Texas Tech University Athletics
Tuesday, February 25
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
8 p.m.
Texas Tech Athletics
at
Oklahoma
PREVIEW: at Oklahoma (In OKC)
February 24, 2020 | Men's Basketball
No. 22 Red Raiders vs. Sooners | 8 p.m., Tuesday | TV: ESPN 2 | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech has won four in a row over Oklahoma for the first time in the series history going into a matchup where the programs will play each other in Oklahoma City for the first time since 1944 at 8 p.m. on Tuesday at the Chesapeake Energy Arena. Being played at the home of the Oklahoma City Thunder, the game will be the first-ever Big 12 regular-season contest in an NBA arena.
The No. 22-ranked Red Raiders (18-9, 9-5 Big 12) have won five of their last six games after an 87-57 win at Iowa State, while the Sooners (16-11, 6-8 Big 12) have lost three in a row after dropping an 83-66 decision at Oklahoma State last Saturday in Stillwater. Tech extended its winning streak over OU with a 69-61 victory in the first matchup this season on Feb. 4 in Lubbock with TJ Holyfield leading the Red Raiders with 21 points and three blocks and Kyler Edwards going for 17 points.
With a 73.1 winning percentage (190-70) as a NCAA coach, Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard has the ninth best percentage among active coaches and is 94-40 leading the Red Raiders. Beard, who was an assistant coach at Texas Tech for Bob Knight and Pat Knight from 2001-11, has led the Red Raiders to a 13-2 record at home this season and to a 63-7 record at home over the past four years. The Red Raiders are led in scoring by freshman Jahmi'us Ramsey (16.3 ppg.) who is second in the Big 12 and graduate transfer Chris Clarke who is at 6.6 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game along with a 2.15 assist-to-turnover ratio which all rank in the top-10 within the Big 12. Davide Moretti is second on the NCAA active career leader list in free-throw percentage at 90.4 percent (207 of 229) and leads the Big 12 this season at 89.6 percent (14th nationally). Beard was named the 2019 AP National Coach of the Year and the 2018 and 2019 Big 12 Coach of the Year.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: Texas Tech comes into this week leading the Big 12 by shooting 36.1 percent on 3-pointers (197 of 546) along with 15.8 assists and 16.4 turnovers forced per game. The Red Raiders are second in the conference with a 1.15 assist-to-turnover ratio, 46.1 shooting percentage from the field, a 75.4 free-throw percentage and by scoring 73.7 points per game. Tech ranks 19th nationally in assists per game is 20th in turnovers forced. Individually, Moretti leads the Big 12 by going 86 of 96 from the line and Clarke is second in the conference at 5.0 assists per game and is ninth with 6.6 rebounds per game. Ramsey leads the conference at 44.6 percent on 3-pointers, is second in the Big 12 at 16.3 points per game and fourth by shooting 46.4 percent from the field. Edwards is eighth in the conference with a 1.60 assist-to-turnover ratio and Holyfield is sixth with 1.6 blocks per game.
PROGRAM MARKS: Texas Tech is coming off its winningest season in program history after going 31-7 and 14-4 in Big 12 play last year. The Red Raiders won the Big 12 regular-season championship before advancing to the Final Four and NCAA National Championship Final for the first time in program history. Tech is 8-2 in the NCAA Tournament over the past two years after making the 2018 NCAA Elite Eight and reaching the NCAA National Championship Final. The 8-2 mark is the best in the nation over that span and an appearance in the NCAA tournament this season would be the first time in program history that the Red Raiders have made the tournament three straight seasons.
BIG 12 STANDINGS: With two weeks and four games remaining in the regular season, Texas Tech is currently in third place in the Big 12 behind No. 1 Kansas (13-1) and No. 2 Baylor (13-1). The Red Raiders, who are 3-4 in conference play away from home coming into Tuesday's game, are two games ahead of West Virginia (7-7) while the Sooners, Texas and TCU are all tied for fifth with 6-8 conference records. Tech finishes off the regular season with matchups against Texas, Baylor and Kansas.
POLLS: Texas Tech returned to the Associated Press Top 25 Poll at No. 22 on Monday and rose to No. 16 in the NCAA NET Rankings after wins over Kansas State and Iowa State last week. Tech has been ranked in 12 of 17 weeks after starting the season ranked No. 13 in the preseason poll for the highest ranking in program history coming into a season. Kansas comes in at No. 1 in the AP Top 25 after its win over Baylor on Saturday that moved the Bears back to No. 2 followed by Gonzaga, Dayton and San Diego State to round out this week's top-5. West Virginia is at No. 20 this week to give the conference four ranked teams in the poll. The Red Raiders, who have been as high as No. 11 this season, are 2-6 this season against teams currently ranked, including earning a 70-57 win over Louisville (ranked No. 1 at time) and splitting with West Virginia.
SERIES HISTORY: Oklahoma has a 39-27 all-time advantage in the series, including going 24-8 against the Red Raiders in games played in Oklahoma. The first game in the series was also played in Oklahoma City with OU earning a 61-31 win on Dec. 27, 1944. Tech's four-game winning streak over the Sooners is the longest in history.
GAME COVERAGE: The game between Texas Tech and Texas will be broadcasted on ESPN2 with Rich Hollenberg and Fran Fraschilla and on the Texas Tech Sports Network's flagship station Double T 97.3 in Lubbock with Geoff Haxton and Chris Level. Fans can also follow the game at @TexasTechMBB.
PLAYER NOTES: Texas Tech is led by junior Davide Moretti who has competed in 102 games (76 wins) with the Red Raiders, sophomore Kyler Edwards, a dynamic freshmen class and graduate transfers Chris Clarke and TJ Holyfield who bring experience to a team that lost four starters and the leading reserve off last year's historic team.
Ramsey was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for the third time this season after going for 25 points in the win over Iowa State on Saturday where he also had a career-high seven assists and only one turnover. He leads the Big 12 by shooting 44.6 percent on 3-pointers and is second in scoring at 16.3 points per game after also going for 17 points with two 3-pointers last Wednesday against Kansas State. A freshman from Arlington with 374 total points this season, Ramsey is currently 54-for-121 on 3-pointers and has made at least two in the past eight games and in 15 games overall. A 6-foot-4 guard, he has scored in double-figures in 19 of 23 games played this season with a Big 12 high coming at Kansas where he scored 26 by going 5-for-8 on 3-pointers after scoring 21 against West Virginia by also connecting on 5 of 8 shots from beyond the arc. Ramsey, who scored 13 points in his first matchup against OU, has hit five 3-pointers in four games this season and had a previous career-high four assists two weeks ago at Oklahoma State where he also scored 14 points. He was named an All-Big 12 Preseason Honorable Mention selection coming into the season before earning three weekly awards so far this year. Ramsey scored a career-high 27 points in a win over Long Island where he hit five 3-pointers for the first of four times this season and has already scored 20 or more points in seven of 23 games played. He missed four games due to a left hamstring injury he suffered with 10 minutes remaining against Iowa, but has started 17 straight games since his return. In conference play, Ramsey is averaging 16.4 points per game and is at 18.2 points per game in the past five games where he is 11 of 22 (50 percent) on 3-pointers.
