Texas Tech basketball: Pop Isaacs lifts Red Raiders over NIU in final second

Texas Tech saw an improvement in the paint

The defining problem in Wednesday’s loss to ‘Nova was Tech’s inability to do anything in the lane.  In fact, the Red Raiders were able to score just 14 points in the paint.

Thursday, that number rose to a much more acceptable 26 points.  What’s more, Tech managed that without getting a big day from center Warren Washington.

The Arizona State transfer was able to play only 21 minutes against UNI.  He ended the day 3-6 shooting from the floor for seven points.  He also grabbed six boards and blocked a shot.

However, foul trouble sent him to the bench for much of the second half.  What’s more, Washington struggled on defense against the Panthers’ spread-it-out offense, one that requires defenders to be very quick when moving laterally, something that isn’t necessarily Washington’s forte.

Without Washington in the mix for long stretches, Tech went to a small ball lineup.  Devan Cambridge and Darrion Williams were all the muscle the Red Raiders needed for most of the day.

The former collected eight rebounds while the latter bested him by one.  That strategy of using those two players as the primary post presences worked against UNI, especially after the Panthers’ big man Jacob Hutson, fouled out with several minutes left in the game.

Will it work against Big 12 teams, though?  That’s going to be worth monitoring.

Thursday, we got our first look at what life will be like for this team when Washington is in foul trouble and because of the opponent’s lack of post size, it wasn’t a nightmare.  However, when facing bigger teams, that could still be a concern.