Red Raider Recap: Tech 77, Oklahoma 69

Saturday, February 4

United Supermarkets Arena

6:00 PM

Texas Tech Athletics

16-7 (4-6B12)

Oklahoma

8-14 (2-8B12)

Oklahoma

Texas Tech

Red Raider Recap: Tech 77, Oklahoma 69

February 05, 2017 | Men's Basketball

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The Red Raiders began the second half of Big 12 action with an eight-point victory over Oklahoma.

LUBBOCK, Texas – The Texas Tech men's basketball team had five players garner double figures headed by Aaron Ross' season-high 18 points off the bench during a 77-69 victory over Oklahoma to start the second half of Big 12 play Saturday at the United Supermarkets Arena.

The Red Raiders (16-7, 4-6 Big 12) snapped their two-game Big 12 losing streak which was by a combined eight points and earned a series split with Oklahoma (8-14, 2-8 Big 12) for the third time in the last four seasons.

Texas Tech has won 11 of 13 games when having at least four players reach 10-plus points this season. The 16 wins for the Red Raiders also moved head coach Chris Beard into third place in program history for victories in their first-full season with the program. Only Bob Knight and Gene Gibson have more with 23 and 19 wins, respectively.

"I have a lot of respect for how they embraced the past couple of days when we got back from Austin," Beard said. "The other night we had a very short conversation, man-to-man. We talked a lot about how what we can control right now is trying to win our next game. I thought for the most part the guys did that. It's no secret, today's game was a game we had to win to stay alive in the race. That comes with a lot of pressure. I thought the start of the second half where it looked like we weren't playing well, I thought they really zeroed back in and started playing each possession … We've got a lot of games left and in no way is each game a must win now, but playing at home today and coming off a couple of losses in a row in the league, we had to win this game today. It was cool to see them respond in that type of situation."

Ross pumped in 12 of his game-leading 18 points before halftime. He knocked down a pair of treys and connected on 8-of-10 at the free throw line. It marked the third time in the last four games that Ross has provided double figures.

Keenan Evans and Justin Gray came away with 14 points apiece on a combined 11-of-16 shooting. Evans did his damage with 10 of his 14 points during the second half to push his streak to 11 consecutive games in double digits. He added three assists against zero turnovers. For Gray, the 14-point effort was his second-highest scoring output during Big 12 action this season.

Zach Smith nearly collected his team-leading sixth double-double of the season with 12 points and nine rebounds. He also tacked on two blocks and has registered a blocked shot in 20 of his 22 appearances this season.

Anthony Livingston chipped in 11 points on the strength of a trio of three-pointers, while Niem Stevenson filled the box score with a solid all-around effort with eight points, seven rebounds and three assists making his first career Big 12 start.

"That's our formula, balance," Beard said. "I've coached teams where we've had the leading scorer in the conference, and we can win that way too. Each team is different, and each journey is different. This year's team is balance. It's three guys in double figures to have a chance, four to win and five to win as we start getting closer to March. Tonight, the balance offensively was a big part of why we had the chance to win."

Texas Tech turned in a 25-of-52 shooting percentage and hit on 11 of its 20 field goal attempts in the second half. The Red Raiders sank 10-of-23 from three-point territory and have dialed up double digit treys for the second time in the last three games. Texas Tech returned to its efficient ways on free throws going 17-of-20 fueled by 15 foul shots after halftime.

Oklahoma went 25-for-60 from the floor, 10-for-25 on three-pointers and 9-for-13 at the charity stripe. The Sooners had four players work their way into double figures sparked by Kameron McGusty's 16 points. After combining for 51 points during the OU win in Norman earlier this season, Rashard Odomes and Jordan Woodard were limited to 24 points.

In a game that featured five ties and 12 lead changes, Stevenson broke a 58-58 deadlock with a driving layup through traffic late shot clock to give Texas Tech the lead for good with 5:16 remaining. The Red Raiders stretched it to a 62-58 advantage after two Livingston free throws.

After a Woodard three-pointer, Texas Tech pieced together an 8-2 spurt over the next 2:13 off the clock to race toward the finish line. Evans ignited the charge with a midrange jumper and drove baseline for a layup to make it 66-61 with 3:32 left.

The Red Raiders would tally their last 11 points at the free throw line down the stretch to salt away the 77-69 decision. Ross did the heavy lifting with six of the 11 points.

The two teams played within four points in the opening 10 minutes of the contest. Texas Tech found separation on a trio of three-pointers courtesy of Ross, Livingston and Smith to build a 26-16 lead at the 6:22 mark. The Red Raiders also forced Oklahoma into 10 straight misses at one point and into a 6:05 span between baskets.

Texas Tech claimed a 36-29 edge heading into the locker room when Thomas drove baseline and dished the ball to Gray who got a friendly roll on a midrange jumper as the buzzer sounded.

Oklahoma regrouped and scored eight of the opening 10 points of the second half to surge ahead 39-38 with 15:19 on the clock. Woodard highlighted the run with consecutive treys.

Down 44-42 with 13:22 to go, the Red Raiders used another flurry of three-pointers to snatch back the momentum. Stevenson buried back-to-back triples followed by Livingston and Gray to bring the score to 54-47 at the 9:22 mark. Oklahoma answered with 11 of the next 15 points to draw even at 58-58.

"He (Stevenson) is a really talented player on offense, and he is learning how to let the game come to him," Beard said. "Those open three's he got at the top of the key are a result of running our offense. I've been trying to talk to him about being aggressive the second and third time he touches the ball, not just the first time. He's trying harder on defense, and I think we got him going in the right direction … He's a guy that was brought in here to help us be relevant from day one. I think as of the last couple of games, he's turned the corner individually. The exciting thing is there's even a bigger ceiling for Niem. I think he played a nice floor game tonight."

Texas Tech finishes off a stretch of three straight midweek road games at TCU on Tuesday. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m. CT from Schollmaier Arena. The game will be televised by ESPNEWS along with being available on 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 and @TexasTechMBB on Twitter and Instagram.