4.4 shots from behind the arc as a sophomore, (which would have been more than any Red Raider other than Jahmi’us Ramsey, Davide Moretti, and Kyler Edwards) and though his consistency needs to improve, he did demonstrate an ability to hit open looks.

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What he does even better than knock down outside looks though is make plays off the dribble.  Despite not being a point guard, he averaged nearly three assists per game and was able to get into the paint and score or distribute the ball.  That’s an area in which Tech struggled in 2019-20.

Twelve times this season Gach scored in double digits. That included 28 points against Colorado, 24 against Oregon, and 22 against Nevada.

This is the second wing/guard transfer that the Texas Tech basketball program has been linked to this week.  Wednesday, Georgetown grad transfer Mac McClung announced that Tech was one of seven schools still in the running for his services.  Like Gach, he is an underclassman who will need a waiver to play next season.

Both seem like possible insurance policies should senior to be Davide Moretti decide to play professionally in Italy.  He was recently offered a multi-year deal by a pro team in his native country and there’s growing thought that he might take the offer.

Next. Scouting transfer Joel Ntambwe's game. dark

While no one wants to see Moretti leave with a year still left in his career, it’s reassuring to know that Beard is already working on contingency plans.  One possibility is Both Gach, who may wind up becoming a Red Raider two years after initially turning down Chris Beard.

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