For a season, Texas Tech has only been led in scoring by two freshmen with Jordan Tolbert averaging 11.5 points per game in the 2011-12 season and Rick Bullock who had 13.8 ppg. in 1972-73.
A guard from Italy, Moretti is averaging 13.3 points per game after leading the Red Raiders with 18 points last Wednesday against Kansas State where he made four 3-pointers before scoring nine points in the win over Iowa State. In his third season at Tech, he has scored 926 career points with 159 made 3-pointers and going 207-for-229 from the line. He's averaging 13.4 points per game through 14 conference games this season with a career-high 25 points against West Virginia after dropping 15 against Kentucky in the final non-conference game on the schedule. Moretti has started 65 straight games for the Red Raiders after a sophomore season where he started all 38 and averaged 11.5 points per game, shot 49.8 percent from the field, 45.9 percent on 3-pointers and led the nation at 92.4 percent. He has made at least one 3-pointer in 25 of 27 games this season and in 77 of 102 games in his career. Moretti, who was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District Team on Feb. 20 for the second straight year, was named to the 2019 All-Big 12 Third Team and earned the NCAA Elite 90 Award last season before being selected to the Bob Cousy Award Watch List prior to the start of this season. Before his career-high 25-point performance in the home win West Virginia, Moretti had a career-best 23 points earlier this season against Creighton where he made three 3-pointers. His free-throw prowess is highlighted by him going 12-for-12 from the line last season against Oklahoma State, an 8-for-8 showing to help knock off Louisville and then 9-for-9 display against the Mountaineers. Moretti has led Tech in scoring eight times this season and 13 times in his career. In the first matchup against Oklahoma, Moretti scored 11 points with two 3-pointers and going 3-for-4 from the line. He currently ranks ninth all-time in program history with the 159 3-pointers made in his career.
Edwards is averaging 12.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game after going for 19 points, four assists and five rebounds at Iowa State. He has recorded four assists in four straight games and scored in double figures in six straight. A sophomore from Arlington, he has started all 27 games this season after playing a reserve role in all 38 as a freshman where he averaged 5.5 points per game. This season, more than doubling that average, Edwards has scored in double figures in 16 games with a career-high 24 points in the first matchup at Kansas State where he went 9-for-14 from the field with three 3-pointers before going 5-for-6 on 3-pointers in the 22-point performance in the first matchup against the Cyclones. He earned Big 12 Player of the Week after the two-game stretch and is currently averaging 12.5 points per game through the first 11 conference games. He now has three or more assists in 18 games with a career high six at No. 3 Kansas and had a career-high nine rebounds at West Virginia. As a freshman, he scored a season-high 19 points after going 7-for-7 from the field with four 3-pointers against Northern Colorado and then had 12 points against Virginia in the NCAA National Championship Final. He's currently scored 20 or more points three times this season and is at 538 points for his career, including scoring 17 points in the first matchup against Oklahoma where he was 7-for-10 from the field with three 3-pointers.
Holyfield is averaging 9.2 points and 4.9 rebounds per game and is sixth in the Big 12 with 1.5 blocked shots per game after having 25 in the past eight games (43 total). At Iowa State, he had four blocked shots and scored 10 points on 3-for-4 shooting. A grad transfer from SFA, Holyfield has scored 1,329 points in his career where he has played and started in 128 games. He has recorded three or more blocks in eight games this season with four in games against Kansas and West Virginia before having three against OU and then the five at UT. Holyfield matched a season-high with 21 points two weeks ago against OU when he went 8-for-12 from the field and was 2 of 2 on 3-pointers after scoring 19 at Kansas with a season-high three 3-pointers. He leads the Red Raiders with a 56.2 shooting percentage after going 4-for-5 on Wednesday against the Wildcats and 3-for-4 at ISU for a week where he was 7-for-9. Along with scoring 21 against OU, he also had 21 in a non-conference win over Houston Baptist and 20 against Bethune-Cookman. Those performances earned him Big 12 Newcomer of the Week on Nov. 11, 2019. In Big 12 play, Holyfield is averaging 9.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. Clarke is a grad transfer who played three seasons at Virginia Tech before transferring to Texas Tech. He is averaging 6.6 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 5.5 points per game for the Red Raiders and comes into this week having scored 871 points, securing 689 rebounds and contributing 339 assists through 105 games in his career. A guard from Virginia Beach, Virginia, Clarke leads the Red Raiders with two double-doubles this season with 11 points and 10 rebounds against Iowa and then 14 points and 11 rebounds against Southern Miss. He recorded a career-high 11 assists in the win over Houston Baptist and is coming off a game against the Wildcats where he had three assists and three rebounds. Clarke, who was named the Big 12 Preseason Newcomer of the Year and Big 12 Newcomer of the Week on Jan. 23 after averaging a double-double in wins over Southern Miss and UTRGV, has led Tech in rebounding 14 games this season with a high of 12 coming against Tennessee State and Louisville. He had four assists and four points in the first matchup against the Cyclones.
Shannon scored seven points and had a career-high four steals at Iowa State and is now averaging 10.1 points per game and 4.1 rebounds per game. A guard from Chicago, Shannon leads the Red Raiders with 84 free throws made (82.4 percent) and has scored in double figures in 13 of 25 games played. He scored a career-high 24 points in his hometown return at DePaul on Dec. 4 where he was 9-for-18 from the field, hit two 3-pointers and was 4-for-5 from the free-throw line. Shannon scored a conference-high 23 points in the home win over West Virginia after going 12-for-14 from the free-throw line and also making 5 of 8 shots from the field. He had a season-high 11 rebounds at Kansas and also had eight points against the Jayhawks. Shannon was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week on Dec. 16, 2019 after scoring 18 points against Southern Miss and 13 in the win over Louisville. He comes into the second matchup against Oklahoma averaging 8.0 points per game in conference play.
