Texas Tech basketball vs. Texas: How to watch, game notes, and prediction

For most of the 2023-24 season, the Texas Tech basketball team has responded to losses in the best possible way. In fact, only twice has Tech lost a game following a defeat and those two losses came in back-to-back contests during a period of time when the flu was running through the program.

Tonight, the Red Raiders will hope to keep the trend of responding to losses with wins alive when they face Texas in Lubbock. Coming off of an ugly loss to UCF on Saturday, the Red Raiders must quickly turn the page. Of course, given that this will likely be the last time the Longhorns ever play a game in Lubbock, that shouldn't be difficult.

It's been a while since these teams met, though. Back on January 6th, they opened up Big 12 play in Austin with the Red Raiders taking home an impressive 78-67 win.

That night, Pop Isaacs scored a game-high 21 points just one day after news broke of the civil sexual assault lawsuit filed against him. Meanwhile, Joe Toussaint and Warren Washington each scored 15 points in the win.

Will we be able to count on anything close to that from that trio tonight? That seems like a stretch. Isaacs and Toussaint are mired in dreadful prolonged slumps and Washington is questionable to play as he continues to battle a toe injury suffered on February 12 against Kansas.

This is a critical game for Tech in the standings as well as in the history books. The Red Raiders need to finish strong in the regular season to earn a top-four seed in the Big 12 Tournament and earn a double bye in Kansas City.

Of course, the Red Raiders also want to send UT home from Lubbock with one last loss. This will be one of the final opportunities the community will have to jeer and harass the Horns in person and emotions will be through the roof. Will the team be able to harness that vitriol and use it to fuel them to a win or will the magnitude of the night actually put too much pressure on the Red Raiders? It will certainly be fascinating to find out.

Texas Tech vs. Texas broadcast info

Matchup: Texas (17-10, 6-8 Big 12) at Texas Tech (19-8, 8-6 Big 12)
Location: Lubbock, Texas
Venue: United Supermarkets Arena (15,098)
Tip: 8:05 p.m., Tuesday, February 27, 2024
TV: ESPN
TV CALL: Rich Hollenberg (play-by-play), Fran Fraschilla (analyst)
RADIO (Texas Tech Sports Network): 97.3 Double T FM
RADIO CALL: Geoff Haxton (play-by-play), Chris Level (analyst)

Texas Tech vs. Texas game notes

(All game notes courtesy of TexasTech.com)

Texas Tech is 14-1 at home this season and will look to sweep its regular-season series against Texas for the fourth time in six seasons.

In the Texas Tech-Texas series, the Red Raiders have won 7 of the last 10 and 13-of-20 after going on the road and knocking off the Longhorns in this season’s Big 12 opener. The Red Raiders have won three straight over the Longhorns in Lubbock (37-29 all-time), including a 74-67 win over Texas last season on Feb. 13, 2023 when the Longhorns were ranked No. 6 nationally.

Texas Tech leads the Big 12 and is now 12th nationally with a 77.5 percentage at the free-throw line after going 13-for-20 (65.0%) at UCF, 24-for-28 (85.7%) against TCU, 18-for-22 (81.8%) at Iowa State in the past three games. Tech has shot over 80 percent at the line in 13-of-27 games this season… Tech has made 10 or more free throws in 25 of 27 games.

Tech is third in the Big 12 with only 10.9 turnovers per game after having nine against TCU but then 14 at UCF. The fewest turnovers this season was only four in the win over Oklahoma State… Tech has had less than 10 turnovers in 12 games this season, including only six in the win over BYU and then eight against KU.

Texas Tech vs. Texas prediction

This game might simply come down to Texas Tech's health. After Warren Washington was rendered a shell of his usual self against UCF and Chance McMillan didn't play (due to a hip injury), the Red Raiders' training staff will be the most important people in Lubbock.

The duo of Washington and McMillan was key in Tech's win over Texas in January. Combining for 24 points and 8 rebounds, they didn't get the headlines but they were critical factors for the Red Raiders.

Washington was especially dominant as he outscored his counterpart, Texas' Kadin Shedrick, by 13 points. Will he have it in him to do the same tonight? That seems unlikely given how descimated he appeared to be in Orlando on Saturday afternoon.

Thus, the onus might fall on Isaacs and Toussaint to regain their form. Isaacs has scored in double digits only once in his last five games and he hasn't shot over 33.3% from the floor from 3-point range in a game since January 30 at TCU.

Meanwhile, Toussaint has been in double figures on the score board in four of his last six games. However, he scored only three points against UCF on 1-7 shooting.

Texas isn't a great defensive team, though. They allow opponents to shoot 43.1% from the floor, that's the 10th worst in the Big 12. Maybe this will be the game that the struggling Red Raider guards get right. If the Red Raiders can get anything from Washington, this game should be a win. If not, all bets are off. Still, the emotion in the arena tonight will be enough to carry the Red Raiders to a close win that will mean the world to the people of Raiderland.

Final Score: Texas Tech 77 - Texas 74