Red Raider Preview: Nicholls State

Wednesday, December 14

United Supermarkets Arena

8:00 PM

Texas Tech Athletics

Nicholls State

Tickets

December 13, 2016 | Men's Basketball

Game10NichollsStateGameNotes

Basketball fans can enjoy a doubleheader Wednesday at the United Supermarkets Arena.

LUBBOCK, Texas – The Texas Tech men's basketball team returns to action from its final exam break and takes on Nicholls State as part of a doubleheader Wednesday at the United Supermarkets Arena.

Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. CT following the Lady Raiders matchup with Central Arkansas. The game will be televised by FOX Sports Southwest Plus along with the FOX Sports Go app. Robert Giovannetti and John Harris will serve as the announcing team with Adam Doyle as the sideline reporter.

The Texas Tech Sports Network will carry the game live on 97.3 FM, 100.7 FM and 950 AM in Lubbock. Geoff Haxton and Chris Level will have the call. The radio broadcast also will be available on the Texas Tech Sports Network radio affiliates, online at www.TexasTech.com and the TuneIn Radio app.

Texas Tech (8-1) dialed up its most convincing win of the season with an 87-50 rout of UTSA last Wednesday to claim its fifth straight victory. The Red Raiders turned in a balanced scoring attack and had five players reach double figures for the fourth time this season.

The Colonels (5-5) will be facing their third opponent from a Power 5 conference. Nicholls State knocked off Boston College, 79-73, during its season opener but dropped a 118-63 decision to Florida State last Wednesday.

"About a week ago, we set the goal for our team to get better during this week of practice," Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard said. "These next two weeks are a pivotal point for any team in its season. It's the last chance to have extended practices before you start conference play. The biggest challenge for us is we haven't been able to play with our full team yet. I've been impressed with how the guys have been locked in mentally. We hoped that the identity of our team would be our depth, and it's been true in a lot of ways. We've had a lot of different players contribute, and we've proven that we can be a good defensive team to this point against a lot of different styles."

Texas Tech has won all four previous meetings against the Colonels. The most recent was a 107-35 victory during the 2002-03 which was during Bob Knight's second season with the Red Raiders.

Fans can purchase tickets to Wednesday's game for as low as $10 online at www.TexasTech.com or in person on gameday at the United Supermarkets Arena Ticket Office starting 90 minutes prior to tipoff. Two complimentary tickets are available for fans who bring an unopened toy to benefit the "Toys for Tots" program.

Fans are reminded to go clear at all Texas Tech basketball games. The new clear bag policy provides a safer atmosphere and speeds up the entry process into the United Supermarkets Arena.

Texas Tech is encouraging fans to arrive as early as possible to men's and women's basketball games due to the temporary closure to the entrance and exit of the Commuter West Lot at the Texas Tech Parkway and Knoxville Avenue. This entrance and exit will be closed from Dec. 5 to Jan. 13 for construction. Fans are asked to use the entrances and exits off Indiana Avenue when arriving from the north along with the entrances and exits at Indiana Avenue and 18th Street when arriving from 19th Street or the Marsha Sharp Freeway.

About Texas Tech
The Red Raiders are ranked among the Big 12's Top 3 in five major statistical categories and hold the top spot in free throw percentage (76.3) along with rebounding margin (+7.9). Texas Tech has connected on 52.4 percent of its field goal attempts and have shot over 50 percent in six of its first nine games.

Anthony Livingston and Keenan Evans check in at 11th and 15th place respectively on the Big 12 scoring leaderboard. Evans has reached double figures in four consecutive games which ties a career-long streak en route to 13.1 points per game whereas Livingston has done his damage from three-point territory. His 46.2 three-point percentage is third in the Big 12 rankings.

Zach Smith will look to return to the hardwood after missing Tech's last game with UTSA. He has upped his scoring mark to 13.0 points per game over his last five outings and his 65.5 field goal clip tops the Big 12 conference. Smith has piled up 108 career blocks and is two away from moving past Will Flemons (1990-93) for second place on Tech's all-time list.

Texas Tech has played its last five games without its leading scorer Aaron Ross. The Red Raiders also have been without Norense Odiase who has started 47 of his 51 career appearances over his first two seasons for the first nine games of the 2016-17 season.

Devon Thomas has passed out a team-best 32 assists against five turnovers and compiled a Big 12 leading 6.4 assist-to-turnover ratio through nine games. He has distributed five-plus assists in four games and is coming off a career-high six assists during the UTSA game.

"It started with a lot of truth telling for Devon," Beard said. "People have a misconception that when a new coach comes in is he going to keep you or not. What you do is have conversations with players, and you tell them the truth – this is where we see your game, and this is where we see your opportunity. Then, it's up to each player to embrace that challenge. With Devon, he wasn't pleased with his role last season. He's a great team guy and isn't selfish, but he wasn't pleased individually. He wanted to do more so I watched a lot of film from last year. When we hit the ground running, I tried to give him feedback every couple of days is where I thought he would be able to fit in. He quickly earned our respect as coaches with the way he embraces basketball, and the way he embraces life. He's a winner and the type of player that fits into our culture. I think the ceiling is high for Devon. He's playing well, but I think there is more that he can do for our team."

Justin Gray has knocked down 20-of-31 from the floor over his last five starts. He has come away with 10-plus points in three of his last four outings and secured 9.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.

Shadell Millinghaus and Niem Stevenson have led the Red Raiders off the bench over the last four games. Stevenson has notched 10.3 points per game over his last four games and pumped in a season's best 16 points against UTSA, while Millinghaus has added 9.7 points per game on 10-of-15 shooting over his last three appearances.

Matthew Temple has improved his scoring mark 6.5 points per game. He registered a career-high 13 points coupled with six rebounds and three assists during the UTSA game.

About Nicholls State
The Colonels have played the nation's 43rd toughest schedule and boast the Southland Conference's second-highest RPI rating at 82 entering Wednesday's game.

DeAndre Harris is one of four players to average double figures for Nicholls State and has provided a team-leading 16.9 points per game. All eight of his appearances have come off the bench. He has pumped in doubles figures six times highlighted by a quartet of 20-point efforts.

Ja'Dante' Frye has garnered a balanced 15.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game followed by Johnathan Bell's 12.8 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Bell has secured a pair of double-doubles in road matchup against UCF and San Diego.

Lafayette Rutledge has tacked on 10.3 points per game and knocked down all 22 of his field goals from beyond the three-point arc.

Liam Thomas, a seven-footer from Australia, provides a presence on the interior with 6.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game. He nearly came away with a triple-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and nine blocks versus Thomas University last time out.

"Nicholls State has a tough team," Beard said. "They have a 7-foot center (Thomas) that plays all over the floor. He's a great passer and has a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Harris is a very talented player and almost single-handily beat Boston College during their first game of the season. They spread the floor on offense and have several good shooters. A lot the things they do offensively are similar to what we try to do so we're hoping they'll be some carry over in how we're able to defend Nicholls State."

Up Next
Texas Tech heads to Richmond on Saturday for its only true nonconference road game. Tip time is slated for 11:30 a.m. CT, and the game will be carried by ESPNU along with the Watch ESPN app.

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 along with @TexasTechMBB on Twitter and Instagram.