Keenan Evans racked up 18 of his career-high 28 points in the first half, and the Texas Tech men’s basketball team came away with a convincing 93-67 victory over Houston Baptist during its season opener Friday at the United Supermarkets Arena.
It marked the opening game for Chris Beard as head coach of the Red Raiders with 9,774 fans in attendance.
“First of all, I just want to thank the crowd,” Beard said. “I thought it was an unbelievable opening night crowd. This time of year, I thought Lubbock really responded especially with our student body. We had a lot of students at the game tonight. Our season ticket holders showed up, and we had a lot of different promotions going on. A special thank you to everyone around town that helped create a first crowd. We’re very appreciative for all the players when I say that.”
Evans’ previous career-best was a 21-point performance during Tech’s victory at No. 21 Baylor on Feb. 13, 2016. The junior point guard was 9-of-12 from the floor and knocked down all five of his three-point attempts. Evans also was an efficient 5-of-6 at the foul line and tacked on three assists with two steals.
“I remember early on in my relationship with Keenan – just having a conversation with him one time – ‘I said, hey Keenan, don’t afraid to be great.’ A lot of times the enemy of great is good and up to this point I think he’s had a good career,” Beard said. “I think he’s got it in him where he can be great. Tonight was a special night because he’s making shots. He has a chance to be a really great player so I was happy for Keenan. He’s put in a lot of time, and it was nice to see him have the results tonight.”
Anthony Livingston tacked on 16 points, five rebounds and two assists. Making his first start after 84 bench appearances to start his career, Aaron Ross secured 13 points and five rebounds.
Shadell Millinghaus turned in 11 points, five rebounds and two assists over 13 minutes of action. Off the bench, Niem Stevenson notched 10 points, three rebounds and three assists.
Zach Smith added six points, five rebounds, three blocks and two assists whereas Justin Gray and Devon Thomas managed four points apiece.
As a team, the Red Raiders (1-0) dished out 20 assists on 33 field goals with eight players totaled multiple assists. Texas Tech scorched the nets with a 33-for-64 shooting effort and g 10-of-17 from three-point territory. The Red Raiders sank 17-of-25 at the free throw line.
Houston Baptist (0-1) was 22-of-58 from the field, 7-of-23 on three-point attempts and 16-of-24 from the foul line. Atif Russell garnered 16 points to lead the Huskies.
Ahead 45-36 at halftime, the Red Raiders began the second half with a 35-14 flurry over the first 10 minutes. Evans found Livingston for a three-pointer on the opening possession to ignite the run.
Texas Tech continued firing on all cylinders and made 11 of its opening 15 shot attempts during the second 20 minutes. Millinghaus found Thomas for a layup in transition to make it 59-40 with 16:26 remaining.
The Red Raiders stretched it to 73-47 at the 12:29 mark after back-to-back triples courtesy of Livingston and Evans within a 33-second span. Texas Tech took its largest lead at 80-50 on a pair of Thomas free throws with 9:48 left.
Evans started his career night and drove the baseline for a two-handed dunk for the game’s opening basket. The Red Raiders took a 18-10 advantage with 12:16 to go after Millinghaus beat the HBU 2-3 zone with a triple off the left wing.
The Huskies pulled as close as one point midway through the stanza but were unable to grab the lead. With the score 39-35 at the 1:05 mark, Texas Tech wrapped up the half with a 6-1 spurt. Evans got a rainbow three-ball to fall in the closing seconds to enable the Red Raiders to take a 45-36 edge into the locker room.
“I think I was pleased with a nice balance tonight – five guys in double figures,” Beard said. “Everybody contributed in the game. Some of our players that haven’t played in a while got on the court and got real minutes. I think it was a good win. It’s a team [HBU] that I have a lot of respect for. Houston Baptist will end up having a good season. They’re well coached, and they have good players. I think we’ve got 12 guys that are enjoying playing the game. I always want our players to have fun playing the game. Things we need to work on like everybody: too many turnovers and too many fouls. We’ve just got to continue to get better.”
The Red Raiders continue their three-game homestand to start the season Tuesday versus North Texas. Tip time is slated for 6:30 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised by FOX Sports Southwest Plus in addition to the FOX Sports Go App.
Fans can purchase tickets to Tuesday’s game for as low as $10 online at www.TexasTech.com or in person at the United Supermarkets Arena Ticket Office starting 90 minutes prior to tipoff.
Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the men’s basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/TexasTechMBB and @TexasTechMBB on Twitter.