Texas Tech University Athletics
Adams addresses media prior to LA Tech matchup
November 13, 2022 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK, Texas – Just like that, we're already two games into the season and entering the second week. Blink, and before you know it, we'll be in the midst of Big 12 play with March bearing down.
No. 25 Texas Tech is 2-0 right now with a game against Louisiana Tech set for 7 p.m. on Monday at the United Supermarkets Arena. "It's really just one step at a time where we want to improve," Texas Tech coach Mark Adams said. "Louisiana Tech will give us that opportunity because they are a really good team. They'll challenge us on both ends of the floor. I'd like to see our guys play with more consistency and take care of the ball with pace. We want to do a better job on the glass by blocking out and getting rebounds to not allow second and third shots."
To this point, everything has started out as planned, a pair of 24-point wins over Northwestern State and Texas Southern where 11 players scored in both games. Daniel Batcho recorded a double-double in the opener with 12 points and 10 rebounds, Kevin Obanor and Jaylon Tyson scored 13 each in the next one. Adams is in his second season as the Texas Tech head coach. He's now 20-0 at home as the head coach and leading a program that has won 23 straight home games. On Sunday afternoon after practice, Adams, Kerwin Walton and D'Maurian Williams spoke about playing at home, protecting it and what the experience of being supported by the Red Raider fans is all about.
Williams: "It's insane to see it. You hear about but it's a whole new perspective when you're playing. I just want to thank them for coming out and showing support."
Walton: "It's crazy. I've never seen that many fans for the first game of the season. It's a non-conference game and they're here. It's not like were playing Kansas or Texas. That caught me off-guard."
Adams: "I'm so blessed when I see these big crowds. It's a great reminder of how fortunate I am to be in this position. To be able to lead this basketball team in front of all these fans cheering us on is so encouraging. I tell our guys how lucky they are to play in front of these crowds. I think the strength of our team right now is our fanbase and student section."
Now we're looking into a matchup against the Bulldogs and former Red Raider assistant Talvin Hester who is in his first season in Ruston, Louisiana. Hester, who was on staff last season and helped the Red Raiders to the Sweet 16, accepted his first head coaching position after the run. An Arlington native, he coached at Northlake College, Texas Wesleyan, Texas College, Prairie View A&M, San Jose State, SFA, Texas State, Houston, Oral Roberts and was an assistant at LA Tech before last season in Lubbock. He's more than earned this opportunity and Adams praised what he's seen so far – one game, a 78-61 win over Mississippi College (Division II) last Monday.
"It's so early in the season that you only get a little snapshot of your opponent," Adams said. "They are playing extremely hard on defense and are really well coached. I'm really proud of Coach Hester for the way he's coaching his team. They are very competitive and in the game we've watched they played really hard on both ends of the court."
Tech has rolled to the pair of 24-point victories in typical Tech fashion, holding shooters to only 31.5 percent shooting through 127 shots taken. The Red Raiders were the top-ranked team in the Kenpom.com defensive efficiency ratings last season and are currently No. 6 coming into this week. Defensively, Tech has limited both opponents under 30 points at halftime and is coming off limiting Texas Southern to only 29.4 percent shooting in the second half.
"We are really trying to perfect what we do defensively," Williams said. "Making sure guys are in the right spot and staying solid. We struggled with rebounding in our scrimmages but have been able to pick that up in the first two games."
"It comes down to energy, effort, toughness," Walton added. "Being able to guard someone one-on-one and being smart enough to read and anticipate where the next pass is going. I think all those type of things is what ties into defense. The number one thing is energy and effort though. No matter who you are as a defender you can be better if you're giving energy and effort. We are always looking to take charges and help each other out."
Texas Tech began the season with the starting rotation of Obanor, Batcho, Tyson, De'Vion Harmon and Pop Isaacs. On Sunday, Adams told reporters he expects those five to start again on Monday. Who starts doesn't really matter much in the Tech system though. "Our guys understand that they have to produce when they're out there," Adams said. "They have to play with aggression and poise. If you play physically and with intensity you're going to get a lot of minutes." Walton, who has entered the first two games as a reserve, leads the team with 48 minutes played. He scored nine points in the opener on 4-for-7 shooting and had five points against Texas Southern.
