Texas Tech basketball: Takeaways from Red Raiders’ victory over Tennessee

Even the ugly ones count come Selection Sunday.  Thankfully, the Texas Tech basketball program managed to come out on top in Tuesday night’s brick-fest against Tennessee in New York City thus picking up a huge win over the nation’s No. 13 team to secure what is the first meaningful win of this season.

To say that this game lacked much aesthetical value might be an understatement.  In the 57-52 overtime tilt, the two teams combined to make just 38 of 172 field-goal attempts (28.7%) and only 10 of 64 (15.6%) three-point shots.

But there can be beauty in struggle and the fact that both teams played lock-down defense in Madison Square Garden is worth noting.  The game featured 14 blocked shots (six by the Red Raiders) and 12 steals (six by each side) as the two teams showed a dedication to the defensive end of the court.

Again, once the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee hands out bids, it doesn’t matter if you beat a team 100-99 or 1-0, it just matters that you have that “W” on the resume and that’s what Texas Tech managed to ensure on Tuesday.  So let’s break down this game with some of the key takeaways from what we saw at the so-called world’s most famous arena.

Batcho is giving this team more than Bryson Williams is

For the second-straight game, senior forward Bryson Williams struggled.  With only seven points on 3-19 shooting and three rebounds in 19 minutes of action, he was the only Texas Tech starter to play fewer than 30 minutes.  This came on the heels of his 4-point, 2-rebound showing against Providence last week.

Fortunately, freshman center Daniel Batcho stepped up in a big way.  Coming off the bench to play 27 minutes, he scored four points and grabbed 11 huge rebounds while also blocking a pair of shots.  It was his best showing as a collegiate and it gives one reason to wonder if he might be on the verge of pushing Williams out of the starting lineup.

When Batcho is in the game, Tech has a rim protector and a 6-foot-11 body to harass other teams with.  That’s something that this program has not had in earnest since Tariq Owens helped lead the 2018-19 team to the National Championship Game.

Perhaps bringing Williams off the bench would help him to relax and feel less pressure as he appears to be pressing and over-thinking things right now, especially on the offensive end.  It will be interesting to see how the minutes continue to shake out between these two post players moving forward as Batcho continues to come of age right before our eyes.

This team is bought-in on the defensive end

There was a ton of talk before the season about whether head coach Mark Adams could get a team with eight newcomers to buy in on the defensive end of the court.  After all, Tech’s defensive identity is something that is rather unique and each of the players who came to Lubbock this offseason from other programs were known more for their scoring punch than their defensive acumen.

Well, after two games against major conference opponents, it appears that the Red Raiders are fully engaged on the defensive side of the floor.

The Red Raiders held Tennessee to just 26.8% shooting from the floor and 15% (6-40) from beyond the 3-point arc.  That performance comes one game after holding Providence to just 37.3% shooting overall and 30% from 3-point range in their own gym.

Right now, Tech ranks 22nd nationally in points allowed at just 58.5 per game.  What’s more, Tech is 4th in the KenPom.com adjusted defensive efficiency rating (an estimate of how many points per 100 possessions a team gives up) by posting an 88.5 mark.  So, yeah, defense is still the name of the game in Lubbock.

Tech rebounds at an elite level

Towards the end of Tuesday night’s game, ESPN television analyst Jay Bilas said that Texas Tech essentially won this game on the glass and he was right.  Tech held a 54-47 rebounding advantage over the Volunteers and it was a continuation of this team’s rebounding dominance thus far.

Nationally, Tech is 3rd overall in rebound margin by out-rebounding its opponents by 14.3 boards per game.  The Red Raiders are also 3rd in the country in offensive rebounds per game at 16.2.  And when it comes to total rebounds per game, Tech is 16th in the NCAA at just over 42.

Remember that life in the Big 12 more often looks similar to what we saw on Tuesday night as it can be tough to hit shots in this rugged conference.  Thus, controlling the glass is essential.  Therefore, the fact that Tech is rebounding at such a high level bodes well for this team’s future as league play approaches.

Huge resume win

Because of the way the Red Raiders scheduled the non-conference portion of this season, there simply aren’t many opportunities for resume-boosting wins outside of Big 12 play.  In fact, of the 10 non-conference games that Tech scheduled for itself (the Big 12/SEC and Big 12/Big East Challenge games were scheduled by the conferences) eight are against some of the worst teams the NCAA has to offer.

Thus, the only two challenges Tech scheduled for itself were the Tennessee and Gonzaga games, both played at neutral sites.  And by beating the Vols on Tuesday, Tech assured itself of going at least 1-1 in those games.

It would be great for the Red Raiders to pick up another out-of-conference win over either one of the Bulldogs that remain on the schedule.  Fortunately, Gonzaga doesn’t appear as daunting this year having already dropped a pair of games, and Mississippi State will have to come to Lubbock.

But by taking down the No. 13 Volunteers in New York, Tech has managed to get one quadrant-one victory in the boat for this year and that could pay huge dividends in March.