Texas Tech University Athletics
No. 5 Houston tops No. 25 Tech
January 17, 2024 | Men's Basketball
HOUSTON, Texas – No. 25 Texas Tech had its nine-game winning streak end and dropped its first Big 12 of the season with a 77-54 loss against No. 5 Houston on Wednesday at Fertitta Center.
The Red Raiders (14-3, 3-1 Big 12) finished the game with 11 3-pointers but also had 14 turnovers and saw the Cougars (15-2, 2-2 Big 12) own a 40-8 scoring advantage in the paint and a 10-rebound margin advantage.
"There wasn't any question on who the tougher team was tonight," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. "We knew coming into the game that we would have to play our best basketball to put ourselves in position to win the game. I thought rebounding would play a big part and I thought we showed some effort there, but their points in the paint and us turning the ball over was the difference in the game."
The Red Raiders return to Lubbock where they will host No. 20 BYU at 5 p.m. on Saturday at United Supermarkets Arena. The Cougars (14-3, 2-2 Big 12) have won two in a row, including knocking off No. 24 Iowa State with an 87-72 victory on Tuesday in Provo, Utah after a road win at UCF last Saturday.
Kerwin Walton led Tech with 18 points after going 6-for-9 on 3-pointers, while Pop Isaacs had 12 points and a team-high five assists. Warren Washington added nine rebounds, six points, three assists and three blocks and Joe Toussaint had nine points and two assists. Walton's six 3-pointers matched a career-high along with leading the team in scoring for the second time this season. Isaacs has now scored in double figures in eight straight games. Tech finished the night 11-for-27 on 3-pointers and were 18-for-49 (36.7%) from the field overall. The team had not had double-digit turnovers in its first three conference games but surrendered 14 while UH had only six in the game.
Houston's Jamal Shead scored a game-high 29 points and also added 10 assists for a double-double, while J'Wan Roberts had 12 points and seven rebounds. UH, which was coming off losses at Iowa State and TCU, finished the night with 10 scorers and were 33-for-63 (52.4%) from the field and 8-for-17 on 3-pointers. Shead was 2-for-3 on 3-pointers, while Emanuel Sharp made two 3-pointers and finished with eight points. Houston scored 17 points off turnovers and 10 with 12 offensive rebounds.
"You have to tip your cap to them," McCasland said. "They had lost two close games on the road where it is difficult in this league, but I thought Shead was not going to lose this game. It looked like his will to win and physicality on both sides of the ball along with maturity and leadership was there. I couldn't have been more impressed in the way he competed."
Houston took a 38-29 lead into halftime in large part due to a 13-0 run that gave them a 22-12 lead before the Red Raiders fought back and got it to 30-26 on an Isaacs 3-pointer with 2:15 to play until halftime. UH closed out the half on an 8-3 run to lead by nine at the break. Walton was leading Tech with nine points at the break after hitting three first-half 3-pointers, the first to make it a 24-20 lead for UH and the third to cut the Cougar lead to 35-29. Tech finished the half 6-for-14 on 3-pointers, including Isaacs going 2-for-5 and finishing the half with six points to go along with three assists. Williams had five points and four rebounds, while Warren Washington had three blocked shots, three points, and four rebounds. Walton was 3-for-6 on 3-pointers and also had three rebounds. Tech was 10-for-26 from the field in the first half. UH had a 22-16 rebounding advantage and had a 14-4 scoring advantage in the paint. Shead had a first-half high of 15 points for UH while Emmanuel Sharp had eight points off the bench. Tech had five turnovers at halftime. UH had only one.
The Cougars started the second half on an 8-0 run to take a 46-31 lead before Toussaint made a jumper and converted an and-one with a free throw. Walton would hit his fourth 3-pointer of the game to make it 50-36 and was followed by Toussaint hitting his first 3-pointer to make it 55-39 with 10 minutes to play. Isaacs made his third 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 58-42 with 7:28 to play. An LJ Cryer jumper pushed the UH lead to 20 for the first time at 62-42 and led 71-44 when a Shead layup pushed another run to 13-2 with three minutes to play. Walton's fifth 3-pointer of the game made it 71-47 and gave him 15 points and Tech 10 3-pointers. Â Â
Texas Tech now shifts to BYU which is coming to Lubbock as a Big 12 opponent for the first time. The Cougars hold a 3-1 all-time advantage in the series over Tech with the last matchup coming on December 22, 1995, with the Red Raiders earning an 81-71 win in Lubbock. This will be the first time playing as conference opponents and the only matchup of the regular season in the newly configured Big 12 scheduling matrix. Tech is currently 10-0 at home this season coming into the game with home-court wins over Oklahoma State and Kansas State. The Red Raiders will follow their game against BYU with a road game at No. 15 Oklahoma on Saturday, January 27 and at No. 19 TCU on Tuesday, January 30 in Fort Worth.
