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Texas Tech basketball: What we know about the Red Raiders so far

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TEXAS - DECEMBER 17: The Texas Tech Red Raiders take the court before the college basketball game against the Kansas Jayhawks at United Supermarkets Arena on December 17, 2020 in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TEXAS - DECEMBER 17: The Texas Tech Red Raiders take the court before the college basketball game against the Kansas Jayhawks at United Supermarkets Arena on December 17, 2020 in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /
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LUBBOCK, TEXAS – DECEMBER 06: Guard Kyler Edwards #11 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders shoots the ball during the first half of the college basketball game against the Grambling State Tigers at United Supermarkets Arena on December 06, 2020 in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TEXAS – DECEMBER 06: Guard Kyler Edwards #11 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders shoots the ball during the first half of the college basketball game against the Grambling State Tigers at United Supermarkets Arena on December 06, 2020 in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /

Outside shooting is not this team’s strength

When Davide Moretti left for the Italian professional league and Jahmi’us Ramsey left for the NBA this offseason, we feared that Tech was going to struggle when it came to outside shooting.  Unfortunately, our fears have been confirmed as this team simply isn’t proving capable of being even an average 3-point shooting team.

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Tech is shooting only 35.5% from behind the arc this year.  That’s just 66th in the nation.

What’s more, the Red Raiders have averaged just 7.3 makes from long distance per game.  That’s good for only 175th nationally.

But when you look at the three games Tech has played against teams from one of the six major conferences, the numbers are even worse.  In those contests, the Red Raiders shot just 14-55 (25.4%).

To make matters worse, Tech’s two leading outside shooters are in pronounced slumps.  Kyler Edwards has made just 5 of his last 20 (25%) shots from long-distance while Mac McClung has made just 2 of his last 18 (11.1%).

Don’t overlook how big of a blow the loss of Joel Ntambwe proved to be in this regard.  The former UNLV transfer who left the Red Raider program earlier this season is a career 39.5% shooter from 3-point range and he was expected to be an asset in that aspect of the game this season.

Also, many thought that true freshman Chibuzo Agbo Jr. could knock down some shots from distance.  But given that he has not played in either of the last two games and he only saw the court for three minutes against Houston, he’s not likely to be of any help either.

This team can overcome its 3-point deficiencies by focusing on the quality of 3-pointers taken rather than on the quantity.  But make no mistake, that’s not what this year’s team is going to be known for.

light. Related Story. The top 25 Red Raiders of the Big 12 era

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