Kevin McCullar recorded a career-high with 11 rebounds and also had six points last Saturday at Iowa State after he made the first start of his career last Wednesday in a game where he scored nine points and led the Red Raiders with six rebounds against the Wildcats. He was coming off a career-high 15 points at Oklahoma State where he was 6-for-8 from the field and 3-for-3 at the free-throw line. A redshirt freshman from San Antonio, McCullar graduated high school early and enrolled at Texas Tech in the 2019 spring semester where he redshirted last season. He has played in a reserve role in 23 games this season before starting the past two games and is averaging 5.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. Prior to his career-high 15 points in Stillwater, McCullar had scored 10 points in games against Kansas State, UTRGV, Long Island and TCU where he was 3-for-6 from the field and 4-for-4 at the free-throw line. A 6-foot-6 guard, he had a career-high two blocked shots against the Longhorns three weeks ago in the nine-block game by the Red Raiders. McCullar missed both games against West Virginia and Kansas due to being in concussion protocol before returning to play 19 minutes against the Sooners on Feb. 4 where he scored six points and led the team with seven rebounds. He's currently shooting 49.5 percent from the field (47-for-95) and had a previous season-high five rebounds in the wins over Louisville and KSU before leading Tech in rebounding for the first time this season with seven against OU. After his 11-rebound performance on Saturday, he has led the team in rebounding in five games this season. Avery Benson, who is in his third year at Texas Tech and is averaging 1.8 ppg. and 1.5 rpg., is a redshirt sophomore from Arkansas who scored a career-high 10 points against Louisville by going 3-for-3 from the field with a 3-pointer. He had a career-high four assists performance where he also had three rebounds against TCU and followed the performance by scoring four points in 12 minutes at OSU. He has a Big 12 career-high of five points at WVU in the first matchup where he also provided four rebounds in 18 minutes. Benson played in 20 games last season and is currently 9 of 23 (39.1 percent) on 3-pointers and 8 of 9 from the free-throw line this year. Russel Tchewa matched his season-high with six points after going 3-for-4 from the field against TCU last Tuesday and also had three rebounds in nine minutes of play. A 7-foot center from Cameroon, Tchewa is averaging 1.7 points in 19 games played this season. Two players on the Tech roster have not played this season with Joel Ntambwe having his NCAA transfer request denied and Tyreek Smith missing all 18 games due to injury. Ntambwe averaged 11.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game at UNLV as a freshman last season before deciding to transfer to Tech. He scored a career-high 31 points against Wyoming last year where he started all 31 games and recorded four double-doubles.
Texas Tech is currently 12-5 with the starting rotation of Holyfield, Moretti, Edwards, Shannon and Ramsey. The Red Raiders are coming off a week against Kansas State and Iowa State where they started McCullar, Moretti, Ramsey, Holyfield and Edwards together for the first time and went 2-0. The starting five of Holyfield, Clarke, Moretti, Edwards and Ramsey had started the four games before Shannon returned to the starting five against Kentucky in the final non-conference game.
TEXAS TECH COACHING STAFF: The Red Raiders are led by head coach Chris Beard who is in his fourth season. Beard was named the Associated Press National Coach of the Year last season along with earning Big 12 Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season. Beard has led the Red Raiders to a 94-40 record coming into the game against the Sooners. Beard is joined on the coaching bench by assistant coaches Mark Adams, Brian Burg and Ulric Maligi, Tim MacAllister (Chief of Staff), Bob Donewald (Player Development), Sean Sutton (Executive Advisor), John Reilly (Strength & Conditioning), Mike Neal (Athletic Trainer) and graduate assistants Casey Perrin, Ronald Ross, Matt Temple, Elliott De Wit, Khristian Smith, Joey Kuhl, Rusty Grafel and Mike Fallone, Jr. Adams was named the TABC Assistant Coach of the Year last season for his role in helping Beard and the Red Raiders reach the national championship final. Burg was listed by The Athletic as one of the top rising assistants in the game as he enters his fourth season at Tech and fifth with Beard after also being at Little Rock with Beard and Adams. Maligi is in his first season at Texas Tech after working at Texas A&M last year. Neal is also new to the program, joining the Red Raiders after working at Little Rock where he was also a player before going into athletic training. Adams and Burg were previously on Beard's staff at Little Rock along with athletic trainer Mike Neal who is in his first season at Tech. Along with being nine wins away from 100 at Tech, Beard is 190-70 as a collegiate head coach after prior leadership at Little Rock, Angelo State and McMurry.
OKLAHOMA AT A GLANCE: The Sooners have dropped three in a row after losses to Kansas, Baylor and Oklahoma State following a two-game winning streak with victories over West Virginia and Iowa State. OU is scoring 70.7 points per game this season and leads the conference at 77.0 percent from the free-throw line. Kristian Doolittle leads the Sooners with 15.4 points and 9.0 rebounds per game, while Brady Manek is scoring 14.9 points per game with 66 3-pointers made and Austin Reaves is at 14.0 points per game and is tied for the team lead with Jamal Bieniemy with 77 assists this season. A junior from Harrah, Oklahoma, Manek led OU with 19 points in the first matchup against the Red Raiders, while Reaves had 16 with three 3-pointers. The Sooners had a 31-30 lead at halftime in the game but were outscored by a 39-30 margin in the second half in Lubbock where they were limited to 6-for-24 shooting from beyond the arc.
A NEW SHINE: Through 17 weeks, Texas Tech has already had four different players earn Big 12 Newcomer of the Week with Ramsey earning three Big 12 Newcomer of the Week honors. The weekly award has gone to TJ Holyfield (Nov. 11), Jahmi'us Ramsey (Nov. 25/Feb. 3/Feb. 24), Terrence Shannon, Jr. (Dec. 16) and Clarke (Dec. 23). The Red Raiders, who have 10 newcomers and three returners on the roster, are the only team in the conference to have three or more players receive a weekly award.
SPANNING THE GLOBE: The Red Raiders are represented by eight players by five international players: Moretti (Italy), Nadolny (France), Ntambwe (Congo), Savrasov (Russia) and Tchewa (Cameroon). The program his two players from Arlington, Texas in Kyler Edwards and Jahmi'us Ramsey, Kevin McCullar is from San Antonio and four from out of state: Avery Benson (Arkansas), TJ Holyfield (New Mexico), Tyreek Smith (Louisiana) and Terrence Shannon, Jr. (Illinois). Ntambwe will redshirt this season after having his transfer waiver denied by the NCAA, while Smith has not played his season after suffering an injury during the preseason. Linguistically, Tchewa speaks French, Italian and English for the most languages on the team that also includes Moretti (Italian, English), Nadolny (French, English), Savrasov (Russian, English) and Ntambwe (French, English).
