RED RAIDER PREVIEW: vs Incarnate Word

Tuesday, December 29

Lubbock, Texas

6 p.m.

Texas Tech Athletics

Incarnate Word

December 27, 2020 | Men's Basketball

ESPN+GAME NOTES POLLS LIVE STATS RECORD BOOK

No. 13 Texas Tech vs. Cardinals | 6 p.m., Tuesday | TV: Big 12 Now on ESPN+

By: Wes Bloomquist

LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech will begin a three-game home stand by hosting Incarnate Word at 6 p.m. on Tuesday in a non-conference game before returning to Big 12 play against Oklahoma State on Saturday, Jan. 2 and Kansas State on Tuesday, Jan. 5 at the United Supermarkets Arena.

The No. 13-ranked Red Raiders (7-2, 1-1 Big 12) enter the final week on the 2020 calendar ranked fourth in the nation by limiting teams to only 54.0 points per game through nine games and are sixth with a 7.9 turnover margin advantage and ninth with 19.56 turnovers forced per game. TTU, which is coming off a 69-67 road win over Oklahoma on Dec. 22, leads the Big 12 and is 14th in the nation by holding opponents to 36.6 percent shooting. The team has 71 steals, topping the conference and coming in at 24th nationally. Tech ranks first nationally in defensive efficiency by kenpom.com and Haslametrics.com.

Incarnate Word (1-3, 0-0 Southland) has not played since Dec. 5 when it took a 72-64 loss to Texas State after falling in overtime to Wyoming on Dec. 2. The Cardinals have a win over Our Lady of the Lake on their resume after a season-opening 68-53 loss to Rice, but had games against Grambling, UTRGV, Arizona State and a rematch against Rice canceled leading into the matchup against the Red Raiders. Tech is currently 6-1 in non-conference play this season, including going 4-0 against Southland Conference opponents Northwestern State, Sam Houston State, Abilene Christian and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. TTU will have one more non-conference game this season when it travels to play LSU on Saturday, Jan. 30 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard was an Incarnate Word graduate assistant in 1995-96 for head coach for head coach Danny Kaspar after graduating from the University of Texas. Beard is 68-10 at home as the Red Raider head coach and is 101-46 in his fifth season.

The game is part of a TTU-UIW doubleheader with the women's game set for 1 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon.

Terrence Shannon, Jr. scored a season-high 21 points on 8-for-12 shooting in the win over Oklahoma, while Marcus Santos-Silva also had a season-best with 18 points. Santos-Silva added seven rebounds in the road victory over the Sooners, falling just three rebounds shy of his third double-double of the season. Shannon is now averaging 14.0 points per game after also scoring 20 points in the Big 12 opener against Kansas. Santos-Silva is currently fifth in the Big 12 with 65 total rebounds and 3.0 offensive rebounds per game. Mac McClung is leading the team at 15.1 points per game after going for 16 points against OU, including scoring the final six points for the Red Raiders in the two-point win. McClung made a layup with 30 seconds remaining and then knocked down four straight free throws to help preserve the victory. He is now 46-for-53 from the free-throw line (86.8 percent) this season and has scored in double figures in seven of nine games with a season-high 21 coming in the conference-opener against KU where he was 9-for-10 at the free-throw line.

Kyler Edwards leads the Big 12 with a 3.22 assist-to-turnover ratio and is coming off a nine-rebound performance against Oklahoma. Edwards, who entered the reserve for the first time since his freshman season, is averaging 9.1 points and 5.0 rebounds per game and leads Tech with 3.2 assists per game. He recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds in a win over Grambling and enters this week with 644 points, 166 assists and 253 rebounds through 78 games in his career. Jamarius Burton made his second start of the season in the win over OU, finishing with six points, four rebounds and two steals. A Wichita State transfer, Burton is averaging 5.0 points and 2.0 assists this season. Micah Peavy has started all nine games to begin his freshman season and is averaging 6.2 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. Peavy scored a career-high 14 points in the opener against Northwestern State and has scored in double figures in three games. He went for eight points and six points in the Big 12 opener against Kansas but was held scoreless at OU. Nimari Burnett leads the Red Raiders and Big 12 with 17 steals and is also averaging 5.7 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. Burnett had a season-high six steals in the win over Grambling where he also set his scoring-high with 12 points. He is currently third in the Big 12 with 1.89 steals per game.

