No. 6: Emmett and Ellis 2001-02
The first year of the Bob Knight era saw the Red Raiders return to the Big Dance for the first time since the 1996 Sweet 16 run. And a pair of the best Red Raiders to play for “The General” led the way.
The program’s all-time leading scorer, Andre Emmett, teamed up with senior forward Andy Ellis, who had one of the best years ever for a Red Raider big man, to help Tech defy expectations in the first year under a new coaching regime. That was impressive for a program that at the time was coming off of four-straight losing seasons.
Together, Emmett and Ellis averaged 35.2 points and 13.6 rebounds per game. Both would have led the 2019-20 Red Raiders in scoring by at least 1.5 points per game and both would have led or been tied with Chris Clarke for this year’s team lead on the glass as well.
Everyone remembers what a dynamic player Emmett was. The Dallas native averaged 18.7 points and 6.6 rebounds per game as a sophomore to essentially double his freshman year output in those categories.
But not as many Red Raiders are likely to remember just how good Andy Ellis was that season. In fact, many may not remember how excellent the Lamesa native was throughout his time in the Scarlet and Black.
His 16.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game were good enough for second-team All-Big 12 honors in 2001-02. But his sophomore season was even stronger as he put up 16.9 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. His career averages at Tech finished at 13.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks per game.
If there were to be one reason this duo’s work is not as high on this list as others, it would be the fact that there was actually a third fantastic player on that year’s team to help shoulder the load. JUCO transfer Kasib Powell nearly matched Ellis’ work with 15.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game to essentially give Tech a three-headed monster at the head of the lineup. But make no mistake, Emmett and Ellis were the two leaders that propelled Knight to his first NCAA Tournament in Lubbock.