The Texas Tech basketball team will be looking to keep playing well in league action tonight when the Red Raiders play at Cincinnati. Head coach Grant McCasland and his team are now faced with a new challenge, though. For the first time this season, they must prove they can follow up a marquee win by picking up another victory in their next game.
Tech has to be feeling great about itself after taking down a stout Arizona team 70-54 in Lubbock on Saturday. That was the first time this season that the Red Raiders managed to win a game over a team that is almost assured of being an NCAA Tournament participant this year.
Now, can they keep their edge and go on the road into a tough arena and play well enough to get to 5-2 in Big 12 action? That's the challenge tonight.
Cincinnati has been ranked as high as No. 19 this season but life in the Big 12 has provided a reality check. After starting out 10-1, the Bearcats have gone just 2-4 in conference play thus far.
However, three of their four losses were against Arizona, Baylor, and Kansas (while the other was against Kansas State). Those are not losses to be ashamed of, even though two of them were at home.
What's more, the Bearcats have won their last two games to get back on their feet. On the other hand, those two victories were against Colorado and Arizona State, both by seven or fewer points.
Expect this game to resemble hand-to-hand combat as so many Big 12 games do. That's because Cincinnati is not built to run and gun.
In Big 12 games, Cincy is averaging only 59.5 points per game. That includes two games in which they have failed to get to the 50-point mark.
They have two guards, Dan Skillings Jr. and Simas Lukosius who lead the team by both averaging 12.4 points per game. However, Red Raider fans need to be most aware of the Bearcats' defensive centerpiece.
7-footer Aziz Bandango averages only 8.1 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. However, because of his size and incredible athleticism, he can impact the game in ways that statistics don't measure. Mostly, he is able to alter or discourage shots around the rim, which is something that could be important against the Red Raiders who rely on offense from JT Toppin and Darrion Williams who both like to operate in the paint.
He was a problem for the Red Raiders last year when Cincinnati won 75-72 in Lubbock. That afternoon, Bandango scored 10 points and pulled down 10 rebounds while blocking two shots and influencing countless more. Thus, tonight, the Red Raiders must have a better plan for dealing with one of the best defensive players in the conference.
If Tech can manufacture a win tonight, back-to-back home games against Oklahoma State and TCU could provide an opportunity for McCasland and Co. to have a nice five-game winning streak before February opens with a three-game stretch that will see the Red Raiders play at Houston before hosting Baylor and traveling to Arizona.
So Red Raider fans will be tuning in to see how Tech handles its recent success while facing a tough road test. Here is all the game info for Tuesday's showdown.
Texas Tech vs. Cincinnati broadcast info
Tip: 6 p.m. Central
TV: ESPNU
TV CALL: Eric Rothman (play-by-play), Tim Welsh (analyst)
RADIO: TEXAS TECH SPORTS NETWORK
RADIO CALL: Geoff Haxton (play-by-play), Chris Level (analyst)
Texas Tech vs. Cincinnati series history
The Bearcats are 2-0 all-time against the Red Raiders, including earning a 75-72 win in Lubbock last season in the only meeting as Big 12 foes. The only other meeting came in 1961 during the NCAA Tournament where Cincinnati took a 78-55 win in Lawrence, Kansas.
Texas Tech vs. Cincinnati odds
All odds courtesy of FanDuel.com.
Favorite | Moneyline | Over/Under |
|---|---|---|
Texas Tech -1.5 | Texas Tech -114 | 133.5 |
Texas Tech vs. Cincinnati game notes
Game notes courtesy of TexasTech.com.
- Texas Tech travels to play at Cincinnati for the first time ever in men’s basketball on Tuesday night with a No. 12 national rating on Kenpom and at No. 15 in the NCAA NET.
- Tech enters the seventh game of its Big 12 schedule leading the conference by shooting 49.6 percent from the field, with a 57.1 effective field goal percentage and at 77.9 percent from the free-throw line. The Red Raiders are currently 10th in the nation in field goal percentage and 23rd overall at the charity stripe.
- Along with leading the Big 12 in the statistical categories, Texas Tech is second in the conference and 23rd nationally by scoring 83.1 points per game this season and second by shooting 38.9 percent from 3-point range. The Red Raiders have made 10 or more 3-pointers in nine of 17 games played this season. The team is also third within the conference with 17.9 assists per game and with a 1.63 assist-to-turnover ratio and fifth with only 10.8 turnovers per game.
- Grant McCasland is now 247-104 (70.4%) in his NCAA career, including his Tech records of 36-15 overall (51 games), 15-9 in Big 12 games, 24-4 at home and 7-6 in true road games.