Keaston Willis leads UIW with 20.3 points per game which ranks 38th nationally, while Josh Morgan is averaging 14.0 and Marcus Larsson is at 10.0 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. Willis went for 22 points on 9-for-17 shooting in the season-opening loss to Rice and 25 points against Wyoming in the overtime loss. A sophomore from Sulphur Springs, Willis is coming off a game against Texas State where he hit three 3-pointers and finished with a team-high 16 points. Larsson recorded a double-double in the loss in San Marcos with 14 points and 10 rebounds to go along with two blocks to take his block total to nine through four games.

As a team, UIW is shooting 41.8 percent on 3-pointers which ranks 12th in the nation after they made nine against Texas State. The Cardinals are shooting 47.8 percent from the field but are also turning the ball over 15.5 times per game. The program has never topped a nationally ranked opponent.

MEDIA: The game will be televised on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ with Chris Level and John Harris on the call and on the radio through the Texas Tech Sports Network with Geoff Haxton and Clark Lammert. Locally the game can be heard on 97.3 Double-T.

SERIES HISTORY: Texas Tech leads the series 2-0 with matchups in 2016 and 2018. Jarrett Culver led Texas Tech with 16 points, Tariq Owens had six blocks and Matt Mooney contributed 12 points and six assists to help lead the Red Raiders to an 87-37 season-opening win over Incarnate Word to begin their historic 2018-19 season. Beard began his career as a graduate assistant at UIW.

UP NEXT: The Red Raiders will return by hosting Oklahoma State on Saturday, Jan. 2 and Kansas State on Tuesday, Jan. 5 to begin the 2021 calendar.

OUR LEADER: Beard is in his fifth season as the Texas Tech head coach where he has led the program to a 101-46 record, including an 8-2 mark in the NCAA Tournament. Beard was named the 2019 Associated Press National Coach of the Year and earned Big 12 Coach of the Year in 2018 and 2019. An assistant coach at Texas Tech under Bob and Pat Knight, Beard has amassed an impressive 130-51 record as a Division I head coach that started with one season at Little Rock where he was 30-5. He also has head coaching stops at Fort Scott Community College, Seminole State, McMurry and Angelo State in his collegiate career. Beard is the 17th head coach in Texas Tech history and reached 100 wins on Dec. 12, 2020 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. He is the fastest Tech coach to reach that milestone following James Dickey (148 games), Bob Knight (150), Gerald Myers (152) and Polk Robison (170). Beard is now 197-76 as an NCAA head coach.

BEARD AT HOME (68-10)
2016-17: 16-3, 6-3 Big 12
2017-18: 17-1, 8-1 Big 12
2018-19: 17-1, 8-1 Big 12
2019-20: 13-4, 6-3 Big 12
2020-21: 5-1, 0-1 Big 12

THE STAFF: Beard is assisted this season by associate head coach Mark Adams, assistant coaches Ulric Maligi and Bob Donewald, Casey Perrin (Chief of Staff), Sean Sutton (Advisor/Player Development), John Reilly (Strength & Conditioning) and associate athletic trainer Mike Neal. Adams is entering his fifth season on Beard's staff and also assisted him at Little Rock. A 1979 graduate of Texas Tech, Adams is a former head coach at Clarendon College, Wayland Baptist, West Texas A&M, Texas-Pan American and Howard College. He earned 2019 TABC Assistant Coach of the Year and is a member of multiple hall of fames, most recently being inducted into the NJCAA's Men's Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame Class for 2020. Donewald is in his second season on the staff, but his first as an assistant. He has extensive experience in professional basketball and worked last season as the program's director of player development. Maligi is also in his second season on the staff and is widely respected as one of the top emerging assistants in the nation. He led the charge in the recruitment of this year's signing class which was the highest ranked in program history. Reilly, a Killeen, Texas native who competed on the BYU Track & Field team, is also in his fifth season having led the strength and conditioning each year for Beard. Neal is in his second season, coming over from Little Rock where he played basketball and was the team's athletic trainer during Beard's year leading the program.

