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Texas Tech baksetball classics: Red Raiders upset OSU, controversy ensues

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TX - FEBRUARY 08: Jaye Crockett #30 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders is interviewed after the game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys on February 08, 2014 at United Spirit Arena in Lubbock, Texas. Texas Tech won the game 60-54 (Photo by John Weast/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TX - FEBRUARY 08: Jaye Crockett #30 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders is interviewed after the game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys on February 08, 2014 at United Spirit Arena in Lubbock, Texas. Texas Tech won the game 60-54 (Photo by John Weast/Getty Images) /
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A video is played and flames shoot up as the Texas Tech Red Raiders are introduced. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
A video is played and flames shoot up as the Texas Tech Red Raiders are introduced. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /

The sold-out crowd proved to be a massive factor

There were plenty of times between the end of the Bob Knight era and the start of the Chris Beard era that the Big 12’s third-largest basketball venue was more like a mausoleum than a raucous college basketball environment.  However, this was not one of them as the United Supermarkets Arena was sold out.

I’m not sure why this game had so much hype for Red Raider fans.  After all, this was a time when Tech basketball was at best an afterthought to most in Lubbock.

What’s more, the team was just .500 at that point in the year.  And for the previous home game, a 60-54 win over TCU, there was just 7,365 fans on hand.

Perhaps it was the opportunity to see Smart in action or just the hope of an old-fashioned upset.  But for whatever reason, the atmosphere at the U.S.A. that night rivaled what we see in Lubbock these days.

Several times throughout the game, the crowd was so loud that the ESPN announcers commented on it.  What’s more, there were multiple occasions when even the players on the court could not hear the whistle being blown.

There’s no doubt that the fans made this upset possible that day.  Tech needed every bit of energy the home crowd could supply and the Red Raider faithful were in full throat.

But it was also fascinating to see how the raucous environment impacted the Cowboys.  Not a mentally disciplined team that year, OSU turned the ball over 15 times in the game and many of those could be attributed to the increased anxiety and pressure they felt as the home crowd ratcheted up the intensity from the opening tip.

As I rewatched this game, I couldn’t help but be happy for the Red Raiders like Crockett and Gotcher who had gone through so much turmoil in their careers and who had played more than their share of games in front of thousands of empty seats.  And as the fans stormed the court to celebrate with the team, it was obvious how much this win meant to the upperclassmen on the roster.

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