"I'm trying to improve and find ways to help my teammates out," Walton said. "I want to do my part in helping us win. That's the biggest thing for me. Win. It's a new offense than what I was in at North Carolina. Being able to find my spots and come off screens that we run for me and just being ready to shoot is important. I just have to stay ready to make shots. I can operate from either corner. I'll take whatever open shot I can get."
Williams scored six points in the opener and five against Texas Southern. He averaged 14.5 points per game last season at Gardner-Webb, starting 29 games. His role has been different through two games but he's working to ready. On Thursday in the win over the Tigers, he hit his first shot to give Tech a 17-13 lead. His next was a 3-pointer to stretch the lead to 22-14.
"I'm coming from the Big South so everything is different for me," Williams said. "The physicalness, athleticism, everything is different. The game is faster, but I'm adjusting."
Adams was also asked about Batcho who opened the season with 12 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in 25 minutes played against Northwestern State. Three days later, he was in early foul trouble and limited to 16 minutes where he scored seven and had four rebounds.
"When he's on the floor we are so much better on the defensive end because he protects the rim so well," Adams said. "He's been averaging double figures in our scrimmages and the first game. We just have to get him more shots. He's improved a lot on the offensive end and can face-up and get rebounds. We feel like if we can get him 25-30 minutes then he's a guy who will get a double-double every game."
Texas Tech will travel to Hawaii later in the week to play in the Maui Jim Maui Invitational in the third week of the season. First up, No. 9 Creighton for its third straight Monday game. Let's not get ahead of ourselves here though. Monday night. 7 p.m. Louisiana Tech. Live in the present.
"We're going to mirror each other defensively," said Adams of the matchup between Techs. "They may even play better defense because they're playing so hard. They have our philosophy and put a lot of pressure on the ball. Coach Hester has done a great job getting his team ready with all new guys. They play an aggressive style of basketball. We'll have to be ready."
No. 25 Texas Tech is 2-0 right now with a game against Louisiana Tech set for 7 p.m. on Monday at the United Supermarkets Arena. "It's really just one step at a time where we want to improve," Texas Tech coach Mark Adams said. "Louisiana Tech will give us that opportunity because they are a really good team. They'll challenge us on both ends of the floor. I'd like to see our guys play with more consistency and take care of the ball with pace. We want to do a better job on the glass by blocking out and getting rebounds to not allow second and third shots."
To this point, everything has started out as planned, a pair of 24-point wins over Northwestern State and Texas Southern where 11 players scored in both games. Daniel Batcho recorded a double-double in the opener with 12 points and 10 rebounds, Kevin Obanor and Jaylon Tyson scored 13 each in the next one. Adams is in his second season as the Texas Tech head coach. He's now 20-0 at home as the head coach and leading a program that has won 23 straight home games. On Sunday afternoon after practice, Adams, Kerwin Walton and D'Maurian Williams spoke about playing at home, protecting it and what the experience of being supported by the Red Raider fans is all about.
Williams: "It's insane to see it. You hear about but it's a whole new perspective when you're playing. I just want to thank them for coming out and showing support."
Walton: "It's crazy. I've never seen that many fans for the first game of the season. It's a non-conference game and they're here. It's not like were playing Kansas or Texas. That caught me off-guard."
Adams: "I'm so blessed when I see these big crowds. It's a great reminder of how fortunate I am to be in this position. To be able to lead this basketball team in front of all these fans cheering us on is so encouraging. I tell our guys how lucky they are to play in front of these crowds. I think the strength of our team right now is our fanbase and student section."