UNCOMFORTABLE – BEARD EXPLAINS: "Being comfortable gets you beat every single time. You see it all the time in sports. You win a big game and the next time there's a letdown and a loss. We've all seen that. Life is the same way. You can have a great day at work and you could take the edge off. It takes a special person, we use the word 'elite', to remain uncomfortable. Coach Knight would talk a lot about when things were going good that we need to shake the tree from time to time. Everybody expects the best and have focus during times of adversity, but only the elite people can push themselves each day to stay uncomfortable. I think being uncomfortable is where growth comes from. Uncomfortable is what you have to be to compete in the Big 12. Our guys have embraced this. Each season we try to have a theme and with this year's group, we just feel that if we can stay uncomfortable we'll be where we need to be. We like our talent. We like our culture. If this team can keep pushing and not get too high or too low by staying uncomfortable right there in the middle, we think we have a great chance to grow."

SECURING POSSESSION: Beard stresses a 10-or-less turnover game is one of the keys to victory in every game the Red Raiders play. That was highlighted against Corpus Christi where the team had only four which is a low in the Beard era at Texas Tech and was followed by only seven against Kansas. During his five seasons, Tech has committed 10 or less turnovers 54 times under Beard through 146 games. The four turnovers against the Islanders were the first this season in single digits before the seven against the Jayhawks. The program's low turnover output was highlighted at the 2019 Final Four with only seven in a win over Michigan State and eight in the overtime loss to Virginia in the National Championship game. Tech currently has a plus-7.9 turnover margin.

FORCING THE ISSUE: Texas Tech forced 30 turnovers against Grambling for the most since the 2009 season opener against South Dakota. KU and OU both committed 16 turnovers against the Red Raider defense. Tech has recorded 13 steals in two games this season, against Grambling and Northwestern State. That is the most steals in a game since a 15-steal game by the team against Rice on Dec. 16, 2017. The team had steals at OU, led by Shannon and Burton who had two each.

Game-by-Game Turnovers (TTU-OPPONENT): TTU 10-NSU 19; TTU 12-SAM 18; TTU 18-HOU 14; TTU 13-TROY 22; TTU 13-GRAM 30; TTU 16-ACU 22; TTU 4-TAMUCC 20; TTU 7-KU 16; TTU 13-OU 16.

SHARING THE WEALTH: Texas Tech is averaging 14.2 assists per game after having 10 against OU. The team had 19 assists on 27 made baskets against A&M-Corpus Christi. McClung led the team with six assists in the win over the Islander and was the fifth different player to lead the team in assists in a game. Santos-Silva had three assists to lead the team against KU for his first game leading the team in assists, while Edwards has led Tech in three different games. Tech has had 15 or more assists in five of nine games, including a season-high 25 in the opener against Northwestern State. Edwards has the individual high this season with seven in that game against NSU.

STIFLING STARTS: The Texas Tech defense has been strong throughout the first nine games, but especially solid in the first half. Only four of the first nine opponents have scored over 20 points. ACU was limited to only 14 points in the opening 20 minutes and Sam Houston was at 15. The 14 points scored by ACU at the break was the lowest since Northwestern State was held to 10 points at halftime in 2018. TTU took a 40-32 lead over OU into halftime.

