The following is a press release from Texas Tech Athletics.
LUBBOCK, Texas – Matt Mooney and Jarrett Culver scored 18 points each, Tariq Owens added 17 and No. 16-ranked Texas Tech limited its turnovers to seven in an 84-65 win over TCU after establishing a 16-point halftime lead on Monday at the United Supermarkets Arena.
The Red Raiders (17-4, 5-3 Big 12) finished the game shooting 54.2 percent, were 9-for-21 on 3-pointers (42.9 percent), recorded 20 assists and finished with a rebounding advantage over the Horned Frogs (15-5, 3-4 Big 12). TTU, which led 43-27 at halftime in the first ESPN Big Monday showcase in Lubbock since 2006, improved to 12-1 at home this season with the win and stopped a three-game conference losing streak.
Davide Moretti recorded a career-high seven assists and scored 11 points two days after scoring a career-high 21 points against Arkansas. He also led the team with three 3-pointers and now has 34 for the season. Culver scored 12 of his 18 points in the second half and led the team with seven rebounds, while Owens was one point off of his season-high after going 7-for-9 from the field along with adding six rebounds. Owens scored the opening points of the game on an alley-oop pass from Mooney and hit two 3-pointers for the second straight game. Mooney finished the game 7-for-12 from the field and also had five assists. Mooney now has five games with five or more assists for the Red Raiders who now have four games this season with 20 or more assists.
“I’m happy for our players because I think we beat a really good team tonight,” said Texas Tech coach Chris Beard who is now 45-5 at home during his three years leading the program. “They are an NCAA tournament team that is a big part of the fight this year in the Big 12. I have a lot of respect for them. I think we played one of our better games of the season.”
Kyler Edwards added eight points with two 3-pointers, while Deshawn Corprew had six rebounds and five points off the bench. Culver has now scored 803 points in his career, reached double-figures in 20 of 21 games this season and leads the Red Raiders with 18.5 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. TCU’s Kevin Samuel recorded a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds and Kouat Noi led the Horned Frogs with 17 points. TCU shot 45.7 percent from the field, the second highest against Tech this season, but would commit 13 turnovers and couldn’t keep up with the Red Raiders who finished 11-for-14 at the free-throw line.
“There’s a real statistical part of basketball,” Beard said. “Tonight we shot over 50 percent, over 40 from 3 and had a low-turnover game and outrebounded them. Then we found a balance we needed with four guys in double-figures and then Kyler right there under 10. If we can get that kind of balance scoring, take care of the basketball and guard then I think we are one of the best teams in the country.”
The Red Raiders would maintain and build on their 16-point halftime advantage throughout the second half, leading by a 57-40 margin on after a Moretti 3-pointer five minutes into the half. TCU would trim its deficit to 10 on a dunk by Kevin Samuel with 9:05 to play before the Red Raiders pushed it back to 15 on a jumper by Edwards and a pair of baskets from Culver. TTU would put the final touches on the impressive win with Owens throwing down a dunk off an assist from Culver before Culver put the exclamation point on the game with a dunk to make it 80-60 with 3:16 remaining.
Texas Tech led 43-27 after hitting seven 3-pointers and committing only three turnovers. Mooney led the Red Raiders with 10 points at halftime after going 4-for-7 from the field and also had four assists, while Edwards was 2-for-3 on 3-pointers and had six points. Moretti also had two 3s and had eight points at the break for the Red Raiders who led at halftime for the first time in six games. The Red Raiders went on a 10-0 run early to take a 12-6 lead after a Mooney jumper and 3-pointers from Brandone Francis and Owens.
The 43 first-half points were tied for the second most in the opening half this season with the team scoring 53 in a win over Northwestern State and also having 43 Mississippi Valley State and Northern Colorado.
“You have to come ready to play with heart, effort and together,” Beard said. “We normally do that. And then you have to play well. Tonight we played really well against a really good TCU team.”
Texas Tech will return to action against No. 11 Kansas at 3 p.m. on Saturday in Lawrence, Kansas. The Red Raiders earned their first-ever win on the Jayhawks home court last year with an 85-73 victory on Jan. 2, 2018. TTU is 1-17 all-time in Lawrence going into this weekend’s contest that will be broadcasted on CBS.