Texas Tech basketball: Cancelled St. John’s game tough on Tech

The Texas Tech basketball team is in a tough spot on a number of fronts after St. John’s canceled this week’s game in Lubbock.

On Thursday, the Texas Tech basketball program was scheduled to face its second-straight significant test on the young season when St. John’s came was to come to Lubbock as part of the Big 12/Big East Challenge.  However, due to concerns over COVID-19, the Red Storm have backed out of that contest leaving Chris Beard and his team in a tough spot on a number of different fronts.

"St. John’s University issued a statement that read in part: “St. John’s top priority is to best ensure ways to minimize risks associated with this global pandemic for both our University community and public health. The University’s COVID-19 management team in consultation with local health experts came to this decision. In the end and with profound disappointment, the gravity of the concerns outweighed the excitement and opportunity to play this game.”"

While it is being reported that the Red Raiders are working overtime to try to find a replacement opponent, it is hard to imagine one of St. John’s caliber being ready and willing to step in.  And that’s the first reason that this cancellation could have a lasting impact on the Red Raiders.

Remember that college basketball is all about what happens in the NCAA Tournament making each team’s tournament resume critically important.  By taking a high-major opponent off of the schedule, the Red Raiders are now losing an opportunity for what could have been a decent resume-building win.

While St. John’s is only expected to be a middle-of-the-pack team in the Big East, beating them would have been a much better development for Tech’s tournament resume than would be beating a mid or low-major team, which one has to think would be the caliber of opponent that the Red Raiders would be able to schedule on such short notice.  Granted, there will be plenty of opportunities for quality wins in Big 12 play, the only quality win left to be had in the non-conference slate is a tough road test at LSU in January as part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

It’s also terrible timing for the Red Raiders to lose a game on the schedule given that they have to be hungry to get back on the floor after the way they played Sunday against Houston.  Should an opponent not be found, it would mean that Beard’s team would have to stew on their most recent showing for seven full days.  That would not be ideal for a team’s psyche.

But most importantly, remember that Big 12 play is quickly approaching.  Tech will open league play against Kansas on December 17 in Lubbock.

In between then and now, there are now only three games on the schedule.  That’s not many opportunities for this revamped roster to come together.

In the end, situations such as this are going to be inevitable in the middle of the ongoing pandemic.  But that doesn’t change the fact that Tech now finds itself in an undesirable situation thanks to losing one of the better non-conference opponents on its schedule.