Okay look, we’ve already gone over a bit about how the Texas Tech Lady Raiders are struggling right now. We’ve talked a bit about how Krista Gerlich and Texas Tech got the season started so well and then have completely and totally stumbled through some abysmal games as of late.
Folks, if you weren’t aware, Texas Tech has won just two of its last six games.
One being a 31-point beating of the No. 14 Baylor Bears (which is a bit of an anomaly when you look at how things have gone lately for Texas Tech) and then the other being a 7-point win over Arizona State on Senior Day.
Both of those wins came at home. In the four losses that Texas Tech has recorded lately, the Lady Raiders lost either on the road or in a neutral site matchup. So, you know. There’s a lot to explore there.
And there’s a lot to just ask in general.
So, let’s take a look at some questions about this mess of a stretch to wrap up the regular season (and one quick game in Kansas City for the Big 12 tournament).
Question 1: What on earth is going on with Texas Tech towards the end of games?
You know, it’s probably not a good thing that Texas Tech is averaging 13 points in the fourth quarter of the last six games that the Lady Raiders have played. That just doesn’t seem like an optimal number of points to be putting up in the final frame of some games.
On the high end of that stretch, Texas Tech scored 27 points in the 4th quarter against Oklahoma State. On the low end, Texas Tech scored just four points in the 4th quarter against Kansas State.
Not ideal!
Also not ideal is the fact that Texas Tech’s opponents have averaged 18.3 points in the fourth quarter of those last six games.
Not good! What’s happening here?
Question 2: Can Bailey Maupin get out of this scoring slump for the Lady Raiders?
There’s a few different answers that could probably be proposed for question one, and I don’t want to pin all of this on one person. What I do want to do is explore how Bailey Maupin has hit a pretty rough slump and Texas Tech very clearly relies on her.
On the season, Maupin is Texas Tech’s leading scorer (15.1 points per game). Unfortunately, she’s not exactly performing at the top of her ability. In the four losses across that rough six-game stretch, Maupin has made just 16 of 54 shots (which is good for a 29.6 percent shooting percentage) and then went 5-for-27 on shots from three point range (18.5 percent three point shooting percentage).
This year, Maupin has averaged 41.6 percent from the field and then 34.2 percent from deep. Texas Tech’s offense needs Maupin. She’s not having much success lately. Can that change in the NCAA women’s basketball tournament?
Question 3: Will Texas Tech find a way to bring back that early season momentum?
This feels like a big sort of philosophical question of sorts, but Texas Tech really needs to find a way to get that early season success back and I don’t know what that looks like for a team that has hit a rough patch. I just don’t know.
Texas Tech needs to find a way to get Maupin some more support so that she’s not the only driver for the offense, especially in games where she’s struggling. Along with that, rebounding and avoiding turnovers have to be priorities as well.
And I just don’t know if Texas Tech is going to be able to flip a switch and make things magically better or what. But it sure would be nice if the Lady Raiders could get things figured out a bit during this upcoming matchup with Villanova. Get a win there, get some momentum, and then go win again. Is that too much to ask for? I hope that’s not too much to ask for.