PRESEASON RANKINGS: Texas Tech went into the 2020-21 season ranked No. 14 in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll. The Red Raiders, who were ranked No. 13 in last season's AP Preseason Top-25 Poll and spent 12 weeks in the rankings, are one of five Big 12 teams in the preseason rankings. Gonzaga is the top-ranked team in the poll, followed by Baylor, Villanova, Virginia and Iowa. The Big 12 also has Kansas at No. 6, West Virginia at No. 15 and No. 19 Texas. Texas Tech was at No. 13 in the USA TODAY Top 25 Men's Basketball Coaches Poll which was announced on Thursday ahead of the 2020-21 season that is scheduled to begin in two weeks. The USA TODAY Sports men's basketball coaches poll is conducted weekly throughout the regular season using a panel of head coaches at Division I schools. The Red Raiders were ranked No. 12 in last season's first USA TODAY Coaches Poll. In this year's ranking, Baylor was the top-ranked team followed by Gonzaga, Villanova, Virginia and Kansas. Tech is one of five Big 12 teams in the poll, including West Virginia at No. 15 and Texas which is No. 22.

COVID IMPACT: In an effort to ensure adequate levels of safety, Texas Tech will implement a reduced capacity to approximately 25% at The United Supermarkets Arena this basketball season. In addition to the limited seating capacity, fans will see the following safety protocols this season: Big 12 Conference has mandated an established perimeter around the playing surface – 20 feet behind both team benches and 12 feet on all other sides of the court. Face coverings for all patrons (fans and staff) will be required at all times. A 100 percent mobile ticketing process. Mobile ordering in our concession areas to decrease contacts throughout the concourse. Kirby Hocutt said: "Our staff has worked diligently to ensure we accommodate as many of our fans as possible at our home basketball games. We also want to ensure we offer a safe and enjoyable experience, while being socially responsible."

NCAA BOUND: The Red Raiders were projected to make their third NCAA tournament last season before the season was canceled due to COVID 19. Tech, which advanced to the 2018 Elite 8 and 2019 National Championship final, had never made the NCAA tournament three straight seasons in program history. The Red Raiders finished last season with an 18-13 overall record and were 9-9 in conference play.

ABRUPT ENDING: Texas Tech was on the Sprint Center in Kansas City court warming up for its first-round matchup of the Big 12 Championship against Texas on Thursday, March 12, 2019 when both teams were pulled off the court. With the tournament being canceled, the Red Raiders went to the airport and returned home to Lubbock. Before arriving back to Texas that afternoon by plane, news broke that the NCAA had canceled the remainder of the season.

COVID RINGS: While the 2019-20 season ended without the opportunity to play for any postseason championships, Beard wanted to show his appreciation to the players who battled throughout the year. Each player on the roster received a ring to commemorate the season, a token of respect from Beard who felt it was important that the players could keep to remember the season that was cut short.

NBA DRAFT: Texas Tech's Jahmi'us Ramsey was selected by the Sacramento Kings with the 43rd pick of the 2020 NBA Draft on November 18, 2020. An Arlington, Texas native, Ramsey earned Big 12 Freshman of the Year, All-Big 12 Second Team, NABC All-District First Team, Big 12 All-Newcomer Team, Big 12 All-Freshman Team and was a three-time Big 12 Newcomer of the Week selection. Ramsey, who is the first Red Raider to earn Big 12 Freshman of the Year, finished the season fifth in the Big 12 in scoring and was second with a 42.6 percentage on 3-pointers and fifth with a 44.2 shooting percentage. Ramsey's selection in the NBA Draft gives the Red Raiders three straight years with a pick following Zhaire Smith (2018) and Jarrett Culver (2019). Tech has now had 25 players picked in the NBA Draft in its program history.

HISTORIC RUN: Texas Tech has ascended into one of the top college basketball programs in the nation under Beard. The program advanced to the 2018 NCAA Elite 8 in only his second season and then reached the Final Four for the first time in program history in his third season. The Red Raiders won the 2019 Big 12 regular-season championship before making their historic run in the 2019 NCAA Tournament. Tech started the postseason journey with wins over Northern Kentucky and Buffalo in the first and second rounds hosted in Tulsa and then went through Michigan and Gonzaga in the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 in Anaheim. TTU topped Michigan State in the Final Four in Minneapolis before falling to Virginia in the 2019 NCAA Championship Final in overtime. The national runner-up finish is the best showing in program history. Edwards, Benson and McCullar are the only players on the current roster who were on the Final Four team.

