Texas Tech 67, Texas 57
- That was a really fun game from Texas Tech’s perspective. Both teams started out really sloppy and couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn, but Texas Tech eventually settled down and started hitting the shots they hit all year. Before you knew it, but the beginning of the second half, Texas Tech had worked themselves up to a 10 point lead and really never looked back.
- That’s the team that I wish we could see each and every game. They played terrific defense, forcing 19 turnovers, out-rebounded Texas by 5 and Texas to only shot 42% from the field, and Texas really only scored off of fast breaks or pushing the ball up the court. Their halfcourt offense had a heck of a time getting situated and producing much of anything.
- Shout-out to the crowd and the students. For the first time all year, I thought that they were loud and audible from my television. That was fun to listen to and they were into it.
- It was senior night and that meant all five seniors got the starting nod last night: Devon Thomas, Thomas Brandsma, Aaron Ross, Anthony Livingston and Matt Temple. A hat tip to all of them.
- Ross had the best night of the bunch, scoring 13 points on 5 of 11 from the floor and grabbed 6 rebounds. Ross looked comfortable shooting the ball in what seemed like a long time. That was good to see.
- The leading scorer, yet again, was Keenan Evans, who scored 18 points on just 4 of 10 from the floor, but he hit all 10 free throws, had 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 turnovers.
- Zach Smith didn’t have a great stat line, but he was all over the place, scoring only 5 points, grabbing only 4 rebounds, with 3 assists and 3 turnovers. He was certainly more involved defensively and was mixing it up. It was good to see.
- Justin Gray had a terrific night, scoring 15 points on 6 of 10 from the floor, with 4 rebounds and an assist. He was really active, and maybe had the dunk on the night on a fast break to the rim early in the first half.
- Niem Stevenson also had a fun game, he led the team in rebounding with 7 and was really active overall. Getting his hands on the ball on defense and generally causing havoc, while dishing out 3 assists too.
- Head coach Chris Beard:
“Tonight was our night,” Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard said. “It was about our seniors. It’s probably my least favorite night of the whole season – Senior Night. Simply stated, I don’t want these guys to leave. I want to coach [Aaron] Ross for another year. I don’t know how he feels, but I’d like to coach him for another year. There’s a lot of pressure on Senior Night. These guys have family coming in and a lot of things going on around the game. For these seniors to get us off to a good start and all contribute in the game, I was just really pleased. Tonight was about them.”
- Oh, and Beard tweeted this out at 4 in the morning:
PERSEVERANCE – steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success. #seniors #4:1 pic.twitter.com/fwCsY92zIO
— Chris Beard (@CoachBeardTTU) March 2, 2017