SIGNING CLASS: Beard announced the signings of Chibuzo Agbo, Nimari Burnett and Micah Peavy to their national letter of intent for the 2020-21 academic year on November 13. Burnett was named to the McDonald's All American Games on Jan. 23 to become the first player in Red Raider history to earn the honor. The trio of talented recruits is ranked No. 5 nationally by Rivals.com and join a program that has advanced to the 2018 Elite Eight and to the 2019 NCAA National Championship Final over the past two season. Agbo signs with Texas Tech as a 4-star prospect by Rivals and 247Sports after being named the 2019 Western League Player of the Year playing for Saint Augustine High School. He enters his senior season as the 2019-20 San Diego Preseason Player of the Year after averaging 20 points and 9.0 rebounds per game and shooting 42.0 percent on 3-pointers as a junior. He is currently ranked No.70 by 247Sports and No. 87 nationally by Rivals. Agbo chose Texas Tech over USC and was also recruited by Arizona, Cal, San Diego State and Marquette. Burnett, who was named to the 2020 Naismith High School Award Watch List, is the highest rated recruit to sign in Texas Tech basketball history with a 5-star ranking by ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports. A Chicago, Illinois native, Burnett is ranked No. 19 nationally in the 2020 signing class by ESPN, No. 22 by Rivals and No. 28 in the 247Sports rankings. Peavy helped lead Duncanville High School to a Class 6A State Championship last season as a junior where he averaged 16 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. He signs with Texas Tech as a 4-star prospect by ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports and is the No. 2-ranked prospect in Texas according to Mike Kunstadt's Texas Hoops. Peavy is the No. 32-ranked player in the nation by ESPN and No. 34 by Rivals.
DEPARTURES: Texas Tech was tasked with following the winningest team in program history that is now without Jarrett Culver, Matt Mooney, Tariq Owens, Brandone Francis and Norense Odiase. Culver declared for the NBA Draft after his sophomore season and was selected No. 6 overall. After leading the Red Raiders with 18.5 points per and 6.4 rebounds per game and earning Big 12 Player of the Year and Consensus All-America honors, Culver is now on the Minnesota Timberwolves. Mooney was the team's third leading scorer behind Culver and Moretti and signed a two-way contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Jan. 15 after playing with the Memphis Hustle in the G-League, while Owens established a new program single-season record with 92 blocked shots and was with Odiase on the Northern Arizona Suns (G-League) before signing a two-way contract on Jan. 15 with the Suns. Francis was a member of the 2018 Elite Eight run and 2019 runner-up team and is on the Iowa Wolves roster. Along with players from last year's team, Max Lefevre is now with the Timberwolves working in video and athletic trainer Chris Williams joined the Timberwolves and Iowa Wolves athletic training staff.
KNOCKING OFF NO. 1: The Red Raiders earned their first-ever win over a No. 1-ranked team with a 70-57 victory over No. 1 Louisville in the Jimmy V Classic on Dec. 10, 2019 at Madison Square Garden. Moretti led Tech with 18 points after going 8-for-8 from the free-throw line, while Shannon had 13 points and Benson went 3-for-3 from the field and scored a career-high 10 points. Tech limited the Cardinals to only 34.0 percent shooting in the game and forced 18 turnovers.
WIRE-TO-WIRE: Texas Tech started on a 5-0 run in its home win over Kansas State for its sixth wire-to-wire victory that also includes never trailing against Eastern Illinois, Bethune-Cookman, Tennessee State, Iowa State (Jan. 18), West Virginia (Jan. 29), TCU (Feb. 10). The loss at Kansas is the only game the Red Raiders have not had a lead in this season.
HISTORIC MARGIN: Texas Tech earned a 46-point win over TCU on Feb. 10 for the largest Big 12 margin of victory in program history after shooting 61.5 percent from the field and making a season-high 13 3-pointers. The previous mark was also established this season with a 35-point win over Oklahoma State in the conference opener on Jan. 4. Prior to this season, an 81-50 win over West Virginia on Feb. 4, 2019 was the largest conference margin of victory in program history. Tech now has three Big 12 wins of over 30 points this season after its 87-57 victory over Iowa State on Saturday, Feb. 22 in Ames.
OVERTIME GAMES: With back-to-back overtime losses against DePaul (65-60) and Creighton (83-76) and then the 76-74 overtime decision against Kentucky, Texas Tech is now 51-52 all-time in overtime contests and 4-6 under coach Beard. The Red Raiders were 1-1 in overtime last season with an 84-80 overtime win over Oklahoma in conference play before falling 85-77 in overtime to Virginia in the championship final. Tech has had back-to-back overtime games twice now under Beard after falling to West Virginia and Iowa State in the 2016-17 season on Feb. 18 and 20. The program has had four occasions of back-to-back overtime games with the only time that three straight games have gone to overtime coming in the 1984-85 season against Nebraska, Colorado and New Mexico State.
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Davide Moretti scored a career-high 25 points in the win over WVU after hitting four 3-pointers, while Terrence Shannon, Jr. went for 23 with a 12 of 14 performance from the line and Jahmi'us Ramsey went for 21 points with his third game of the season with five 3-pointers. The Red Raiders had three players score 20 or more points in a game for the first time since Jan. 11, 2017 against Kansas when Keenan Evans had 25, Niem Stevenson went for 22 and Zach Smith scored 21 in an 80-79 loss at the USA.
3-POINT DISPLAY: The Red Raiders hit a season-high 13 3-pointers against TCU where they finished the game 13-for-22 with five players hitting shots from beyond the arc. Moretti and Edwards both had four 3-pointers each in the game, while Ramsey and Savrasov hit two and Holyfield one. Tech was just three 3-pointers away from the program record of 16 that last year's team made against Kansas in a home victory over the Jayhawks. Tech has made 197 3-pointers this season at a 36.1 percentage.
30-POINT MARGINS: Texas Tech has five wins this season of 30 points or more, including a program-record three in conference play, giving Beard 19 wins by that margin (or more) during his four seasons leading the Red Raiders. Those 19 wins are the second most in program history behind only 20 by Polk Robison. Under Bob Knight, Tech won 16 games by a 30-plus margin. This season, Tech has won by the 30-plus margin over Bethune-Cookman (35), Long Island (30), Oklahoma State (35), TCU (46) and Iowa State (30). Last year's team established the program record with six wins of 30 or more points.
