The Texas Tech men’s basketball team turns its attention to Big 12 action and squares off with Iowa State during the conference opener for both teams Friday at Hilton Coliseum.
Tip time is slated for 5 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised by ESPNEWS in addition to the Watch ESPN app. Dave Armstrong and Kevin Lehman will serve as the announcing team.
The Texas Tech Sports Network will carry the game live on its flagship stations 97.3 FM, 100.7 FM and 950 AM in Lubbock. Geoff Haxton and Chris Level will have the call. The radio broadcast also will be available on the Texas Tech Sports Network radio affiliates, online at www.TexasTech.com and the TuneIn Radio app. Fans can interact with the broadcast @GunsUpRadio on Twitter.
Texas Tech (11-1, 0-0 Big 12) and Iowa State (8-3, 0-0 Big 12) will meet for the third time to start Big 12 play. The Red Raiders won a 66-55 decision in 1997-98, while the Cyclones captured a 73-62 victory to begin the 2013-14 campaign. Friday’s matchup marks the first time that a Big 12 game will be played during the month of December.
Texas Tech, winners of eight straight, has posted a healthy 129-64 rebounding advantage over its opponents during the last three games. The Red Raiders have piled up 85 or more points in seven of their 11 victories highlighted by four of their last five outings.
Iowa State has pieced together five consecutive NCAA Tournament bids and won at least 20 games to fuel the five-year run. The Cyclones have made the NCAA Sweet 16 in two of the last three seasons and have registered a 19-3 home record under second-year coach Steve Prohm. Iowa State has won 81 of its last 89 home decisions over the last six seasons.
The two teams have split its last four meetings with the home team winning all four games over the last two seasons. Iowa State holds a 16-13 series edge on the strength of an 11-3 mark in Ames. Texas Tech’s last win in Ames was a 92-83 triumph on Jan. 26, 2011 when Mike Singletary amassed 33 points.
“We’ve got nine of the toughest road games in college basketball, and we have to protect our home court against nine of the best teams in the country,” Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard said. “The order really doesn’t matter. What I love as a competitor, this is the time of year I get excited. Our players embrace that too. We don’t think we’re better than anyone else, and we understand how difficult these next couple of months are going to be. We welcome the challenge. This isn’t anything but fun to have the opportunity to play against the best teams in the country. Our players share that vision. Our locker room has felt a little different in practice this week. The film sessions have felt a little different, and there’s a little more pop going on because we’re about to play one of the greatest stages of college basketball in the Big 12.”
About Texas Tech
The Red Raiders are looking for back-to-back wins in Big 12 openers for the first time since the 1997-98 and 1998-99 seasons when Texas Tech defeated Iowa State and Baylor, respectively.
Texas Tech is one of 21 teams nationally and one of two Big 12 programs, the other being Iowa State, to have four players average over 12.0 points per game. The Red Raiders are rated either first or second in six categories sparked by league-leading 52.5 field goal percentage and a plus 11.3 rebounding margin.
Keenan Evans has provided double figures a team-leading nine times during the team’s first 12 games. He has pumped in a 13.4 points per game which is 10th and distributed 3.5 assists per game which are 14th in the Big 12 rankings. Evans has handed out 32 assists versus 10 turnovers dating back to the Utah State game on Nov. 23.
Anthony Livingston is right behind Evans and holds the No. 12 position on the Big 12 leaderboard with 13.0 points per game. He has sank 22 of his 53 field goals from three-point territory and his 48.6 percent on treys is sixth in the Big 12. Livingston is coming off a 19-point effort and dished out a career-high six assists against Longwood last time out.
Zach Smith has put together consecutive double-doubles for the first time in his career and his five double-doubles pace the Big 12 this season. He has racked up 13.8 points per game and secured 10-plus points in seven of his last eight outings. Smith’s 60.2 field goal percentage is third, 7.5 rebounds per game is fifth, 1.7 blocks per game is sixth and 12.3 points per game is 19th on the Big 12 lists. He has amassed 111 career blocks, second on the program’s all-time list, only behind Tony Battie with 162 rejections.
Aaron Ross has returned to his familiar sixth man role where he has an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention performer last season. He has piled up double figures six times en route to 12.3 points per game. Ross managed 14 points on 5-of-7 from the floor against Longwood. A key for Ross has been his 11-of-19 shooting clip on three-pointers.
