Texas Tech basketball: Why the Red Raiders beat LSU

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Jan 30, 2021; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders head coach Chris Beard reacts to a play by Texas Tech Red Raiders guard Terrence Shannon Jr. (1) against LSU Tigers during the second half at Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports /

Tech held a 28-2 edge in bench scoring

Now that Terrence Shannon Jr. is coming off the bench, the Red Raiders should have an edge in bench scoring just about every time out. But a 28-2 advantage in that aspect of the game proved to be more than most of us imagined Tech would have.

Now, no one expected much of the LSU bench. That’s because the overwhelming majority of LSU’s offense comes from four of their starters.

But to get just two points from their bench certainly had to be a disappointment for Will Wade’s team. And that lone basket came from Shareef O’Neal (son of Shaq O’Neal) to put LSU ahead 71-64. Of course, those would be their final points of the day.

Meanwhile, the Red Raiders got 23 huge points from Shannon. It was another strong showing against a good team for the Chicago native who also had 21 points against OU and 20 against Kansas earlier this season.

But at times this year, the Red Raiders’ second-leading scorer has struggled against top competition. For instance, he had just two points against Baylor and five against Houston.

Tech needs Shannon to continue to be a force off the bench as was the case against LSU. If he is, bench scoring will continue to go the way of the Red Raiders.

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