FIRST-ROUND STUDENTS: Zhaire Smith and Jarrett Culver remain Texas Tech students despite being drafted in the first round of the NBA Draft as underclassmen. Both are currently enrolled in online classes at TTU where they remain focused on graduating while also being in the early stages of their professional playing careers. Smith said: "It is very important to me to get my education while playing because graduating was my first goal before playing basketball. I also made a promise to my mom and Coach Beard that I will finish. It means a lot to have Coach Beard motivating me by saying that education is the key. It's going to mean a lot to my family to see me graduate because school is not easy at all for me. They are going to cry tears of joy when I finish."

CONTINUING EDUCATION: Davide Moretti left the program following his junior season to pursue a professional career back home in Italy, but remains a Texas Tech student in pursuit of his degree. Moretti took a full load of classes in the 2020 Fall Semester and is on track to graduate in May. A Bologna, Italy native he now plays for Olimpia Milano in the EuroLeague. Moretti finished his Tech career with 969 points and 166 3-pointers which ranks ninth all-time in the program. His 90.6 career free-throw percentage (213-for-235) is the all-time record that he established through 106 games played. He earned CoSIDA Academic All-America honors following the 2019-20 season as a human science major at Texas Tech with a 3.68 GPA.

MALIGI DRAWS ATTENTION: Maligi was recognized during the offseason as one of 40 coaches on ESPN's "40 Under 40" list which highlights the top young coaches throughout the national college basketball landscape and The Athletic's 40 Under 40 which identified influential people in a variety of roles within college basketball who are under the age of 40. Maligi is entering his second season with the Red Raiders and was identified at No. 13 by ESPN on the list of head and assistant coaches. In the ESPN article, Myron Medcalf highlighted Maligi who turned 36 on May 14 by saying: "The Howard University product has identified and recruited some of the most talented players in the state of Texas and beyond, as proved by successful tenures as an assistant with Texas A&M, SMU and Stephen F. Austin before joining Chris Beard's staff before last season. By all accounts, Maligi possesses the attributes and leadership qualities necessary to one day guide a Power 5 program."

DOCUMENTING HISTORY: Over the summer ESPN aired "Eddie", a documentary about legendary college basketball coach Eddie Sutton. The film covered many aspects of Eddie Sutton's life, including his family. Sean Sutton, one of Eddie's sons, was featured in the film and is entering his fourth season working with Beard at Tech as the program's director of player development and Beard's advisor. Sean played for his father at Kentucky and Oklahoma State and also worked for him as an assistant coach before being named the head coach at OSU. Talking about the documentary, Sean said: "To open up and talk about some of the things that went on behind the scenes for the public to view, I wouldn't necessarily say it was easy, but it was important. It was important to get an accurate depiction of his life and career."

ON THE NBA SIDELINES: Tech legend Darvin Ham continues to rise among the ranks of NBA assistant coaches where he helped lead Milwaukee to the best regular-season record (56-17) in the NBA last season. Ham, who became an iconic player nationally by ripping down a rim in the 1996 NCAA Tournament and winning the 1996 NCAA Slam Dunk Contest, played in the NBA from 1996-2005 and was on the Detroit Pistons' 2004 NBA Championship team. Ham was an Atlanta Hawks assistant coach from 2013-18 and has been on the Bucks sideline since the 2018 season where he is the lead assistant. He recently completed his bachelor's degree, earning his Texas Tech degree in 2019 – 23 years after leaving Lubbock to begin his professional basketball career.