Now we're looking into a matchup against the Bulldogs and former Red Raider assistant Talvin Hester who is in his first season in Ruston, Louisiana. Hester, who was on staff last season and helped the Red Raiders to the Sweet 16, accepted his first head coaching position after the run. An Arlington native, he coached at Northlake College, Texas Wesleyan, Texas College, Prairie View A&M, San Jose State, SFA, Texas State, Houston, Oral Roberts and was an assistant at LA Tech before last season in Lubbock. He's more than earned this opportunity and Adams praised what he's seen so far – one game, a 78-61 win over Mississippi College (Division II) last Monday.
"It's so early in the season that you only get a little snapshot of your opponent," Adams said. "They are playing extremely hard on defense and are really well coached. I'm really proud of Coach Hester for the way he's coaching his team. They are very competitive and in the game we've watched they played really hard on both ends of the court."
Tech has rolled to the pair of 24-point victories in typical Tech fashion, holding shooters to only 31.5 percent shooting through 127 shots taken. The Red Raiders were the top-ranked team in the Kenpom.com defensive efficiency ratings last season and are currently No. 6 coming into this week. Defensively, Tech has limited both opponents under 30 points at halftime and is coming off limiting Texas Southern to only 29.4 percent shooting in the second half.
"We are really trying to perfect what we do defensively," Williams said. "Making sure guys are in the right spot and staying solid. We struggled with rebounding in our scrimmages but have been able to pick that up in the first two games."
"It comes down to energy, effort, toughness," Walton added. "Being able to guard someone one-on-one and being smart enough to read and anticipate where the next pass is going. I think all those type of things is what ties into defense. The number one thing is energy and effort though. No matter who you are as a defender you can be better if you're giving energy and effort. We are always looking to take charges and help each other out."
Texas Tech began the season with the starting rotation of Obanor, Batcho, Tyson, De'Vion Harmon and Pop Isaacs. On Sunday, Adams told reporters he expects those five to start again on Monday. Who starts doesn't really matter much in the Tech system though. "Our guys understand that they have to produce when they're out there," Adams said. "They have to play with aggression and poise. If you play physically and with intensity you're going to get a lot of minutes." Walton, who has entered the first two games as a reserve, leads the team with 48 minutes played. He scored nine points in the opener on 4-for-7 shooting and had five points against Texas Southern.
"I'm trying to improve and find ways to help my teammates out," Walton said. "I want to do my part in helping us win. That's the biggest thing for me. Win. It's a new offense than what I was in at North Carolina. Being able to find my spots and come off screens that we run for me and just being ready to shoot is important. I just have to stay ready to make shots. I can operate from either corner. I'll take whatever open shot I can get."
Williams scored six points in the opener and five against Texas Southern. He averaged 14.5 points per game last season at Gardner-Webb, starting 29 games. His role has been different through two games but he's working to ready. On Thursday in the win over the Tigers, he hit his first shot to give Tech a 17-13 lead. His next was a 3-pointer to stretch the lead to 22-14.
"I'm coming from the Big South so everything is different for me," Williams said. "The physicalness, athleticism, everything is different. The game is faster, but I'm adjusting."
Adams was also asked about Batcho who opened the season with 12 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in 25 minutes played against Northwestern State. Three days later, he was in early foul trouble and limited to 16 minutes where he scored seven and had four rebounds.
"When he's on the floor we are so much better on the defensive end because he protects the rim so well," Adams said. "He's been averaging double figures in our scrimmages and the first game. We just have to get him more shots. He's improved a lot on the offensive end and can face-up and get rebounds. We feel like if we can get him 25-30 minutes then he's a guy who will get a double-double every game."
Texas Tech will travel to Hawaii later in the week to play in the Maui Jim Maui Invitational in the third week of the season. First up, No. 9 Creighton for its third straight Monday game. Let's not get ahead of ourselves here though. Monday night. 7 p.m. Louisiana Tech. Live in the present.
"We're going to mirror each other defensively," said Adams of the matchup between Techs. "They may even play better defense because they're playing so hard. They have our philosophy and put a lot of pressure on the ball. Coach Hester has done a great job getting his team ready with all new guys. They play an aggressive style of basketball. We'll have to be ready."
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