Red Raider Recap: No. 24 Tech 82, Kennesaw State 53

Wednesday, December 13

United Supermarkets Arena

8:00 PM

Texas Tech Athletics

8-1

Kennesaw State

1-8

Kennesaw State

Texas Tech

Red Raider Recap: No. 24 Tech 82, Kennesaw State 53

December 14, 2017 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Highlights Coach Beard Press Conference Justin Gray and Norense Odiase Press Conference Box Score Texas Tech TV on FOX Recap Photo Gallery

The Red Raiders win their 35th straight nonconference game at home.

LUBBOCK, Texas – The No. 24 Texas Tech men's basketball team picked up right where it left off before its final exams break and secured the program's first win as a ranked team since the 2009-10 season and overwhelmed Kennesaw State by an 82-53 margin on Wednesday at the United Supermarkets Arena.

The Red Raiders (8-1) used their winning recipe of a balanced scoring attack with four players in double figures and put the clamps down on the Owls (1-8) limiting Kennesaw State to 14 field goals and a 30.4 shooting clip.

Texas Tech extended its nonconference home winning streak to 35 games which is tied for fifth nationally with top-ranked Villanova. The Red Raiders have won 29 of 35 games during the streak by 10-plus points sparked by 19 of the last 21 contests dating back to December 2015.

"Very pleased tonight to get a win," Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard said. "It's always difficult around final exams. Our practices have been really inconsistent the last couple of days with time because the guys are locked in academically. It is always kind of a scary game. Double that, we played a team that we have a lot of respect for. It starts with their coach (Al Skinner). I don't know coach, but I've always followed his teams. I was an assistant here when we played Boston College in the (2007) NCAA Tournament and got beat. Our guys respected this team, and I thought we came out ready to play."

Keenan Evans, the reigning Big 12 Player of the Week, registered a team-leading 16 points and handed out three assists. The 16 points gave Evans double figures in eight of nine games this season and allowed the senior guard to move past Stan Bonewitz (1996-97-98-99) into 30th place on the program's all-time scoring list.

Zhaire Smith provided 13 points on an efficient 5-of-7 from the floor and hauled down five of his six rebounds on the offensive end. He pushed his streak to four consecutive games with 10-plus points.

Tommy Hamilton IV chipped in 11 points, his second-highest scoring output of the season. He came away with 12 points versus South Alabama during the season opener.

Justin Gray notched a season's best 10 points and grabbed six rebounds, while Jarrett Culver tacked on eight points and four rebounds. Gray and Culver combined to connect on all seven of their shot attempts.

Norense Odiase filled the box score with seven points, eight rebounds, three assists and a steal. He has tucked away five or more points in seven of nine outings this season.

Zach Smith turned in six points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals followed by Niem Stevenson with four points, four assists and a block. Malik Ondigo notched three points and two rebounds in his return to action after he missed the team's last four games.

Texas Tech hit on 32-of-62 from the field which included a 6-of-16 mark from three-point territory. The Red Raiders were 12-of-21 on free throws and controlled the specialty stats most notably a 46-8 advantage in points inside the paint and a 39-8 edge in bench points.

Kennesaw State was held to a 14-for-46 shooting effort and misfired on 11 of its 16 treys. The Owls knocked down 20-for-28 at the charity stripe. The 20 free throws made are the most by a Texas Tech opponent on the season.

James Scott tallied a game-leading 19 points but had to use 17 shots to get to his total. Tyler Hooker managed 14 points fueled by a 9-for-11 mark at the foul line.

The Red Raiders led from the opening tip to the final buzzer and started fast with a 10-2 lead at the 16:27 mark of the opening half. Evans and Hamilton IV delivered three-pointers coupled with baskets from Gray and Hamilton IV in the paint.

Up 15-8 with 13:41 remaining, Texas Tech ripped off 26 of the next 29 points over the next 11:58 off the clock to put the game away. The Red Raiders held Kennesaw State to one basket during that span.

Culver kickstarted the flurry with a driving layup. Then, Evans buried a three-ball on the right wing and dished to Zach Smith in transition for a highlight-reel windmill slam to make it 22-8 with 11:45 to go.

The Smith slam would begin a streak of nine straight baskets in the paint for Texas Tech. When it was all said and done, the Red Raiders extended the spread to 41-11 after two Hamilton IV free throws with 1:33 left. Kennesaw State scored eight of the closing nine points to bring the tally to 42-19 at the break.

The Owls would get as close as 58-40 at the 11:52 mark of the second half. The Red Raiders responded with another run, a 19-3 spurt, over the next 7:32 to go ahead 77-43. Zhaire Smith provided two acrobatic dunks of his own to lead the onslaught.

"I respect the question but rankings didn't really play into this," Beard said. "We have to get the program to the point where we aren't talking about getting ranked, we're talking about what we are ranked. We have to get the program to where we aren't talking about making it to the tournament, we're talking about winning the tournament. Tonight wasn't really about the rankings, it was about the next game on the schedule."

UP NEXT
Texas Tech will honor its tradition and play host to a Throwback Game against former Southwest Conference rival Rice on Saturday. Tip time is set for 7 p.m. CT from the Lubbock Municipal Coliseum. An Alumni game featuring former players will take place at 5 p.m. CT.

Tickets to Saturday's game can be purchased for as low as $10 online at www.TexasTech.com, in person at the Texas Tech Athletics Ticket Office located on the East Side of Jones AT&T Stadium or over the phone at (806) 742-TECH (8324).

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 by liking TexasTechMBB on Facebook along with following @TexasTechMBB on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat.