Texas Tech Hoops – Scrimmage Breakdowns

Two exhibition games down, and two good outcomes. Here are a look at the box scores… GAME #1 & GAME #2.

Game #1 – TTU 100 vs Concordia 49
Game #2 – TTU 91 vs West Texas A&M 74

Winning both games by a nice margin of victory gives a breath of fresh air to start the season. Even though these games don’t count it would be discouraging to get a loss in one of our scrimmages. Including the Canadian tour this team has some chemistry together and seems to be ready for the regular season to start on Friday night.

Starting Lineup

SG – Williams, Devaugntah
PF – Smith, Zach
PG – Evans, Keenan
SF – Gotcher, Toddrick
C – Odiase, Norense

Same for both games. Nothing strange here to report as this was our prediction a few weeks ago on what the starting lineup would be going into the season based on what we saw in Canada. Different opponents and Justin Gray getting healthy might change things up during the season, but we know who will be rolling out as starters during the beginning of non-conference play. I am okay with the lineup and think it is solid for the way our roster looks.

Free Throws

Game #1 – 29/47 (61.7%)
Game #2 – 31/45 (68.9%)

A lot of us are worried about how the team will do from the charity stripe. While the free throw percentage wasn’t stellar in both games, it is trending in a better direction from last season. The positive thing is we have some guys that we know are going to be clutch from the line, Jordan Jackson was 100% in both games.

Three Pointers

Game #1 – 3/18 (16.7%)
Game #2 – 8/19 (42.1%)

Another place that was a concern going into this season was the outside shooting. It looks like we might be in for a hot and cold season, and will be leaning on a few players to be streaky from downtown. Our deep threats Williams and Gotcher were a combined 0-7 in the first game, then in the second game Gotcher was 5-5 while Williams went 1-4. Texas Tech might struggle all season in this category, but if one of these guys is hot it can keep us in most games.

Turnovers

Game #1 – 17
Game #2 – 15

Still a high turnover rate for our young squad. The hope is that we can cut down on the bad mistakes as the season goes on, but we might need to prepare to see some bad decisions from time to time. The goal is to keep cutting down on these numbers and it will be something I’m tracking all season. A winning formula usually involves a low tpg average.

Scoring Leaders

Games #1 – Manderson & Ross 15
Games #2 – Gotcher 23

This squad might have lots of different guys who get the hot hand in games, and we may not know until after the first 10 games who the “go to guy” will be for our scoring. Things to note are that Ross was getting the buckets a lot in these scrimmages 15 & 10 (points). He might look to have a bigger role on offense this year, and may be the guy. The always reliable Zach Smith 11 & 9 (points), as he got to the free throw line a bunch… so look for him to be consistent at dropping in double-digit scoring all season.

Frosh Minutes

Game #1 – Jackson 21, Williamson 21
Game #1 – Jackson 13, Williamson 16

Some nice minutes were seen by both big incoming frosh named Jordan and CJ. I would imagine that for Tubby Smith; he will keep playing the young guys a lot to see how they are adjusting their game to the college level. Most likely getting more minutes throughout the season will depend strictly on performance. Lots of expectation out of our frosh this year, and the hope is that they exceed with every chance they get to be on the court.

Rebounding Leaders

Game #1 – Ross 15
Game #2 – Manderson 8

While not the leader in either game Odiase pulled in 11 boards in the first game (2nd most) and 6 in the second (2nd most). Others may have big days grabbing the ball off the rim this season, and Manderson will have plenty of them… but Odiase will be our guy to always be cleaning up the missed shots.

Recap

While I have been going strictly off stats, there are still a ton of unknowns with our squad going into the season. If you went to these games please feel free to let us know what stuck out the most to you in these scrimmages. A win is a win, and our team should have some confidence after winning ever game include all the ones in Canada. Friday against High Point the real test will begin. Wreck ’em Tech!

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