TULSA, Okla. (AP) —
BOTTOM LINE: Buffalo and Texas Tech will go at it in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Texas Tech earned a 72-57 win over Northern Kentucky in its most recent game, while Buffalo got a 91-74 win against Arizona State in its last outing.
SAVVY VETERANS: Senior leadership could play a big role in the outcome of this game. Jarrett Culver, Matt Mooney, Tariq Owens and Brandone Francis have collectively accounted for 61 percent of Texas Tech’s scoring this season. For Buffalo, CJ Massinburg, Jeremy Harris, Nick Perkins, Jayvon Graves and Dontay Caruthers have collectively accounted for 77 percent of all Buffalo scoring, including 85 percent of the team’s points over its last five games.
CREATING OFFENSE: Culver has had his hand in 57 percent of all Texas Tech field goals over the last three games. The sophomore guard has 33 field goals and 14 assists in those games.
UNDEFEATED WHEN: Buffalo is a perfect 30-0 when its defense holds opponents to a field goal percentage of 49.1 percent or less. The Bulls are 2-3 when allowing the opposition to shoot any better than that.
ACCOUNTING FOR ASSISTS: The Red Raiders have recently gotten buckets via assists more often than the Bulls. Texas Tech has an assist on 41 of 82 field goals (50 percent) across its previous three outings while Buffalo has assists on 45 of 91 field goals (49.5 percent) during its past three games.
PACE OF PLAY: The upbeat Buffalo offense has averaged 74.1 possessions per game, the 17th-most in Division I. Texas Tech has not been as uptempo as the Bulls and is averaging only 67.3 possessions per game (ranked 268th, nationally).
