Any fears of the Texas Tech basketball team being out of gas following Wednesday's double-OT win over Arizona State were quickly assuaged Saturday in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Thanks to a 32-point effort by sophomore forward JT Toppin, the Red Raiders led by 19 points at halftime and steamrolled their way to a 93-55 win to move to 11-3 in Big 12 play and 20-5 overall.
It was one of the most dominant Big 12 road wins in Texas Tech history. Now, thanks to Arizona's loss to Houston on Saturday, the Red Raiders have pulled into a tie for second place in the Big 12 regular-season race. What's more, Tech is guaranteed to finish the season with a winning record in conference play for the second year in a row under head coach Grant McCasland.
Here are some quick thoughts on what took place at Gallagher-Iba Arena on Saturday afternoon.
JT Toppin continues to dominate for Texas Tech
It is time that we start discussing JT Toppin's candidacy for Big 12 Player of the Year. He followed up Wednesday's 41-point, 15-rebound effort with a 32-point, 12-rebound showing in Stillwater.
Unlike the game in Lubbock against the Sun Devils earlier in the week, he didn't have to log 44 minutes to put up his monster stats against OSU. He played only 25 minutes on Saturday meaning he could have easily posted consecutive 40-point games if that had been needed.
Still, he is the first Red Raider since Keenan Evans in 2018 to score at least 30 points in consecutive games. No player in the Big 12 is more efficient on offense and more dominant as both a scorer and a rebounder than Toppin. Thus, he should be one of the frontrunners for Big 12 P.O.Y.
Texas Tech gets a strong game from an important reserve
One of the more underrated developments from this game will likely be the play of backup guard Kevin Overton. The sophomore put up 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists in just 22 minutes of action.
While Toppin stole the show, Overton's strong game might have been just as important of an occurrence for the Red Raiders. That's because Overton has been struggling mightily in recent games.
This was the first game since January 21, when Overton had 14 points against Cincinnati, that the transfer from Drake scored in double figures. What's more, in his previous three games, he had scored a total of just four points.
Bench scoring and guard play are always critical factors for a team's success in March. That's why players like Overton and Christian Anderson, the two backup guards in the Red Raiders' rotation, are so important.
Anderson (who scored 16 points in 27 minutes on Saturday) has been a reliable and consistent offensive threat for most of Big 12 play. Now, if Overton can find his game and bring consistent scoring to the table on a more regular basis, this team could find another gear.
Texas Tech almost beat Oklahoma state on just 3-point shots
What makes this Texas Tech team so dangerous is its ability to get hot from the 3-point arc. We've seen that throughout the season when Tech is on fire from deep, there is almost no hope for the opponent.
The Red Raiders went 16-37 (43.2%) from deep against the Cowboys on Saturday. Meanwhile, the home team was just 6-17 (35.3%).
In this game, Tech scored 48 points on 3-point attempts. That's only seven points less than OSU had for the entire game.
Five Red Raiders made two or more 3s. Anderson led the way going 4-8 while Elijah Hawkins was 3-4 and Overton was 3-8.
Entering Saturday, Tech was second in the conference in 3-point shooting percentage at 38.1%. The Red Raiders were also second in 3-point makes with 231. All season, this has been a team that has done tremendous damage from the 3-point line and that was the case again in Stillwater. When Tech shoots it that well, it doesn't matter who the opponent is.
Texas Tech is taking care of business against bad teams
It could be argued that every team in the Big 12 is respectable. However, there is a definite lower class to the league and that's where Oklahoma State finds itself with a 4-10 conference record.
Often, the sign of a special team isn't just that team's ability to beat the heavyweights on the schedule but rather its ability to win the games that are so-called "trap" games. Fortunately, this year the Red Raiders have not stepped into any traps except for the loss to UCF in the Big 12 opener.
Tech has played seven games thus far against teams with a losing Big 12 record. The Red Raiders are 6-1 in those games with the only loss being the one to the Knights on New Year's Eve.
That's a trend that needs to continue with the Red Raiders set to play four of their final six games against teams below .500 in the league. Sure, beating the Houstons and Arizonas of the world garners headlines but taking care of the teams that are struggling is also important. Handling business in games in which you are heavily favored is a sign of a mature and focused team and that's what the Red Raiders have been since their inexplicable loss to open the conference season.