Justin Gray and Devon Thomas have started Texas Tech’s last eight games. Gray is 35-of-55 from the floor during the eight-game stretch and boosted his scoring average to 10.0 points per game. He has chipped in 1.3 blocks per game which is 11th in the Big 12. His 16 blocks are one away from his 2015-16 season total. Thomas continues to possess the Big 12’s top spot with a 5.5 assist-to-turnover ratio whereas his team-leading 44 assists has already matched his total in 32 games from last season. He has compiled five games with five or more assists.
Norense Odiase made his much-anticipated season debut during the Longwood game. He dialed up eight points, two rebounds and two assists in a limited 11 minutes. Odiase has missed a total of 23 games over the last two seasons due to injury.
Thomas Brandsma, Shadell Millinghaus, Niem Stevenson and Matthew Temple round out the rotation. Millinghaus has knocked down 15 straight two-point attempts in his last six games whereas Stevenson has tacked on 10-plus points in two of his last four games. Over the last seven games, Temple has improved his scoring mark to 5.7 points per game on 16-of-21 shooting.
“I like where we’re at as a team,” Beard said. “I tell the guys all the time there are three things you have to do in conference play to win on the road. One, you have to be willing to play extremely hard for 40 minutes every single possession whether you’re involved in the play, away from the play, whether the play looks hopeless or easy – you have to be willing to play as hard as you possibly can. I’m confident that our players understand that. Two, you have to execute the scouting report. We know Iowa State, and Iowa State knows us. I’ve watched every game they’ve played this season over the break. We’ve had five days of preparation with our players just like they’ve had. A lot of ways it’s going to come down to a thinking game. There are some things we have to get done to be successful. Three, you can’t beat yourself. That’s something that our teams have done a great job over the years, and this year’s team is no different. You can’t get technical fouls, you can’t lose your composure and selfishness can’t creep in this time of year. Effort, intelligence with the scouting report and not beating yourself are the three things that will be key.”
About Iowa State
The Cyclones, who are receiving votes in this week’s Associated Press Top 25 poll, are led by the Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year in Monte Morris. He has garnered 14.6 points and 5.7 assists per game which both rank among the Big 12’s Top 10. Morris has 1,294 career points which is 20th and 614 career assists which is second on ISU’s all-time list. He secured the Big 12’s only triple-double with 17 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds versus The Citadel on Nov. 20.
Deondre Burton has picked up 12.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. The 8.0 rebounds per game are good enough for third place in the Big 12 rankings. Burton has reached the 20-point plateau on three occasions highlighted by a 29-point and 12-rebound outburst versus then No. 11 Gonzaga on Nov. 27 at the Advocare Invitational in Orlando.
Nazareth Mitrou-Long has tallied 15.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. He has strung together double figures in nine of 11 games which includes a current four-game streak, and the 15.3 points per game are seventh in the Big 12 rankings. Mitrou-Long has nailed a Big 12-leading 2.7 triples per game and exploded for a career-best 37 points on 14-of-18 from the floor versus Drake on Dec. 17.
Matt Thomas has worked his way to 12.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Like Mitrou-Long, Thomas has done his damage from beyond the three-point arc. He has connected for 12 of his 23 treys during his last five games. Thomas is coming off career-highs with 23 points and eight rebounds against Mississippi Valley State on Dec. 20.
Darrell Bowie has moved into the starting lineup during the last two games. He has provided a spark averaging 8.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. Donovan Jackson has found his rhythm with a 10-of-20 clip on three-pointers en route to 8.0 points per game in his last four outings.
“Iowa State is an up-tempo team that definitely likes to score during the first seven to eight seconds of the shot clock,” Beard said. “When they don’t get those opportunities, they simply use their talent with great spacing and utilize the pick-and-roll game. They have a future NBA point guard in Monte Morris and are really well-coached. Morris has done what all great college players have done and improved. He’s a pro, takes what the game gives him and does a great job with their team in a lot of different ways. He’s more than capable of scoring 25 points if his team needs that. He’s more than capable of getting 12 or 13 assists. He also plays great defense on the other end, and I have a lot of respect for his game.”
Up Next
Texas Tech returns home to face its first ranked opponent of the 2016-17 season in No. 11 West Virginia on Tuesday. Tip time is on-tap for 8:15 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised by ESPNEWS along with the Watch ESPN app.