BIG 12/SEC CHALLENGE: Texas Tech and LSU will meet for the second time in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge on Jan. 30, 2021 at the Maravich Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The eighth annual event will consist of 10 games as every Big 12 member faces 10 squads from the Southeastern Conference. The Red Raiders are 4-3 overall and 2-1 in Baton Rouge all-time against LSU. Tech has also played South Carolina, Auburn, Alabama and Arkansas twice in the challenge. This will mark the sixth consecutive year for all games to be played in one day. ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU will combine to televise the contests which also includes matchups of: Auburn at Baylor, Iowa State at Mississippi State, Kansas at Tennessee, Texas A&M at Kansas State, Alabama at Oklahoma, Arkansas at Oklahoma State, TCU at Missouri, Texas at Kentucky and Florida at West Virginia. Texas Tech is 4-3 all-time in the Big 12-SEC Challenge after its 76-74 overtime loss to No. 15 Kentucky last season. The loss to the Wildcats ended a 54-game non-conference winning streak by the Red Raiders which was the second best streak in the nation. Big 12 teams are 40-30 (.571) in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge after a tie in 2020.

HALL OF FAME SELECTION: Ronald Ross was selected for the 2020 Texas Tech Hall of Fame class during the offseason. Ross remains one of the beloved greats in the history of Texas Tech men's basketball as the former walk-on helped lead the Red Raiders to three NCAA Tournament appearances, including their first-ever trip to the Sweet 16 in 2005. Ross, a native of nearby Hobbs, New Mexico, was an All-Big 12 first team selection and an All-American by Basketball Times as a senior after averaging 17.5 points per game, 5.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.6 steals per game under head coach Bob Knight. Ross also established the single-season and career school records that year by recording 86 steals, pushing his career total to 204 over 132 games. He served as a graduate assistant the past two season under Beard following a professional career overseas.

CONTINUED IMPACT, DREAM COURT: Nancy Lieberman Charities teamed up with Texas Tech University and The Culver Foundation to give the City of Lubbock a brand new Dream Court. The new Dream Court is located at Duran Park in Lubbock. This court will serve as a safe play space for youth in the community to interact with friends, family and local law enforcement. "I am so excited for the Red Raiders, Jarrett Culver and the City of Lubbock to partner with Nancy Lieberman Charities to honor our beloved, Andre Emmett. We all deeply miss him and want his legacy to live on forever in the lives of people who were touched by his genuine kindness." Basketball Hall of Famer, Nancy Lieberman said. The Dream Court™ is 50-by-84 feet with two brand new basketball goals, and features a high-performance PowerGame™ surface from Sport Court® in signature Texas Tech red and black colors. Its centerpiece is the Dream Courts logo, flanked by the brands of all supporting organizations. Emmett, who is Texas Tech's all-time leading scorer, was murdered in 2019. A dedication ceremony was held on Friday, October 23.

PLAYING IN THE USA: Texas Tech Athletics announced an extension of the current naming rights agreement to United Supermarkets Arena as the grocery chain will remain the facility's namesake through 2035. Texas Tech will receive an additional $16 million over the course of the agreement, which continues the long-standing partnership between the university and United Supermarkets. The West Texas-based chain has now committed more than $30 million to Texas Tech Athletics since securing the original naming rights to the 15,000-seat arena in 1996. United provided Texas Tech with a key $10 million investment that jumpstarted fundraising efforts for the arena, opening in 1999 as United Spirit Arena. In 2014, Texas Tech and United extended their original agreement for $9.45 million. The second extension will ink the relationship until 2035.

IT'S ACADEMIC: Beard announced the hiring of Jamaal Scott as the program's Academic Advisor on July 7, 2020. An experienced educator and athletics leader following a decorated playing career which includes being named the 2000 Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year, Scott will provide the Red Raider program personal, vocational, educational, and advanced counseling and training at both the individual and group levels. Scott is pivotal in the management of academic advising for the men's basketball program by assisting with course selection to ensure degree progress and completion along with serving as the contact between student-athletes and the coaching staff regarding academic progress. Scott is a graduate of the University of Richmond where he played for the Spiders from 2002-05 and was an Atlantic 10 Academic All-Conference Team selection and a two-year team captain.

