Texas Tech basketball: Red Raiders blow past Grambling after early struggles
Sunday in Lubbock, the Texas Tech basketball team blew past Grambling 81-40 after shrugging off a slow start.
For the first 15 minutes of the Texas Tech basketball team’s 81-41 victory over Grambling on Sunday, it appeared that Tech’s sluggish play might allow the overmatched Tigers to make this contest interesting. But thankfully, Chris Beard’s team found its groove at the end of the first half and rode that wave to an easy win to move to 4-1 on the year.
It certainly wasn’t a performance that is destined for glory in any hall of fame. In fact, after Kyler Edwards opened the game with a 3-pointer, Tech would go on to miss 12 of its next 13 shots. That allowed Grambling to stay close for much of the opening 20 minutes. Eventually, a 6-0 run pulled the visitors to within five points at 19-14 with under five minutes to go in the half.
But Tech would snap out of its Sunday afternoon sleepiness prior to the intermission. A 12-5 run, sparked by six Terrance Shannon Jr. points, would give Beard’s team some breathing room and a 31-19 edge at the break. And in the second half, the Red Raiders kept their foot on the gas pedal outscoring Grambling 48-21.
What was most interesting about this win for Tech was that it was the first time this year that Georgetown transfer Mac McClung didn’t lead the team in scoring. The junior guard had his worst offensive effort of the year on Sunday going just 2-7 from the field.
Both of his baskets were from beyond the 3-point line and when they were combined with 6 free throws, it helped him put up a respectable 12 points to go along with three assists. But none of his points came in the first half and that was one of the reasons Grambling was able to stay close for most of the opening period.
As McClung struggled though, other Red Raiders picked up the slack. Edwards led the way with 13 points, eight of which came in the first ten minutes of the game when he carried the struggling Tech offense. It was his second-straight solid showing after he put up 14 points Friday night against Troy.
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Meanwhile, true freshman Nimari Burnett had his best game thus far as a collegiate. Scoring 12 points thanks in large part to a 7-7 day at the free-throw line, he reached double figures for the first time as a Red Raider.
But the story was really the Red Raider defense. Forcing 30 turnovers and holding Grambling to just 35.1% from the field, Tech didn’t allow its offensive struggles to impact its defensive intensity and that’s the sign of a mature team.
Grambling was especially cold from 3-point range (as if often the case for Red Raider opponents). The Tigers managed to hit just 2-14 (14.3%) from beyond the arc.
Tech now turns its attention to its final two warmup acts prior to the start of Big 12 play. Wednesday will see Abilene Christian come to Lubbock while Saturday will take the Red Raiders to Frisco, Texas for a game against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
After that, life becomes much more challenging when Kansas heads to Lubbock on December 17th. In this compacted season, there’s little time for this revamped Red Raider team to work through its kinks before the games take on the importance of league play but that’s what Beard’s squad was able to do on Sunday when the Red Raiders didn’t let an early offensive swoon lead to a shocking upset on their home court.