Big 12 Ahead
After finishing up the regular season with a loss to an on-fire Baylor Bears team, Texas Tech’s team is looking to bounce back with a successful Big 12 tournament. The red raiders ended their season 17-9 overall and 9-8 in the conference. With an end ranking of No. 20 in the nation.
Tech Ranked At #6
Texas Tech is entering the Big 12 conference tournament ranked 6th and will play their first game against Texas. In the first two meetings of the season, Texas Tech swept the Texas longhorns in two games. The red raiders won a nail-biter in a last-second three-point buzzer-beater by Mac McClung to win the game. The 79-77 win helped the red raiders stay in the fight and stay ranked since the longhorns were ranked No. 4 in the nation at the time.
In the second game of the season at United Supermarkets Arena, the red raiders shut down the longhorns. Five players for Tech scored in double digits and gave the red raiders the edge to win the 68-59 against the longhorns. The Longhorns are not to be underestimated; when all of the longhorn’s guards are playing well, the longhorns possess both the size and the talent to take on any team in the country.
Texas Tech Takes On The Longhorns
The Texas Tech Red Raiders will look to hold off the longhorns a third time in Kansas City, Missouri, on Thursday, March 11th at 8:30 pm. Texas is looking for revenge after being swept in the regular season. The longhorns, as of late, have been looking to make a statement in March.
The red raiders will have several big matchups against the longhorns, with many of them coming from guard play. Texas’s leading scorer is Andrew Jones; averaging just under 15 a game at 14.9 points per game, followed by Courtney Ramsey and Matt Coleman III. The three guards are prone to explode in a barrage of points at any time. Luckily the red raiders have been able to keep the longhorns at bay thus far.
Along with the guard’s Texas also has several big men; an area that the Red Raiders lack in. With their biggest starter being Marcos Santos-Silva being only 6’7″ the red raiders will have their hands full. Texas big man threats come from forward Greg Brown who stands at 6’9″ and Jericho Sims, standing at 6’10”. The red raiders are significantly undersized at almost every position but will look to compensate for their lack of size with a fast and high caliber play on both sides of the floor.
Key Players
Key players for the red raiders will come in Kyler Edwards, who has gone off in March. He should be followed by key players such as Terrance Shannon Jr. and Mac McClung, who will be expected to bring intensity to both ends of the floor. In the paint, Marcos Santos-Silva will be expected to keep Texas’s big men at bay but will have his hands full and will have players such as Kevin McCullar and Terrance Shannon Jr. step in to help.
Stay Tuned For The Game
Overall, the matchup between the two juggernauts will be one to watch Thursday, March 11th at 8:30p, in Kansas City, Missouri, at the T-Mobile Center. With Texas looking for revenge and Texas Tech looking to hold off the longhorns just one more time, it is sure to be a high-intensity nail-biter.
Want to read more? Check out the last Texas Tech vs. Texas preview and if you want to go back, check out the Raider basketball preseason rankings.
Story by Trinity Porter, Campus Live intern