A GROWING TREE: Brian Burg was named the head coach at Georgia Southern over the summer to add to the growing list of former Beard assistant coaches who have been hired as head coaches. Burg, who joined forces with Beard at Little Rock, would work on his staff for four seasons at Texas Tech where the program reached new heights by advancing to the 2018 Elite 8, winning the 2019 Big 12 regular-season title and then reaching the 2019 NCAA Championship final. Burg is now entering his first season as a head coach at Georgia Southern and hired Tim MacAllister (former Tech Chief of Staff) as an assistant. Along with Burg, Chris Ogden is now entering his fourth season as the head coach at UT Arlington after being an assistant at Tech under Beard. Wes Flanigan was the first Beard assistant to land a Division I head coaching job, being named the Little Rock head coach after Beard left the Trojan program. Flanigan is currently an assistant at Auburn. Along with Division I coaches, Cinco Boone is the head coach at Angelo State (DII), a position he's held for six seasons after being Beard's assistant there for two years and at McMurry for one.

RECENT GRADS: A pair of our No. 22s are now Texas Tech graduates. Despite different academic paths and life timelines, Jarrius Jackson and TJ Holyfield shared a milestone on August 8, 2020 as the former Red Raiders (both wore 22 during their playing days) received their diplomas in a virtual ceremony. Jackson, who played from 2004-07 and then enjoyed a successful professional career overseas, completed his degree in University Studies while Holyfield played last season and earned his master's degree in one year as a graduate transfer. Beard said: "I'm really proud of both of them. I was really fortunate that I got the opportunity to coach Jay Jackson and Holyfield. Earning their degrees was always something we talked about being important to them and their families. It's impressive the way both of them did it."

FOLLOW US: Along with news, videos and stats being updated throughout the season on TexasTech.com, media and fans can keep up with the Red Raiders on social media by following the program on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

CHRIS BEARD QUOTES
On growing through adversity and success:
"We've talked all summer and in the preseason for the need for all of us to grow. Everyone in our program has to get better on a day-to-day basis for us to have the kind of season we want to have. Growth comes when you're uncomfortable. You see it all the time in sports when a team wins a big game and then there's a letdown. You can't let that happen. You have to stay on edge by remaining uncomfortable. We want to push ourselves each day whether we are going through success or handling adversity."

On the team's identity:
"Our culture has to be unselfish and defensive-based. We have to have a mentally tough culture. From each season your identity can change and I think this year we like our length and athleticism. We hope that translate into being the best defensive team in college basketball and I hope it translate to being a versatile and deep offensive team. I've seen a competitiveness in our team every day. They've come out every day ready to compete and battle. There has been very few moments in the preseason where they was any lack of effort or playing hard. We've felt an urgency to have great days and get better."

On the team's shooting potential:
"Right now there is some optimism that this could be our best shooting team ever, but until the lights come on and our guys start doing it on a regular basis with Big 12 and Division I competition the stat sheet will be the ultimate judge of that. I think for us to be the team that we all want to be we need our 3-point shooting to be a weapon for us. We've got some guys who I think can be really good shooters, but we'll have to wait to see. I know they're putting in the work and we believe in them."

On defending the culture of the program:
"You have to defend the culture. It takes time. It takes buy in. Eventually, you don't want to sit there and build it every year. The guys that have been in this program whether its staff members, whether it's players, anybody that's been here before and benefited from the successes that this program has had, and that helps individuals. I mean you've got to show up and defend it every day. It's not a matter of if we're going to have an unentitled locker room or whether we're going to have a mentally tough team. Or whether we're going to respect academics or if we'll be on time. We're not encouraging people to do this. We're defending it. It's a nonnegotiable. Starting with those seven players that were in our locker room last year, I think our whole coaching staff is back so the idea of defending the culture is what it's all about to me."

