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Texas Tech basketball: Kyler Edwards will return next season

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TEXAS - MARCH 07: Guard Kyler Edwards #0 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders handles the ball during the second half of the college basketball game against the Kansas Jayhawks on March 07, 2020 at United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TEXAS - MARCH 07: Guard Kyler Edwards #0 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders handles the ball during the second half of the college basketball game against the Kansas Jayhawks on March 07, 2020 at United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /
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Monday has been a wild night for the Texas Tech basketball program with a flurry of activity following the announcement of Mark Adams as the new head coach of the Red Raiders.  One important development that has occurred is that junior guard Kyler Edwards has Tweeted that he intends to return for next season.

Of course, Edwards announced that he was going to enter the transfer portal just moments after news of Chris Beard’s departure broke on April 1st.  Now, he’s decided to return and that will help solidify next year’s roster.

This past season, Edwards averaged 10.1 points and 4.8 rebounds per game as a junior while starting 26 of 29 games.  What’s more, he developed into a stout defensive force as he had a defensive rating of 94.1 points allowed per 100 possessions.

Now, the key will be for Mark Adams and whoever he brings aboard to round out the coaching staff to figure out how to get more consistency out of Edwards.  Most importantly, Edwards has to be better against ranked teams.

https://twitter.com/kyleredwards_/status/1379269361165275140?s=20

Quite often, Edwards was not able to have enough of an impact against the best teams Tech faced.  For instance, he was shut out when Tech lost to Kansas 58-57 in Lubbock.  Then, when Tech lost to KU in Lawrence, he had just three points. Similarly, the Arlington native had a mere five points against eventual Final Four team Houston in an early-season Red Raider defeat.  He also was held to just seven points when Tech fell to Baylor in Lubbock and seven points in Tech’s loss to Texas in the Big 12 Tournament.

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What Tech needs Edwards to do most of all is to hit shots from outside.  And after a slow start this year, he finished the year as a 41.8% shooter from deep.  That was thanks to a torrid finish to the year from beyond the arc as he was a 51.5% shooter from 3-point range over the final six games of the season.

That was a great rebound from 2019-20 when he took a step backward as an outside shooter.  After hitting at a 44.9% clip as a true freshman, as a sophomore, he shot just 32.2%.

As it stands right now, Tech has only one proven outside shooter on the roster and that’s Edwards.  Therefore, his return could be pivotal, especially if Tech decides to run a more 3-point oriented, up-tempo offense as many expect to be the case.

Of course, the transfer portal will be a factor in putting together next year’s roster, as will the JUCO ranks given Adams’ deep ties to that level of the game.  But retaining Edwards and Kevin McCullar (who also announced on Monday that he will return) was a huge win for the newest Texas Tech head coach.

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