Colonel Obvious, here, but Texas Tech’s 58-57 loss to Kansas was primarily attributable to the disparity in free throw shooting by the two teams. The Jayhawks hit 93 percent of their attempts from the stripe; the Red Raiders hit 61 percent. KU left one point on the court; Tech left seven. If both teams shoot their average percentage from the line, this is not a one-possession game. And you just don’t beat Kansas in one-possession games. Bill Self is the best coach in the game at designing out-of-bounds plays, and sure as shootin’, he drew up a beauty that Ochai Agbaji cashed in for a layup to provide the winning points with 13 seconds left to play. It never should have come down to that.
Kyler Edwards had a miserable game with zero points on 0-of-9 shooting, one rebound, one assist and one steal. Given his ineffectiveness, one wonders why he got 36 minutes of action, the most for any player on either team. I understand that Chris Beard trusts Edwards, but in this instance, he would have been better off playing big with Tyreek Smith, who was an energetic presence. Smith played only nine minutes, and got four more points and two more rebounds than Edwards.
One gathers that Chris Beard was slightly miffed at Edwards’ performance. He trotted Edwards and only Edwards out to face the press and the music after the game.
Prior to this game, I told myself that if Texas Tech had no more than 11 turnovers and shot at least 43 percent from the floor, they would win the game. The Red Raiders did great in the former category, committing only seven turnovers, but were abysmal in the latter, hitting only 32 percent of their shots. The big problem with scoring is that this team just doesn’t have any finishers, with the exception of Terrence Shannon. These guys are easily bothered by interior rim protection, and just can’t cash it in around the hoop with any consistency.
Speaking of Shannon, he was clearly Tech’s best player in this game. And the key for him was taking the ball aggressively to the rack. This was the first game this season I’ve seen that explosive first step he displayed so often early in his freshman campaign.
This was also Micah Peavy’s best game so far as a Red Raider. He played large tonight, and at times was dominant on the offensive glass. Indeed, with 13 offensive boards, this was a surprisingly good effort by Tech in this area. And that makes two games in a row. Against Corpus Christi, you’ll remember, the Red Raiders wiped the offensive glass 23 times. If Tech proves to be a poor shooting team, as currently seems to be the case, those offensive rebounds and second-chance points may spell the difference between a good season and a mediocre one.
Shannon and Mac McClung combined for 72 percent of Texas Tech’s points. Good for those two, but that’s not exactly the balance Beard says he wants.
Nimari Burnett gives you next to nothing on offense right now, but he did have another three-steal game. He has a rare gift for reading offenses and getting into passing lanes. If he stays at Texas Tech long enough, he will finish as the program’s all-time leader in steals.
Some folks have been banging the drum for Tyreek Smith. I’ve been hesitant to do so. But that’s about to change. I’m not so sure he doesn’t give you more than Marcus Santos-Silva, whose athletic limitations are considerable. A lack of athleticism is not a problem for Smith.
* Tech did a terrific job on KU’s Jalen Wilson. He had been one of the Big 12’s more dominant players coming in to tonight’s contest, but was not a major factor in this game.
