In Saturday’s win, Grant McCasland and the Texas Tech men’s basketball team got exactly what they needed. The rough week was over and Texas Tech could just focus on playing basketball and going out and getting a win in the first game after JT Toppin’s injury.
And it’s safe to say that things went pretty well for the Red Raiders. They managed to completely and totally dismantle the Kansas State Wildcats, beating the Big 12 team without a permanent head basketball coach at the moment by a score of 100-72.
28-point wins are never bad, but they’re certainly a little extra good and important when having to overcome the loss of your best player to injury and you still go out and get a 28-point win. That’s big. But even with that, I have a handful of questions.
So let’s examine some of those.
No. 1: Can Texas Tech find a way to prioritize getting Christian Anderson some rest, please?
I’ve had a few questions and issues with the way that Texas Tech doesn’t run a very deep rotation, but I really don’t love how Christian Anderson just played 38 minutes in a game that was over by halftime. I really don’t love how Anderson played just about the entirety of a game that Texas Tech was in full control over.
I, for one, would love to see Anderson get some rest down the stretch of the season, especially after we just saw JT Toppin get sidelined for the rest of this season due to an ACL injury.
Would it be possible to keep Anderson well-rested? Even if you eliminate the concerns of injuries, is it wise to keep trotting out your best player late in the game that ended up being a 28-point win as you have more difficult competition coming up?
Maybe I'm totally off base here. There's certainly a chance that this isn't a big deal. Maybe I'm worried about nothing. At least I hope that's the case.
No. 2: Will the Red Raiders be able to rebound like this on a regular basis?
One of the most impressive aspects of Texas Tech’s win over the Kansas State Wildcats is the way the Red Raiders managed to win the rebounding battle. It shouldn’t be too much of a shock that Kansas State wouldn’t thrive there, but the fact that Texas Tech had a +12 rebounding margin against K-State is still really encouraging.
But what about the likes of the Cincinnati Bearcats? Or the Iowa State Cyclones? Or the BYU Cougars? Texas Tech has those three coming up on the schedule and all of them are better at rebounding than Kansas State is. How will Texas Tech fare on the glass without Toppin against better teams?
No. 3: Can Texas Tech perform like this against better competition or in the NCAA Tournament?
Which brings me to a very related question. The Red Raiders had the distinct pleasure of beating up on one of the worst teams in the Big 12 on Saturday afternoon. Texas Tech’s 28-point win over the Wildcats is a refreshing thing to talk about, but Kansas State literally sits at the bottom of the Big 12 standings right now.
Texas Tech will welcome Cincinnati to town on Tuesday, and that’s going to be a step up in terms of competition. Will the Red Raiders be able to make 13-of-28 shots from behind the three point line against the Bearcats?
What about next Saturday, when Texas Tech goes to face the Iowa State Cyclones, who are sitting at the No. 3 spot in the Big 12 standings? What will the Red Raiders be able to accomplish in Ames next week? Will we see Texas Tech block eight shots against the Cyclones the way they blocked eight shots against Kansas State?
And what about in the Big 12 conference tournament or the NCAA Tournament? How will the Red Raiders perform then?