The No. 22-ranked Red Raiders (18-9, 9-5 Big 12) have won five of their last six games after an 87-57 win at Iowa State, while the Sooners (16-11, 6-8 Big 12) have lost three in a row after dropping an 83-66 decision at Oklahoma State last Saturday in Stillwater. Tech extended its winning streak over OU with a 69-61 victory in the first matchup this season on Feb. 4 in Lubbock with TJ Holyfield leading the Red Raiders with 21 points and three blocks and Kyler Edwards going for 17 points.
With a 73.1 winning percentage (190-70) as a NCAA coach, Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard has the ninth best percentage among active coaches and is 94-40 leading the Red Raiders. Beard, who was an assistant coach at Texas Tech for Bob Knight and Pat Knight from 2001-11, has led the Red Raiders to a 13-2 record at home this season and to a 63-7 record at home over the past four years. The Red Raiders are led in scoring by freshman Jahmi'us Ramsey (16.3 ppg.) who is second in the Big 12 and graduate transfer Chris Clarke who is at 6.6 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game along with a 2.15 assist-to-turnover ratio which all rank in the top-10 within the Big 12. Davide Moretti is second on the NCAA active career leader list in free-throw percentage at 90.4 percent (207 of 229) and leads the Big 12 this season at 89.6 percent (14th nationally). Beard was named the 2019 AP National Coach of the Year and the 2018 and 2019 Big 12 Coach of the Year.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: Texas Tech comes into this week leading the Big 12 by shooting 36.1 percent on 3-pointers (197 of 546) along with 15.8 assists and 16.4 turnovers forced per game. The Red Raiders are second in the conference with a 1.15 assist-to-turnover ratio, 46.1 shooting percentage from the field, a 75.4 free-throw percentage and by scoring 73.7 points per game. Tech ranks 19th nationally in assists per game is 20th in turnovers forced. Individually, Moretti leads the Big 12 by going 86 of 96 from the line and Clarke is second in the conference at 5.0 assists per game and is ninth with 6.6 rebounds per game. Ramsey leads the conference at 44.6 percent on 3-pointers, is second in the Big 12 at 16.3 points per game and fourth by shooting 46.4 percent from the field. Edwards is eighth in the conference with a 1.60 assist-to-turnover ratio and Holyfield is sixth with 1.6 blocks per game.
PROGRAM MARKS: Texas Tech is coming off its winningest season in program history after going 31-7 and 14-4 in Big 12 play last year. The Red Raiders won the Big 12 regular-season championship before advancing to the Final Four and NCAA National Championship Final for the first time in program history. Tech is 8-2 in the NCAA Tournament over the past two years after making the 2018 NCAA Elite Eight and reaching the NCAA National Championship Final. The 8-2 mark is the best in the nation over that span and an appearance in the NCAA tournament this season would be the first time in program history that the Red Raiders have made the tournament three straight seasons.
BIG 12 STANDINGS: With two weeks and four games remaining in the regular season, Texas Tech is currently in third place in the Big 12 behind No. 1 Kansas (13-1) and No. 2 Baylor (13-1). The Red Raiders, who are 3-4 in conference play away from home coming into Tuesday's game, are two games ahead of West Virginia (7-7) while the Sooners, Texas and TCU are all tied for fifth with 6-8 conference records. Tech finishes off the regular season with matchups against Texas, Baylor and Kansas.
POLLS: Texas Tech returned to the Associated Press Top 25 Poll at No. 22 on Monday and rose to No. 16 in the NCAA NET Rankings after wins over Kansas State and Iowa State last week. Tech has been ranked in 12 of 17 weeks after starting the season ranked No. 13 in the preseason poll for the highest ranking in program history coming into a season. Kansas comes in at No. 1 in the AP Top 25 after its win over Baylor on Saturday that moved the Bears back to No. 2 followed by Gonzaga, Dayton and San Diego State to round out this week's top-5. West Virginia is at No. 20 this week to give the conference four ranked teams in the poll. The Red Raiders, who have been as high as No. 11 this season, are 2-6 this season against teams currently ranked, including earning a 70-57 win over Louisville (ranked No. 1 at time) and splitting with West Virginia.
SERIES HISTORY: Oklahoma has a 39-27 all-time advantage in the series, including going 24-8 against the Red Raiders in games played in Oklahoma. The first game in the series was also played in Oklahoma City with OU earning a 61-31 win on Dec. 27, 1944. Tech's four-game winning streak over the Sooners is the longest in history.
GAME COVERAGE: The game between Texas Tech and Texas will be broadcasted on ESPN2 with Rich Hollenberg and Fran Fraschilla and on the Texas Tech Sports Network's flagship station Double T 97.3 in Lubbock with Geoff Haxton and Chris Level. Fans can also follow the game at @TexasTechMBB.
PLAYER NOTES: Texas Tech is led by junior Davide Moretti who has competed in 102 games (76 wins) with the Red Raiders, sophomore Kyler Edwards, a dynamic freshmen class and graduate transfers Chris Clarke and TJ Holyfield who bring experience to a team that lost four starters and the leading reserve off last year's historic team.
Ramsey was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for the third time this season after going for 25 points in the win over Iowa State on Saturday where he also had a career-high seven assists and only one turnover. He leads the Big 12 by shooting 44.6 percent on 3-pointers and is second in scoring at 16.3 points per game after also going for 17 points with two 3-pointers last Wednesday against Kansas State. A freshman from Arlington with 374 total points this season, Ramsey is currently 54-for-121 on 3-pointers and has made at least two in the past eight games and in 15 games overall. A 6-foot-4 guard, he has scored in double-figures in 19 of 23 games played this season with a Big 12 high coming at Kansas where he scored 26 by going 5-for-8 on 3-pointers after scoring 21 against West Virginia by also connecting on 5 of 8 shots from beyond the arc. Ramsey, who scored 13 points in his first matchup against OU, has hit five 3-pointers in four games this season and had a previous career-high four assists two weeks ago at Oklahoma State where he also scored 14 points. He was named an All-Big 12 Preseason Honorable Mention selection coming into the season before earning three weekly awards so far this year. Ramsey scored a career-high 27 points in a win over Long Island where he hit five 3-pointers for the first of four times this season and has already scored 20 or more points in seven of 23 games played. He missed four games due to a left hamstring injury he suffered with 10 minutes remaining against Iowa, but has started 17 straight games since his return. In conference play, Ramsey is averaging 16.4 points per game and is at 18.2 points per game in the past five games where he is 11 of 22 (50 percent) on 3-pointers.