The Red Raiders (14-3, 3-1 Big 12) finished the game with 11 3-pointers but also had 14 turnovers and saw the Cougars (15-2, 2-2 Big 12) own a 40-8 scoring advantage in the paint and a 10-rebound margin advantage.
"There wasn't any question on who the tougher team was tonight," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. "We knew coming into the game that we would have to play our best basketball to put ourselves in position to win the game. I thought rebounding would play a big part and I thought we showed some effort there, but their points in the paint and us turning the ball over was the difference in the game."
The Red Raiders return to Lubbock where they will host No. 20 BYU at 5 p.m. on Saturday at United Supermarkets Arena. The Cougars (14-3, 2-2 Big 12) have won two in a row, including knocking off No. 24 Iowa State with an 87-72 victory on Tuesday in Provo, Utah after a road win at UCF last Saturday.
Kerwin Walton led Tech with 18 points after going 6-for-9 on 3-pointers, while Pop Isaacs had 12 points and a team-high five assists. Warren Washington added nine rebounds, six points, three assists and three blocks and Joe Toussaint had nine points and two assists. Walton's six 3-pointers matched a career-high along with leading the team in scoring for the second time this season. Isaacs has now scored in double figures in eight straight games. Tech finished the night 11-for-27 on 3-pointers and were 18-for-49 (36.7%) from the field overall. The team had not had double-digit turnovers in its first three conference games but surrendered 14 while UH had only six in the game.
Houston's Jamal Shead scored a game-high 29 points and also added 10 assists for a double-double, while J'Wan Roberts had 12 points and seven rebounds. UH, which was coming off losses at Iowa State and TCU, finished the night with 10 scorers and were 33-for-63 (52.4%) from the field and 8-for-17 on 3-pointers. Shead was 2-for-3 on 3-pointers, while Emanuel Sharp made two 3-pointers and finished with eight points. Houston scored 17 points off turnovers and 10 with 12 offensive rebounds.
"You have to tip your cap to them," McCasland said. "They had lost two close games on the road where it is difficult in this league, but I thought Shead was not going to lose this game. It looked like his will to win and physicality on both sides of the ball along with maturity and leadership was there. I couldn't have been more impressed in the way he competed."
Houston took a 38-29 lead into halftime in large part due to a 13-0 run that gave them a 22-12 lead before the Red Raiders fought back and got it to 30-26 on an Isaacs 3-pointer with 2:15 to play until halftime. UH closed out the half on an 8-3 run to lead by nine at the break. Walton was leading Tech with nine points at the break after hitting three first-half 3-pointers, the first to make it a 24-20 lead for UH and the third to cut the Cougar lead to 35-29. Tech finished the half 6-for-14 on 3-pointers, including Isaacs going 2-for-5 and finishing the half with six points to go along with three assists. Williams had five points and four rebounds, while Warren Washington had three blocked shots, three points, and four rebounds. Walton was 3-for-6 on 3-pointers and also had three rebounds. Tech was 10-for-26 from the field in the first half. UH had a 22-16 rebounding advantage and had a 14-4 scoring advantage in the paint. Shead had a first-half high of 15 points for UH while Emmanuel Sharp had eight points off the bench. Tech had five turnovers at halftime. UH had only one.
The Cougars started the second half on an 8-0 run to take a 46-31 lead before Toussaint made a jumper and converted an and-one with a free throw. Walton would hit his fourth 3-pointer of the game to make it 50-36 and was followed by Toussaint hitting his first 3-pointer to make it 55-39 with 10 minutes to play. Isaacs made his third 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 58-42 with 7:28 to play. An LJ Cryer jumper pushed the UH lead to 20 for the first time at 62-42 and led 71-44 when a Shead layup pushed another run to 13-2 with three minutes to play. Walton's fifth 3-pointer of the game made it 71-47 and gave him 15 points and Tech 10 3-pointers. Â Â
Texas Tech now shifts to BYU which is coming to Lubbock as a Big 12 opponent for the first time. The Cougars hold a 3-1 all-time advantage in the series over Tech with the last matchup coming on December 22, 1995, with the Red Raiders earning an 81-71 win in Lubbock. This will be the first time playing as conference opponents and the only matchup of the regular season in the newly configured Big 12 scheduling matrix. Tech is currently 10-0 at home this season coming into the game with home-court wins over Oklahoma State and Kansas State. The Red Raiders will follow their game against BYU with a road game at No. 15 Oklahoma on Saturday, January 27 and at No. 19 TCU on Tuesday, January 30 in Fort Worth.
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