Five February Texas Tech basketball games that the Red Raiders must win

Texas Tech needs to pick up a win over Kansas in Lubbock

The Red Raiders have put themselves in place to be concerned with not only the Big 12 race but also with their seeding in the NCAA Tournament. That's why it is imperative that Tech finds a way to notch a win over Kansas in Lubbock on February 12.

This isn't the usual Bill Self Kansas team. The Jayhawks are just in fourth place in the Big 12 standings and are only 5-3 in league play. However, they still are tough to deal with.

The good news for Tech is that KU hasn't been great on the road lately. In fact, they are just 1-3 away from Lawrence in conference games. That includes losses at West Virginia and UCF, two teams that almost certainly won't make the NCAA Tournament.

Meanwhile, Tech is currently unbeaten in Lubbock. Thus, the Red Raiders should go into this game expecting to take down the conference's biggest bully.

Doing so would gain Tech national respect being as this game is a nationally-televised Big Monday contest on ESPN. It would also be a Quad-1 win to help boost the Red Raiders' NET ranking. Finally, it is always fantastic to pick up a win over KU. That's something Tech hasn't done with much regularity over the years but it needs to happen when the two teams meet later this month.