For a season, Texas Tech has only been led in scoring by two freshmen with Jordan Tolbert averaging 11.5 points per game in the 2011-12 season and Rick Bullock who had 13.8 ppg. in 1972-73.
A guard from Italy, Moretti is averaging 13.3 points per game after leading the Red Raiders with 18 points last Wednesday against Kansas State where he made four 3-pointers before scoring nine points in the win over Iowa State. In his third season at Tech, he has scored 926 career points with 159 made 3-pointers and going 207-for-229 from the line. He's averaging 13.4 points per game through 14 conference games this season with a career-high 25 points against West Virginia after dropping 15 against Kentucky in the final non-conference game on the schedule. Moretti has started 65 straight games for the Red Raiders after a sophomore season where he started all 38 and averaged 11.5 points per game, shot 49.8 percent from the field, 45.9 percent on 3-pointers and led the nation at 92.4 percent. He has made at least one 3-pointer in 25 of 27 games this season and in 77 of 102 games in his career. Moretti, who was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District Team on Feb. 20 for the second straight year, was named to the 2019 All-Big 12 Third Team and earned the NCAA Elite 90 Award last season before being selected to the Bob Cousy Award Watch List prior to the start of this season. Before his career-high 25-point performance in the home win West Virginia, Moretti had a career-best 23 points earlier this season against Creighton where he made three 3-pointers. His free-throw prowess is highlighted by him going 12-for-12 from the line last season against Oklahoma State, an 8-for-8 showing to help knock off Louisville and then 9-for-9 display against the Mountaineers. Moretti has led Tech in scoring eight times this season and 13 times in his career. In the first matchup against Oklahoma, Moretti scored 11 points with two 3-pointers and going 3-for-4 from the line. He currently ranks ninth all-time in program history with the 159 3-pointers made in his career.
Edwards is averaging 12.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game after going for 19 points, four assists and five rebounds at Iowa State. He has recorded four assists in four straight games and scored in double figures in six straight. A sophomore from Arlington, he has started all 27 games this season after playing a reserve role in all 38 as a freshman where he averaged 5.5 points per game. This season, more than doubling that average, Edwards has scored in double figures in 16 games with a career-high 24 points in the first matchup at Kansas State where he went 9-for-14 from the field with three 3-pointers before going 5-for-6 on 3-pointers in the 22-point performance in the first matchup against the Cyclones. He earned Big 12 Player of the Week after the two-game stretch and is currently averaging 12.5 points per game through the first 11 conference games. He now has three or more assists in 18 games with a career high six at No. 3 Kansas and had a career-high nine rebounds at West Virginia. As a freshman, he scored a season-high 19 points after going 7-for-7 from the field with four 3-pointers against Northern Colorado and then had 12 points against Virginia in the NCAA National Championship Final. He's currently scored 20 or more points three times this season and is at 538 points for his career, including scoring 17 points in the first matchup against Oklahoma where he was 7-for-10 from the field with three 3-pointers.
Holyfield is averaging 9.2 points and 4.9 rebounds per game and is sixth in the Big 12 with 1.5 blocked shots per game after having 25 in the past eight games (43 total). At Iowa State, he had four blocked shots and scored 10 points on 3-for-4 shooting. A grad transfer from SFA, Holyfield has scored 1,329 points in his career where he has played and started in 128 games. He has recorded three or more blocks in eight games this season with four in games against Kansas and West Virginia before having three against OU and then the five at UT. Holyfield matched a season-high with 21 points two weeks ago against OU when he went 8-for-12 from the field and was 2 of 2 on 3-pointers after scoring 19 at Kansas with a season-high three 3-pointers. He leads the Red Raiders with a 56.2 shooting percentage after going 4-for-5 on Wednesday against the Wildcats and 3-for-4 at ISU for a week where he was 7-for-9. Along with scoring 21 against OU, he also had 21 in a non-conference win over Houston Baptist and 20 against Bethune-Cookman. Those performances earned him Big 12 Newcomer of the Week on Nov. 11, 2019. In Big 12 play, Holyfield is averaging 9.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. Clarke is a grad transfer who played three seasons at Virginia Tech before transferring to Texas Tech. He is averaging 6.6 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 5.5 points per game for the Red Raiders and comes into this week having scored 871 points, securing 689 rebounds and contributing 339 assists through 105 games in his career. A guard from Virginia Beach, Virginia, Clarke leads the Red Raiders with two double-doubles this season with 11 points and 10 rebounds against Iowa and then 14 points and 11 rebounds against Southern Miss. He recorded a career-high 11 assists in the win over Houston Baptist and is coming off a game against the Wildcats where he had three assists and three rebounds. Clarke, who was named the Big 12 Preseason Newcomer of the Year and Big 12 Newcomer of the Week on Jan. 23 after averaging a double-double in wins over Southern Miss and UTRGV, has led Tech in rebounding 14 games this season with a high of 12 coming against Tennessee State and Louisville. He had four assists and four points in the first matchup against the Cyclones.
Shannon scored seven points and had a career-high four steals at Iowa State and is now averaging 10.1 points per game and 4.1 rebounds per game. A guard from Chicago, Shannon leads the Red Raiders with 84 free throws made (82.4 percent) and has scored in double figures in 13 of 25 games played. He scored a career-high 24 points in his hometown return at DePaul on Dec. 4 where he was 9-for-18 from the field, hit two 3-pointers and was 4-for-5 from the free-throw line. Shannon scored a conference-high 23 points in the home win over West Virginia after going 12-for-14 from the free-throw line and also making 5 of 8 shots from the field. He had a season-high 11 rebounds at Kansas and also had eight points against the Jayhawks. Shannon was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week on Dec. 16, 2019 after scoring 18 points against Southern Miss and 13 in the win over Louisville. He comes into the second matchup against Oklahoma averaging 8.0 points per game in conference play.
