It may have been one that everyone ended up sweating out down the stretch, but the Red Raiders got it done. A few thoughts...
*This team's poise, chemistry, mental makeup, whatever you want to call it continues to impress me about as much as anything else does about them. They came out of the gates scorching in this one while Texas was ice cold, building a 14 point lead and looking like they might steamroll the Horns. Texas got an all-world performance out of one player that got them back in this game while Tech hit a lull, and it looked like the Red Raiders might be lining up a major choke job. But like they always do, whether up or down, this Tech team never waivers. They're steady as a rock, and despite UT cutting it to one, this group of players took it in stride, calmly handled it, and then extended the lead back out to 7 patiently in the final minutes to ultimately seal the deal. This group has ice in their veins, and it paid off tonight.
*The Horns may have lost, but Jacob Young has no reason to hang his head. That young man played his absolute tail off and single-handledly willed that team back into this game while the rest of his teammates looked flat and disinterested at times. He gets a gold star for being an absolute assassin from three in this game.
*On the Tech side of it, however: After starting off the game playing mostly great defense, I thought the Red Raiders gave Young waaaaaay too many open looks. This had been a bit of a problem the last few weeks, and it reared its head again tonight for a stretch. Zach Smith and Brandone Francis both left Young open when he knocked down major momentum threes. This has got to tighten up.
*Back to the positives: This Red Raider team out-hustled Texas tonight, flat out. They played harder for the majority of the game, and it showed on the boards. Texas is much bigger than Tech, yet the Red Raiders out-rebounded the Horns 37-28 and won both the offensive and defensive rebounding margins by 3 and 6 respectively. Texas should be embarrassed by that. Tech should be damn proud.
*I thought that, very similarly to the Iowa State game on Wednesday night, that Texas looked completely disinterested and unmotivated throughout the first half of this contest. Just no energy at all. And then, just like the Iowa State game, it's like they go into "Oh crap!" mode in the second half where they flip a switch and play like an entirely different team. Shaka Smart has failed to consistently motivate what I still believe is the second most talented roster in the Big 12, and he may lose his job over it if they don't get in to the Tourney on Sunday.
*And speaking of that roster, I think that Texas is the hands-down hardest matchup in the Big 12 for Tech. Their length inside makes it tough for the Red Raiders, yet they won two of the three games against the Horns this season. Those are two wins this group should be very happy with. It's their hardest draw physically.
*Tech getting Keenan Evans open on curl screens to the basket off-ball three times in the second half was a lot of fun. If they can find him down low more often, I think it opens up more for this offense and creates more problems for opposing defenses. It makes Evans more versatile. Obviously, defenders have to get lost trailing him more often, but I think that's probably been there more often than what Tech's converted on this year.
*And Keenan was fantastic once again. He looked more like himself tonight than he has in any game since the Oklahoma game. The interesting thing now is what he'll look like on just 24 hours of rest instead of five days. This will be the true test to see how good his toe is.
*I thought that, while they stagnated a bit against the UT zone at times -as they usually do - this was one of the better nights for the motion offense as a whole this season. Tech had six players with at least eight points, which is a major recipe for success. That tells me this team did a good job of finding open men and taking advantage tonight. Against Texas, you're going to have to hit some open looks with their size when they go to zone, because at times you flat out won't be able to drive it on them. Tonight Tech hit shots from three and even found a couple of mid-range jumpers. They need to continue to do that for this motion to continue to thrive in the postseason.
*Jarrett Culver is so much fun to watch when you can visibly see him get hot on the court. He hits one tough shot and then is likely to hit two or three more in the matter of a minute or two. He did exactly that tonight, as he had 7 points and 6 rebounds in a matter of less than three minutes to start this game. He slowed down after that, but his burst out of the gate is what really jumpstarted the early lead for Tech. Culver flashes big time when he does flash. If he can continue to build on consistency, he's going to be special, maybe even in this postseason.
*The point to me where Tech really took momentum back in this game? When Zhaire Smith got the Lebron-esque block off the glass, or as Tech likes to call it, a "Tuttle." That play sparked the Red Raiders late to stem the tide and expand their lead back out to seven. And you know what? It all really happened because Zhaire Smith was fantastic above the rim in the final three minutes of this game. Without his late block, dunk, and a tip in, I don't think Tech wins this game.
*This team gets a West Virginia group that poured it on Baylor tonight in tomorrow's semifinal game. I feel good about Tech's chances, though. For one, I think these teams match up similarly when both are healthy, and I even probably think Tech is a hair better. Two, this Tech team seems like they're super lasered in here. They were against the Longhorns out of the gates for sure, and they never late UT take a lead in that game. I'll have more thoughts on the WVU game tomorrow, but for now, I feel good about it.
