LUBBOCK, Texas –Davide Moretti scored 18 points with four 3-pointers, Jahmi’us Ramsey went for 17 and Kyler Edwards added 14 to help lead Texas Tech to a 69-62 win over Kansas State on Wednesday at the United Supermarkets Arena.

The Red Raiders (17-9, 8-5 Big 12) completed the season-sweep of the Wildcats (9-17, 2-11 Big 12) and also improved to 13-2 at home this season. Tech, which never trailed and has now won four of its last five games, also extended a six-game winning streak at home over KSU and is 6-1 at home in conference play. The Red Raiders finished the game 15 of 17 from the free-throw line and with eight 3-pointers, while Kansas State was limited to 4-for-17 on 3-pointers and were 12 of 19 at the line.

“I just think tonight’s game is another indication how good our league is,” Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard. “Kansas State has had its share of adversity this year no doubt but the game was everything we thought it would be. That’s a team that could beat anybody in the country on any given night. So, you know, tough game for us tonight. I think we understood what was at stake got to protect your home court to accomplish the things that we want to accomplish here down the stretch and 18 days left in the regular season, and tonight was a big one.”

Texas Tech will return to action against Iowa State at 5 p.m. on Saturday in Ames, Iowa. The Red Raiders earned a 72-52 win in the first matchup against the Cyclones on Jan. 18 at the USA.

Moretti scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half after going 3-for-6 on 3-pointers and 4-for-4 from the line in the final 20 minutes to help Tech build on it 39-35 halftime advantage. A junior from Italy, Moretti is now 205-for-227 from the line and has made 158 3-pointers in his career after having his fifth game this season with four 3-pointers. Ramsey also had a big second half, finishing with 10 points in the second half and 17 for the game. He was 5-for-6 from the line and hit two 3-pointers, while Edwards hit two 3-pointers and finished the game 5-for-9 from the field. Edwards, Ramsey and Moretti all had four assists in a game where the Red Raiders assisted on 18 of 23 shots.
TJ Holyfield added nine points, five rebounds and two blocks, while Kevin McCullar scored nine points and led the team with six rebounds in the first start of his career. McCullar also added four steals for the Red Raiders who forced 16 turnovers.

Xavier Sneed led Kansas State with 15 points with two 3-pointers and Antonio Gordon came off the bench to score 14 points. Gordon would hit two late 3-pointers to cut KSU’s deficit to 64-59 before a Ramsey dunk and a pair of free throws capped the win for the Red Raiders.

Texas Tech led by as many as 11 at halftime but took only a 30-27 advantage into the locker room after Kansas State went on a 10-2 close out the half. The Wildcats were 5-for-5 on their final five shots, while the Red Raiders were limited to one make in the final four minutes. Edwards led Tech with nine points in the first half after going 3-for-5 from the field, while Ramsey had seven and McCullar scored five. The Red Raiders led 5-0 to start the game with McCullar making an and-one on the first possession followed by a Holyfield layup. Tech went on a 10-0 run to take a 20-10 lead on an Edwards layup and extend it to 26-15 on a pair of Edwards free-throws. Ramsey and Moretti hit back-to-back 3-pointers off assists from Clarke during the run and led 28-17 on a Clarke layup with four minutes remaining in the half.

Tech finished the first half shooting 50 percent from the field, was 3-for-11 on 3-pointers and shot 7-for-8 at the free-throw line led by McCullar who was 3-for-3. Sneed led KSU with eight points at halftime, while Diarra and Gordon had six each. KSU was shooting 47.8 percent from the field, but were only 1-for-8 on 3-pointers at the break.  

The Red Raiders improved to 63-7 at home under Beard in the past four years and are now 13-7 all-time against KSU in Lubbock. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 24-20. 

Courtesy: Texas Tech Athletics