Kevin McCullar recorded a career-high with 11 rebounds and also had six points last Saturday at Iowa State after he made the first start of his career last Wednesday in a game where he scored nine points and led the Red Raiders with six rebounds against the Wildcats. He was coming off a career-high 15 points at Oklahoma State where he was 6-for-8 from the field and 3-for-3 at the free-throw line. A redshirt freshman from San Antonio, McCullar graduated high school early and enrolled at Texas Tech in the 2019 spring semester where he redshirted last season. He has played in a reserve role in 23 games this season before starting the past two games and is averaging 5.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. Prior to his career-high 15 points in Stillwater, McCullar had scored 10 points in games against Kansas State, UTRGV, Long Island and TCU where he was 3-for-6 from the field and 4-for-4 at the free-throw line. A 6-foot-6 guard, he had a career-high two blocked shots against the Longhorns three weeks ago in the nine-block game by the Red Raiders. McCullar missed both games against West Virginia and Kansas due to being in concussion protocol before returning to play 19 minutes against the Sooners on Feb. 4 where he scored six points and led the team with seven rebounds. He's currently shooting 49.5 percent from the field (47-for-95) and had a previous season-high five rebounds in the wins over Louisville and KSU before leading Tech in rebounding for the first time this season with seven against OU. After his 11-rebound performance on Saturday, he has led the team in rebounding in five games this season. Avery Benson, who is in his third year at Texas Tech and is averaging 1.8 ppg. and 1.5 rpg., is a redshirt sophomore from Arkansas who scored a career-high 10 points against Louisville by going 3-for-3 from the field with a 3-pointer. He had a career-high four assists performance where he also had three rebounds against TCU and followed the performance by scoring four points in 12 minutes at OSU. He has a Big 12 career-high of five points at WVU in the first matchup where he also provided four rebounds in 18 minutes. Benson played in 20 games last season and is currently 9 of 23 (39.1 percent) on 3-pointers and 8 of 9 from the free-throw line this year. Russel Tchewa matched his season-high with six points after going 3-for-4 from the field against TCU last Tuesday and also had three rebounds in nine minutes of play. A 7-foot center from Cameroon, Tchewa is averaging 1.7 points in 19 games played this season. Two players on the Tech roster have not played this season with Joel Ntambwe having his NCAA transfer request denied and Tyreek Smith missing all 18 games due to injury. Ntambwe averaged 11.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game at UNLV as a freshman last season before deciding to transfer to Tech. He scored a career-high 31 points against Wyoming last year where he started all 31 games and recorded four double-doubles.
Texas Tech is currently 12-5 with the starting rotation of Holyfield, Moretti, Edwards, Shannon and Ramsey. The Red Raiders are coming off a week against Kansas State and Iowa State where they started McCullar, Moretti, Ramsey, Holyfield and Edwards together for the first time and went 2-0. The starting five of Holyfield, Clarke, Moretti, Edwards and Ramsey had started the four games before Shannon returned to the starting five against Kentucky in the final non-conference game.
TEXAS TECH COACHING STAFF: The Red Raiders are led by head coach Chris Beard who is in his fourth season. Beard was named the Associated Press National Coach of the Year last season along with earning Big 12 Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season. Beard has led the Red Raiders to a 94-40 record coming into the game against the Sooners. Beard is joined on the coaching bench by assistant coaches Mark Adams, Brian Burg and Ulric Maligi, Tim MacAllister (Chief of Staff), Bob Donewald (Player Development), Sean Sutton (Executive Advisor), John Reilly (Strength & Conditioning), Mike Neal (Athletic Trainer) and graduate assistants Casey Perrin, Ronald Ross, Matt Temple, Elliott De Wit, Khristian Smith, Joey Kuhl, Rusty Grafel and Mike Fallone, Jr. Adams was named the TABC Assistant Coach of the Year last season for his role in helping Beard and the Red Raiders reach the national championship final. Burg was listed by The Athletic as one of the top rising assistants in the game as he enters his fourth season at Tech and fifth with Beard after also being at Little Rock with Beard and Adams. Maligi is in his first season at Texas Tech after working at Texas A&M last year. Neal is also new to the program, joining the Red Raiders after working at Little Rock where he was also a player before going into athletic training. Adams and Burg were previously on Beard's staff at Little Rock along with athletic trainer Mike Neal who is in his first season at Tech. Along with being nine wins away from 100 at Tech, Beard is 190-70 as a collegiate head coach after prior leadership at Little Rock, Angelo State and McMurry.
OKLAHOMA AT A GLANCE: The Sooners have dropped three in a row after losses to Kansas, Baylor and Oklahoma State following a two-game winning streak with victories over West Virginia and Iowa State. OU is scoring 70.7 points per game this season and leads the conference at 77.0 percent from the free-throw line. Kristian Doolittle leads the Sooners with 15.4 points and 9.0 rebounds per game, while Brady Manek is scoring 14.9 points per game with 66 3-pointers made and Austin Reaves is at 14.0 points per game and is tied for the team lead with Jamal Bieniemy with 77 assists this season. A junior from Harrah, Oklahoma, Manek led OU with 19 points in the first matchup against the Red Raiders, while Reaves had 16 with three 3-pointers. The Sooners had a 31-30 lead at halftime in the game but were outscored by a 39-30 margin in the second half in Lubbock where they were limited to 6-for-24 shooting from beyond the arc.
A NEW SHINE: Through 17 weeks, Texas Tech has already had four different players earn Big 12 Newcomer of the Week with Ramsey earning three Big 12 Newcomer of the Week honors. The weekly award has gone to TJ Holyfield (Nov. 11), Jahmi'us Ramsey (Nov. 25/Feb. 3/Feb. 24), Terrence Shannon, Jr. (Dec. 16) and Clarke (Dec. 23). The Red Raiders, who have 10 newcomers and three returners on the roster, are the only team in the conference to have three or more players receive a weekly award.
SPANNING THE GLOBE: The Red Raiders are represented by eight players by five international players: Moretti (Italy), Nadolny (France), Ntambwe (Congo), Savrasov (Russia) and Tchewa (Cameroon). The program his two players from Arlington, Texas in Kyler Edwards and Jahmi'us Ramsey, Kevin McCullar is from San Antonio and four from out of state: Avery Benson (Arkansas), TJ Holyfield (New Mexico), Tyreek Smith (Louisiana) and Terrence Shannon, Jr. (Illinois). Ntambwe will redshirt this season after having his transfer waiver denied by the NCAA, while Smith has not played his season after suffering an injury during the preseason. Linguistically, Tchewa speaks French, Italian and English for the most languages on the team that also includes Moretti (Italian, English), Nadolny (French, English), Savrasov (Russian, English) and Ntambwe (French, English).
