PREVIEW: No. 19 Tech set to battle top-ranked Baylor
https://texastech.com/news/2022/1/9...iew-tech-set-to-battle-top-ranked-baylor.aspx
No. 19 Red Raiders at No. 1 Bears | 6 p.m., Tuesday | TV: ESPN2
January 09, 2022LUBBOCK, Texas – A three-game week for No. 19-ranked Texas Tech begins at No. 1 Baylor on Tuesday in a Big 12 battle at the Ferrell Center in Waco.
The Red Raiders (11-3, 1-1 Big 12) are coming off a 75-67 home win over No. 6 Kansas, while the Bears (15-0, 3-0 Big 12) extended an overall 21-game winning streak by earning a 76-64 victory at TCU on Saturday in Fort Worth. Tech owns an 80-62 all-time advantage in the historic series that dates back to 1937, but Baylor has won four in a row overall and five straight in Waco. TTU snapped a four-game losing streak to KU with its win on Saturday.
The Bears are currently 9-0 on their home court this season coming into the first match against the Red Raiders who are 0-2 in true road games.
Tech has a quick turnaround after its trip to Waco, hosting Oklahoma State at 6 p.m. on Thursday before playing at Kansas State on Saturday to complete the three-game, five-day stretch. Tech and OSU are playing on Thursday in a game that was originally scheduled for New Year's Day but was moved due to COVID protocol issues within the Cowboy program.
QUICK FACTS
Matchup: Texas Tech (11-3, 1-1 Big 12) at Baylor (15-0, 3-0 Big 12)
Venue: Ferrell Center (10,347)
Tip: 6 p.m., Tuesday
TV: ESPN2
TV Talent: Jon Sciambi (play-by-play), Fran Fraschilla (analyst)
Radio (Texas Tech Sports Network): 97.3 Double T FM
Radio Talent: Geoff Haxton (play-by-play), Chris Level (analyst)
SIRIUS/XM Radio Channels: Ch. 199
Series History: Tech leads 80-62 (Baylor leads 38-29 in Waco)
POLLS: Texas Tech is up six spots to No. 19 in the Associated Press Top 25 after four straight weeks at No. 25. Along with Baylor and Tech, the Big 12 is represented by Kansas which fell back to No. 9 after its loss to TTU, No. 15 Iowa State and No. 22 Texas. No. 2 Gonzaga, No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 Auburn and No. 5 Southern Cal round out the top-5 while Houston is up a spot to No. 11. Oklahoma and West Virginia continue to receive votes but are just outside the Top 25 in the Week 10 poll. Tech's ranking at No. 19 makes it five straight weeks in the poll after first entering on December 13 following a win over then-No. 13 Tennessee in the Jimmy V Classic.
TECH VS. RANKED OPPONENTS
Tech is now 2-2 against ranked opponents this season after knocking off No. 6 Kansas and a 57-52 overtime win over then-No. 13 Tennessee at the Jimmy V Classic. The losses came at No. 11 Iowa State to open Big 12 play after a 69-55 loss to No. 5 Gonzaga in the Jerry Colangelo Classic. As a program, Tech is 63-217 all-time against ranked opponents after going 16-24 in the previous five seasons. The Red Raiders were 3-8 in the 2020-21 season against ranked teams with two wins over Texas (No. 4 and No. 14) and a home win over Oklahoma which was at No. 9.
RED RAIDERS vs. TOP-10 OPPONENTS
Tech has now beat a top-10 opponent in eight straight seasons and has 26 wins over top-10 teams in program history. The Red Raiders have 12 wins over top-10 teams since the 2015 season. Tech comes into the matchup 1-7 all-time against No. 1-ranked opponents with a 70-57 win over Louisville on Dec. 10, 2019 in the Jimmy V Classic being the only win. The program went 2-4 against top-10 opponents last season with a 79-77 road win over Texas in Austin on Jan. 13, 2021 before knocking off No. 9 Oklahoma with a 57-52 win in Lubbock on Feb. 1, 2021. The Red Raiders dropped their conference opener last season to No. 5 Kansas at home and fell twice to Baylor before No. 10 Arkansas topped them in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
BAYLOR BEARS REPORT
The Bears come into their 16th game of the season with four players averaging in double figures and the team at 82.8 points per game on offense and limiting opponents to 59.6 points per game. James Akinjo leads Baylor with 14.4 points per game, 92 assists and 33 steals. A transfer from Arizona, Akinjo is averaging 21.0 points through three Big 12 games after going for 20 points and eight assists in the win over TCU. Adam Flager led Baylor against the Horned Frogs with 22 points and three steals, while LJ Cryer gave Baylor 15 points off the bench in the win. Flager went 6-for-10 on 3-pointers in the game against TCU and Cryer hit four 3-pointers. BU was 13-for-27 from beyond the arc. Cryer is now averaging 13.0 points per game, while Flager is at 12.3 and Kendall Brown is scoring 11.4 per game. Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua leads Baylor with 7.6 rebounds per game as a reserve, while Flo Thamba leads the team with 16 blocks and is also at 5.3 points and 4.5 rebounds through 15 starts this season.
Baylor is on a 21-game winning streak that dates back to last season where it won the 2021 National Championship. The Bears are led by Scott Drew who is in his 19th season leading the program.
