Wish No. 18 for Red Raider Fans This Holiday Season
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As we continue our countdown of holiday wishes for Texas Tech fans, we present wish No. 18 for Red Raider fans.
Most, if not all, Texas Tech fans are having a fantastic week and a wonderful December because the Red Raiders' athletic teams are on a roll with numerous victories these past weeks. However, one can always harbor and ask for wishes, especially during the holiday season.
Wish No. 18: The Texas Tech men's basketball team plays like it did against LSU, and not like it did against Purdue
Granted, the Red Raiders played LSU and Purdue at different times of the season, but they were technically both played on neutral courts, and both teams were undefeated at the time Texas Tech played them.
Texas Tech didn't just defeat LSU, it won by 24 in the US LBM Coast-to-Coast Challenge game.
Three games before they played LSU, the Red Raiders lost by a wide margin to Purdue in the Baha Mar Championship game. The Boilermakers were ranked No. 1 at the time, before they lost to Iowa State 81-58 on their home court this past weekend.
The question is, will Texas Tech play as it did against LSU or Purdue when it plays Arkansas and Duke to end non-conference play? Hopefully, the Red Raiders play as they did against the Tigers rather than how they did against the Boilermakers to fulfill wish No. 18 on this holiday wish list.
The Red Raiders have a clear plan for how to win after dominating LSU on a neutral floor. They have a good chance of beating Arkansas and even upsetting Duke if they can play as they did against the Tigers.
Texas Tech might win its remaining two big non-conference games if it shoots 13-of-27 (48.1%) from 3-point range, as it did against LSU. The team was 9-of-15 (60%) in the first half alone. Such a shooting performance made the defense weaker and gave the Red Raiders more space to operate on offense.
The Red Raiders' performance on the glass against the Tigers was also excellent, as they had a 15-rebound edge in the second half and a total of 48 rebounds to LSU's 33. This type of effort is another crucial step to winning their last non-conference games.
The advantage made it harder for LSU to get second-chance points (finishing with eight) and gave Tech more chances to score. Duke and Arkansas are both very good on the defensive end, so these efforts will be important.
It is also crucial to ensure that Christian Anderson's eight assists weren't a one-time thing. Passing at a high level opens up shots that lead to high 3-point percentages. The Red Raiders also need to utilize JT Toppin inside and the threat of the 3-pointer to pull large defenders out of the post against teams like Arkansas, which might try to push its will physically, and Duke, which has a lot of size inside.
Toppin and LeJuan Watts need to do what they did again on the boards to help Texas Tech win its last two main non-conference games. Winning the rebounding margin provides a team like the Red Raiders more chances to get second-chance points and prevents the other team from getting easy second-chance buckets.
Texas Tech also needs to limit the Razorbacks' and Blue Devils' 3-point shots. Texas Tech's pressure made it hard for LSU to make 3-pointers, as it only made 16.7% of its attempts. Arkansas and Duke both have guards who can take over a game. Tech needs to get shooters off the line and have them attempt contested shots as often as possible.
Tech only turned the ball over 14 times against LSU, which is OK, but against better teams like Arkansas and Duke, every possession counts. It will be hard to stay calm in the high-pressure neutral-court games against Arkansas (at the American Airlines Center) and Duke (at Madison Square Garden).
The Red Raiders will have a good chance of finishing their non-conference season well if they can bring the high-percentage perimeter shooting, superior rebounding, and consistent defensive pressure they exhibited against LSU to their games against Arkansas and Duke. If so, this holiday wish has a chance of coming true.
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Ryan Kay is a journalist who graduated from Michigan State in 2003 and is passionate about covering college sports and enjoys writing features and articles covering various collegiate teams. He has worked as an editor at Go Joe Bruin and has been a contributor for Longhorns Wire and Busting Brackets. He is a contributor for Texas Tech On SI.