SIGNING CLASS: Beard announced the signings of Chibuzo Agbo, Nimari Burnett and Micah Peavy to their national letter of intent for the 2020-21 academic year on November 13. Burnett was named to the McDonald's All American Games on Jan. 23 to become the first player in Red Raider history to earn the honor. The trio of talented recruits is ranked No. 5 nationally by Rivals.com and join a program that has advanced to the 2018 Elite Eight and to the 2019 NCAA National Championship Final over the past two season. Agbo signs with Texas Tech as a 4-star prospect by Rivals and 247Sports after being named the 2019 Western League Player of the Year playing for Saint Augustine High School. He enters his senior season as the 2019-20 San Diego Preseason Player of the Year after averaging 20 points and 9.0 rebounds per game and shooting 42.0 percent on 3-pointers as a junior. He is currently ranked No.70 by 247Sports and No. 87 nationally by Rivals. Agbo chose Texas Tech over USC and was also recruited by Arizona, Cal, San Diego State and Marquette. Burnett, who was named to the 2020 Naismith High School Award Watch List, is the highest rated recruit to sign in Texas Tech basketball history with a 5-star ranking by ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports. A Chicago, Illinois native, Burnett is ranked No. 19 nationally in the 2020 signing class by ESPN, No. 22 by Rivals and No. 28 in the 247Sports rankings. Peavy helped lead Duncanville High School to a Class 6A State Championship last season as a junior where he averaged 16 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. He signs with Texas Tech as a 4-star prospect by ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports and is the No. 2-ranked prospect in Texas according to Mike Kunstadt's Texas Hoops. Peavy is the No. 32-ranked player in the nation by ESPN and No. 34 by Rivals.
DEPARTURES: Texas Tech was tasked with following the winningest team in program history that is now without Jarrett Culver, Matt Mooney, Tariq Owens, Brandone Francis and Norense Odiase. Culver declared for the NBA Draft after his sophomore season and was selected No. 6 overall. After leading the Red Raiders with 18.5 points per and 6.4 rebounds per game and earning Big 12 Player of the Year and Consensus All-America honors, Culver is now on the Minnesota Timberwolves. Mooney was the team's third leading scorer behind Culver and Moretti and signed a two-way contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Jan. 15 after playing with the Memphis Hustle in the G-League, while Owens established a new program single-season record with 92 blocked shots and was with Odiase on the Northern Arizona Suns (G-League) before signing a two-way contract on Jan. 15 with the Suns. Francis was a member of the 2018 Elite Eight run and 2019 runner-up team and is on the Iowa Wolves roster. Along with players from last year's team, Max Lefevre is now with the Timberwolves working in video and athletic trainer Chris Williams joined the Timberwolves and Iowa Wolves athletic training staff.
KNOCKING OFF NO. 1: The Red Raiders earned their first-ever win over a No. 1-ranked team with a 70-57 victory over No. 1 Louisville in the Jimmy V Classic on Dec. 10, 2019 at Madison Square Garden. Moretti led Tech with 18 points after going 8-for-8 from the free-throw line, while Shannon had 13 points and Benson went 3-for-3 from the field and scored a career-high 10 points. Tech limited the Cardinals to only 34.0 percent shooting in the game and forced 18 turnovers.
WIRE-TO-WIRE: Texas Tech started on a 5-0 run in its home win over Kansas State for its sixth wire-to-wire victory that also includes never trailing against Eastern Illinois, Bethune-Cookman, Tennessee State, Iowa State (Jan. 18), West Virginia (Jan. 29), TCU (Feb. 10). The loss at Kansas is the only game the Red Raiders have not had a lead in this season.
HISTORIC MARGIN: Texas Tech earned a 46-point win over TCU on Feb. 10 for the largest Big 12 margin of victory in program history after shooting 61.5 percent from the field and making a season-high 13 3-pointers. The previous mark was also established this season with a 35-point win over Oklahoma State in the conference opener on Jan. 4. Prior to this season, an 81-50 win over West Virginia on Feb. 4, 2019 was the largest conference margin of victory in program history. Tech now has three Big 12 wins of over 30 points this season after its 87-57 victory over Iowa State on Saturday, Feb. 22 in Ames.
OVERTIME GAMES: With back-to-back overtime losses against DePaul (65-60) and Creighton (83-76) and then the 76-74 overtime decision against Kentucky, Texas Tech is now 51-52 all-time in overtime contests and 4-6 under coach Beard. The Red Raiders were 1-1 in overtime last season with an 84-80 overtime win over Oklahoma in conference play before falling 85-77 in overtime to Virginia in the championship final. Tech has had back-to-back overtime games twice now under Beard after falling to West Virginia and Iowa State in the 2016-17 season on Feb. 18 and 20. The program has had four occasions of back-to-back overtime games with the only time that three straight games have gone to overtime coming in the 1984-85 season against Nebraska, Colorado and New Mexico State.
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Davide Moretti scored a career-high 25 points in the win over WVU after hitting four 3-pointers, while Terrence Shannon, Jr. went for 23 with a 12 of 14 performance from the line and Jahmi'us Ramsey went for 21 points with his third game of the season with five 3-pointers. The Red Raiders had three players score 20 or more points in a game for the first time since Jan. 11, 2017 against Kansas when Keenan Evans had 25, Niem Stevenson went for 22 and Zach Smith scored 21 in an 80-79 loss at the USA.
3-POINT DISPLAY: The Red Raiders hit a season-high 13 3-pointers against TCU where they finished the game 13-for-22 with five players hitting shots from beyond the arc. Moretti and Edwards both had four 3-pointers each in the game, while Ramsey and Savrasov hit two and Holyfield one. Tech was just three 3-pointers away from the program record of 16 that last year's team made against Kansas in a home victory over the Jayhawks. Tech has made 197 3-pointers this season at a 36.1 percentage.
30-POINT MARGINS: Texas Tech has five wins this season of 30 points or more, including a program-record three in conference play, giving Beard 19 wins by that margin (or more) during his four seasons leading the Red Raiders. Those 19 wins are the second most in program history behind only 20 by Polk Robison. Under Bob Knight, Tech won 16 games by a 30-plus margin. This season, Tech has won by the 30-plus margin over Bethune-Cookman (35), Long Island (30), Oklahoma State (35), TCU (46) and Iowa State (30). Last year's team established the program record with six wins of 30 or more points.
Tomorrow night, in an NBA arena about five hours away. Be there!
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) February 24, 2020
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??#4To1 | #WreckEm?? pic.twitter.com/5eNL9KCAXe
Just another week of going off for @newanimprovedJR.
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) February 24, 2020
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