Postgame - Oklahoma: "I told the guys after the game that this might be one of my favorite wins of my coaching career. I thought our guys responded about as well as we have ever responded following a loss. I was disappointed after that Kansas loss. I could have coached better, we could have played better, guys could have stayed out of foul trouble."

Postgame – Kansas: "Give Kansas a lot of credit, it's what they do. You could write a book on how many great games Kansas gets in that are one or two-possession games and what their winning percentage is under Bill Self. It's amazing and you've got to give him a lot of credit. Tonight isn't one of those that we've been in before where we just felt like it came down to the last play. I don't think it should've come down to the last play. A lot of this was self-inflicted tonight. We got veteran players that are zeroes across the stat sheet that's not going to get it done. You've got to make free throws in a Big 12 game at home and in an out of bounds play at the end you got to find a way to make the play where the other team doesn't beat you on a layup. We practice those things and certainly during the timeout we were talking about that the whole time. Give Kansas credit, we just didn't get it done. Didn't coach well enough, didn't play well enough down the stretch."

Postgame – Corpus Christi: "For us heading into Big 12 play, that was the highlight of the game to take care of the basketball with only four turnovers. It wasn't like we were playing against some kind of defense where that was easy. Corpus pressures the ball and has a great coach who has been doing this a long time. They changed up their defense and have some quick guys on the perimeter. The four-turnover game was real for us. That was definitely a positive."

Postgame - Abilene Christian: "They gave us all we could handle tonight. We were fortunate to get to that free-throw line tonight and make some shots but I think our guys earned the right to get to that free throw line. We weren't trying to get fouled if that makes sense. We knew what we were getting into. I told the guys all week, 'These guys will play 40 minutes, if we get up, they are going to play 40 minutes. If they punch us up a little bit, they are going to play 40 minutes' and that's exactly what happened. We basically found a way to win tonight from the free throw line when other areas of the game weren't working for us."

Postgame – Grambling: "In the first half, we were as frustrated as we've been. Only equal by the Houston game the first half and so you've got to get Grambling a lot of credit. It's not like we're out there trying not to play well but I thought Grambling has a great game plan it forced us into some mistakes in the first half especially. So, that's an experienced team that's a well-coached team, we are going to pull for those guys the rest of the season."

Postgame – Troy: "We got some offensive from our defense tonight. In the Houston game, we only had two baskets off our defense. That is just not the way we play our game or how you play in the Big 12. To get to a certain place on the board in this division, you have to get a certain number of points off your defense. There isn't a single offense in our league, or in college basketball, that can handle 100 percent of the scoring load."

Postgame – Houston: "I do think there was a little bit of fight in the second half for us to show some grit and have a chance to get back in the game. When you come from behind like we did. You have to play almost perfect down the stretch. It was not for the lack of effort. We've just got to play a little bit better when we get in those big moments."

Postgame – Sam Houston: "That's how we play, that's Texas Tech basketball. I'd like to think that's our fifth year here and all our teams play like that, but these guys deserve that credit. No exhibitions, no scrimmages. It's kind of a unique year and the way that they are playing right now you have to give them credit. There's a flow right now. A trust factor."

Postgame – Sam Houston: "There's an unselfishness and flow to our team right now that is fun to watch. That's how we play, that's Texas Tech basketball. I'd like to think that's our fifth year here and all our teams play like that, but these guys deserve that credit. No exhibitions, no scrimmages. It's kind of a unique year and the way that they are playing right now you have to give them credit. There's a flow right now."

Postgame – Northwestern State: "That word expectation means everything. That's absolutely what I expect. I expect these guys to play Texas Tech basketball. I expect them to defend with purpose and pride. I expect them to trust their teammates on offense and play unselfish. I expect us to take a couple lumps along the way, because we are kind of an unexperienced young team in some ways, but it's a long journey. But I do expect that. I expect these guys to put themselves in a position to win every game on the schedule and tonight we got that done."