*This team's poise, chemistry, mental makeup, whatever you want to call it continues to impress me about as much as anything else does about them. They came out of the gates scorching in this one while Texas was ice cold, building a 14 point lead and looking like they might steamroll the Horns. Texas got an all-world performance out of one player that got them back in this game while Tech hit a lull, and it looked like the Red Raiders might be lining up a major choke job. But like they always do, whether up or down, this Tech team never waivers. They're steady as a rock, and despite UT cutting it to one, this group of players took it in stride, calmly handled it, and then extended the lead back out to 7 patiently in the final minutes to ultimately seal the deal. This group has ice in their veins, and it paid off tonight.
*The Horns may have lost, but Jacob Young has no reason to hang his head. That young man played his absolute tail off and single-handledly willed that team back into this game while the rest of his teammates looked flat and disinterested at times. He gets a gold star for being an absolute assassin from three in this game.
*On the Tech side of it, however: After starting off the game playing mostly great defense, I thought the Red Raiders gave Young waaaaaay too many open looks. This had been a bit of a problem the last few weeks, and it reared its head again tonight for a stretch. Zach Smith and Brandone Francis both left Young open when he knocked down major momentum threes. This has got to tighten up.
*Back to the positives: This Red Raider team out-hustled Texas tonight, flat out. They played harder for the majority of the game, and it showed on the boards. Texas is much bigger than Tech, yet the Red Raiders out-rebounded the Horns 37-28 and won both the offensive and defensive rebounding margins by 3 and 6 respectively. Texas should be embarrassed by that. Tech should be damn proud.
*I thought that, very similarly to the Iowa State game on Wednesday night, that Texas looked completely disinterested and unmotivated throughout the first half of this contest. Just no energy at all. And then, just like the Iowa State game, it's like they go into "Oh crap!" mode in the second half where they flip a switch and play like an entirely different team. Shaka Smart has failed to consistently motivate what I still believe is the second most talented roster in the Big 12, and he may lose his job over it if they don't get in to the Tourney on Sunday.
*And speaking of that roster, I think that Texas is the hands-down hardest matchup in the Big 12 for Tech. Their length inside makes it tough for the Red Raiders, yet they won two of the three games against the Horns this season. Those are two wins this group should be very happy with. It's their hardest draw physically.
*Tech getting Keenan Evans open on curl screens to the basket off-ball three times in the second half was a lot of fun. If they can find him down low more often, I think it opens up more for this offense and creates more problems for opposing defenses. It makes Evans more versatile. Obviously, defenders have to get lost trailing him more often, but I think that's probably been there more often than what Tech's converted on this year.
*And Keenan was fantastic once again. He looked more like himself tonight than he has in any game since the Oklahoma game. The interesting thing now is what he'll look like on just 24 hours of rest instead of five days. This will be the true test to see how good his toe is.
*I thought that, while they stagnated a bit against the UT zone at times -as they usually do - this was one of the better nights for the motion offense as a whole this season. Tech had six players with at least eight points, which is a major recipe for success. That tells me this team did a good job of finding open men and taking advantage tonight. Against Texas, you're going to have to hit some open looks with their size when they go to zone, because at times you flat out won't be able to drive it on them. Tonight Tech hit shots from three and even found a couple of mid-range jumpers. They need to continue to do that for this motion to continue to thrive in the postseason.
*Jarrett Culver is so much fun to watch when you can visibly see him get hot on the court. He hits one tough shot and then is likely to hit two or three more in the matter of a minute or two. He did exactly that tonight, as he had 7 points and 6 rebounds in a matter of less than three minutes to start this game. He slowed down after that, but his burst out of the gate is what really jumpstarted the early lead for Tech. Culver flashes big time when he does flash. If he can continue to build on consistency, he's going to be special, maybe even in this postseason.
*The point to me where Tech really took momentum back in this game? When Zhaire Smith got the Lebron-esque block off the glass, or as Tech likes to call it, a "Tuttle." That play sparked the Red Raiders late to stem the tide and expand their lead back out to seven. And you know what? It all really happened because Zhaire Smith was fantastic above the rim in the final three minutes of this game. Without his late block, dunk, and a tip in, I don't think Tech wins this game.
*This team gets a West Virginia group that poured it on Baylor tonight in tomorrow's semifinal game. I feel good about Tech's chances, though. For one, I think these teams match up similarly when both are healthy, and I even probably think Tech is a hair better. Two, this Tech team seems like they're super lasered in here. They were against the Longhorns out of the gates for sure, and they never late UT take a lead in that game. I'll have more thoughts on the WVU game tomorrow, but for now, I feel good about it.
