Red Raider Recap: Tech 70, North Texas 43

Tuesday, November 15

United Supermarkets Arena

6:30 PM

Texas Tech Athletics

2-0

North Texas

1-1

North Texas

Texas Tech

Red Raider Recap: Tech 70, North Texas 43

November 16, 2016 | Men's Basketball

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The Red Raiders have won 21 straight nonconference home games dating back to the 2013-14 season.

LUBBOCK, Texas – Zach Smith registered his third career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds as the Texas Tech men's basketball team claimed a convincing 70-43 victory over North Texas Tuesday at the United Supermarkets Arena.

The win enabled Texas Tech (2-0) to push its nonconference home winning streak to 21 straight games dating back to the 2013-14 season. The Red Raiders also have won eight of their last nine meetings with North Texas (1-1) since 1992-93, and the 27-point win is the largest in the series going back to a 100-70 victory over the Mean Green on Dec. 1, 1999.

"I'm happy for our players to get the win tonight," Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard said. "North Texas had our complete attention and respect. It was a really scary game of preparation because I think they had some really good players. Equally, they have a really good coach. I just want to recognize Tony Benford, one of the all-time Texas Tech greats. He played for Coach (Gerald) Myers and won two championships here. It made me really proud to be a Red Raider when the crowd recognized him before the game and showed him a sign of respect. Coach Benford is somebody that I have a lot of respect for.

For Smith, he was 5-of-8 from the floor and hauled down all 11 of his rebounds on the defensive end. His previous two double-doubles came against Little Rock (Dec. 22, 2015) and versus TCU (March 9, 2016) at the Big 12 Tournament.

Aaron Ross pumped in eight of his team-leading 13 points during the second half. He knocked down a trio of three-pointers. The North Little Rock, Arkansas native also grabbed six rebounds to go along with a career-high tying three assists and two steals.

Anthony Livingston chipped in nine points and seven rebounds, while Shadell Millinghaus also secured nine points. The duo came away with 14 of their 18 points in the first half.

The Red Raiders received solid bench efforts from Justin Gray, Giovanni McLean, Niem Stevenson and Devon Thomas. Gray led the way with eight points coupled with career-highs 10 rebounds and four blocks. Stevenson tacked on five points, three rebounds and three assists. Thomas logged four points, three rebounds and three assists whereas McLean tallied five points.

Texas Tech scored 24 of the game's 26 points off turnovers and held a healthy 36-16 advantage in paint points. Through two games, the Red Raiders are doubling up their opposition by a 68-34 margin inside the lane.

Texas Tech converted 28-of-65 from the floor, 6-of-20 from three-point territory and were only able to connect on 8-of-16 at the free throw line.
The Mean Green were bottled up to a 17-for-57 shooting performance which included a 7-for-31 clip during the second 20 minutes. North Texas misfired on 20 of its 24 three-point attempts and sank five of its 12 foul shots. Deckie Johnson posted 13 points, and A.J. Lawson notched 10 points to lead UNT.

"We tell the guys all the time there are different ways to win games," Beard said. "Your defense has to be there on a night when shots are not falling. I think tonight might be one of the classic examples of my career. We didn't really shoot it very well from two, we didn't really shoot it very well from three and we really struggled from the free throw line. But, we find ourselves at a double digit lead at halftime in a game that was in control because of our defense. So, certainly when we get in to conference play, we're going to have to execute on both ends of the court."

Texas Tech set the tone early and fired out to a 12-2 lead in the game's opening six minutes. The Red Raiders had five players score started by jumpers from Smith and Millinghaus sandwiched between a Livingston putback.

Then, Gray added a pair of jumpers of his own – one off an out of bounds play and the other freeing himself by using the pump fake. Ross connected with Livingston for a midrange jumper at the top of the key to beat the UNT 2-3 zone to cap Tech's opening run.

The Red Raiders stretched their lead to 24-9 at the 6:30 mark by turning defense into offense. A Stevenson steal turned into a Gray two-handed slam in transition.

Texas Tech carried a 37-24 edge in the locker room. The Red Raiders made the most of 11 North Texas opening half turnovers and rattled off 17 of their 24 points off turnovers.

Ross began the second half scoring with a triple on the left wing, and Stevenson drove strong to the basket late in the shot clock to make it 42-24 with 16:27 to go.

Once again, Texas Tech put together a strong finish and took its largest lead of the contest in the closing minutes. The Red Raiders scored the game's final 10 points over the last 3:53 ignited by a Thomas trey and two assists. He found Smith for a layup which turned into a traditional three-point play and led Gray for a high-flying layup in transition.

"Devon is somebody we're really counting on," Beard said. "I think with all the players that were here during the coaching transition, Devon was a guy that earned our respect very quickly with the way he works. He's never in a bad mood. I've never seen Devon in a bad mood and that really just bleeds into our locker room and our team. So, personally I'm really pulling for him. Tonight, the impressive thing was he had a three assists and no turnover night. That's exactly what we need from Devon."

Texas Tech wraps up its three-game homestand to start the 2016-17 campaign Saturday against Eastern Kentucky as part of the Cancun Challenge Regional Round. Tipoff is set for 12 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised by FOX Sports Southwest in addition to the FOX Sports Go App.

Fans can purchase tickets to Saturday's game for as low as $10 online at www.TexasTech.com or in person at the United Supermarkets Arena Ticket Office starting 90 minutes prior to tipoff.

Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/TexasTechMBB and @TexasTechMBB on Twitter.