Texas Tech basketball: Red Raiders show resolve in victory over Frogs

For the first 15 minutes of Saturday’s 82-69 victory over TCU, the Texas Tech basketball team seemed to be stuck in the same lethargic rut that it fell into in the second half of Wednesday’s inexplicable loss to Oklahoma.  Just as were the Sooners in Tech’s previous game, the Horned Frogs were on fire from 3-point range and there seemed to be no answer available to the Red Raiders as TCU jumped out to a 35-22 lead, the largest lead an opponent has held at the United Supermarkets Arena this season.

But then the game’s tipping point arrived – that moment when the Red Raiders had to choose to fight back or throw in the towel following the scary injury to Kevin McCullar Jr., who was left writhing and screaming in pain on the court after spraining his ankle by stepping on the foot of TCU head coach Jamie Dixon on the sidelines.  Though an ankle sprain seems fairly innocuous, at the time, the injury appeared as if it might be far worse in nature given how McCullar reacted.

So it was at that moment when the rest of the Red Raiders had a choice to make.  Do we sit around and allow this train to continue to barrel towards a second-straight loss given that our best all-around player is now out of the mix?  Or, do we dig our heels in and claw back?

Fortunately, Mark Adams’ team picked the latter option.

Down 35-28 at the time that McCullar was carried off of the court, unable to put any weight on his injured ankle, the Red Raiders made what might be a season-defining stand.  They would go on a 9-3 run to close the first half and trail only 40-37 at the intermission.  Then, they would open the second half with a 9-0 run to seize a 46-40 lead, one they would never relinquish.

It was the type of moment that has the ability to define what a team truly is.  When you are trailing big in front of your home fans, one game after your worst showing of the season, and playing without your literal and emotional leader, what do you do?  How do you respond?

Of course, we know that this Red Raider team decided to rally around McCullar and take its game to another level.  That’s what excellent teams do in times of adversity.

Led by 12 second-half points from Bryson Williams (who had 16 on the game) and 10 second-half points from Terrence Shannon Jr. (who had a game-high 20 points), Tech throttled TCU 45-29 in the second 20 minutes of play leaving no doubt who the better team is and leaving even less doubt about this Red Raider squad’s mettle.

But this isn’t the first time that Tech has had to show toughness and grit this season while fighting through adversity.  Remember that the Red Raiders opened Big 12 play with just seven available players at Iowa State (none of whom were named McCullar or Shannon) and still managed to hold a late second-half lead.  They then came home to beat Kansas without McCullar or Shannon on the court.  Then, Tech knocked off No. 1 Baylor in Waco with McCullar playing on a gimpy ankle and with Shannon still sidelined.

So we already knew that this team was tough and resilient.  But for some, the poor performance in Norman on Wednesday had given rise to concerns about whether the Red Raiders are legitimate contenders to reach the Final Four.

Tech answered those doubts in a huge way on Saturday.  No, beating TCU isn’t going to shock the college basketball world nor is it cause for a parade down Broadway.  But to play as well as Tech did after seeing the team’s best player go down to what appeared to be a potentially season-altering injury is a reminder of just how deep and talented this year’s Red Raider roster is.  But even more so, it was a reminder of how mentally tough Adams’ team has become this season.

In a week when top-10 teams have been dropping like flies (Tech included) securing a win on Saturday was critical.  Remember, Tech still has aspirations of playing in Fort Worth for the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament.  But to have that privilege, the Red Raiders will have to have a better case than, or at least a comparable case to teams such as Baylor, Texas, and Houston all of whom also eye Fort Worth as their desired opening-weekend destination.

Certainly, this week’s upcoming contests against Baylor and at Texas will go a long way towards determining who heads to Cowtown later next month but games like the one we saw on Saturday will also play a part.  And make no mistake, had Tech not managed to come back and beat the Frogs, it would have done significant damage to the dream of playing in Fort Worth.

That’s why Saturday’s showing was potentially a turning point in the season.  After turning in a pedestrian effort against West Virginia the prior Saturday and then no-showing against Oklahoma on Wednesday, Tech was trending in the wrong direction.  And that trend could have continued when McCullar was injured.

But this is a Texas Tech basketball team that’s wired differently.  It seems to be one that feeds off of adversity and plays its best when logic would suggest otherwise.

So don’t overlook what the Red Raiders did against TCU.  Sure, beating Jamie Dixon’s squad has become commonplace for Tech in recent years, but to do so under the circumstances in which Tech did on Saturday was something to take note of.