SBNation.com User Blog: DanSwany

Off-Season Position Breakdown Basketball - Frontcourt

DanSwany — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 17:53:47 -0000

POSITION BREAKDOWN FOR TEXAS TECH FRONTCOURT

3 guard – Small Forward | I consider the 3 spot on the court to be more of a function of the backcourt in college basketball even though technically it is part of the frontcourt. I already wrote about this position in my post last week. Click here if you missed it… POSITION BREAKDOWN FOR TEXAS TECH BACKCOURT.

4 – Power Forward | Tubby Smith has nothing to worry about for this position next season. The strongest and best players on our team play this position incredibly well… Jaye Crockett and Jordan Tolbert. I wrote last week about how Crockett has finally earned the right to be considered a cornerman. He should be allowed to split some minutes playing at the 3 and 4 positions. But, I have to say I like Crockett more at 4 than at the 3. If you have watched him blossom from his freshman year, you can appreciate how much his game has developed over the years. He always had the athleticism and strength to hoop it up in the paint, but has really expanded much of his game. Crockett has developed his ball handling and can successfully drive to the rim from outside-in. He has upgraded his shot from being only a scorer from in-close to the basket. He now is pulling defenders out on him because he can hit his mid-range shots and even is an outside threat if left open. His passing has become more efficient as he has a lot of experience and can anticipate where and who the ball should go to. There is a reason he was 1st in scoring and rebounding on the team last season, because he is an incredible player at the 4 postion.

Jordan Tolbert is a beast himself at the 4, as that is where he started primarily during last season. Though after a few minutes into the game Tolbert would almost always slide into the 5 and Crockett would come off the bench to 4. Our team was the strongest for the past two seasons when Tolbert and Crockett were in the game together. The problem at the 4 last season was when Crockett and Tolbert both needed a break or were in foul trouble. We usually had to look to Clark Lammert to fill in during these times. Love the guy and hate to say, but Lammert isn’t the quality player that will make us competitive during Big 12 games, especially at the 4.

No worries now with the depth at 4, as we have a healthy Aaron Ross to step in and help out. It’s just my expectations, but I think (or maybe want really badly) Ross will step in and be the aggressive down low frontcourt player we have been missing. A guy that can bulldoze opponents down low and get ugly buckets and rebounds. Seth made me think with a question in the comments last week about Ross having guard skills for a big guy... I think without watching him play in a Texas Tech uniform he still might be better suited for the 4 spot on the floor with the size he brings. I may be wrong and he might not be the bruiser down low that I envision and be more of a cornerman that moves between the 3 and 4 spots on the floor. Nevertheless he will add depth to the 4 position, and maybe even turn out to be the missing link our team needs to strengthen the frontcourt.

Our depth at 4 just gets even deeper with the addition of Alex Foster. This is a nice grab by Tubby who got Foster to follow him from Minnesota to Tech. While Foster is probably not going to get a lot of time at the 4 with Crockett, Tolbert, and Ross in front of him… he is going to learn a lot from the leadership of these guys. He has been talked about as playing a stretch-4 (cornerman) role, but that should come in time when he develops his outside game much as Crockett has over the years. If we get into foul trouble or somebody needs a breather, Foster can step in and show his stuff. Heck, he may even make a case for himself to get more minutes in the games.

5 - Center |The 5 spot on the court is a debate that many of us close to college basketball like to stir up all the time. Do you use a classic big man center… or do you put in a smaller more athletic guy who has strength to play 5 but doesn’t fit your typical classic center size range? I have an old school mindset on this and would love a huge seven-foot classic center that has some skills that can be worked with and developed over time at the 5 instead of a smaller athletic guy. But, you have to put the best out on the court and work with what you got. Most college teams now play three guards and two forwards with no true center listed in the starting lineup. Tubby Smith is a really good coach, and will be smart in preparing his lineups to adjust to what we are playing against if someone is mismatched against a player. It is going to be interesting with what he does with the 5 spot.

Jordan Tolbert is the best 5 man we have on this team hands down. While Dejan Kravic started most games at the 5, he seemed to lack the strength needed to play down low with the Big 12 guys that played against him at the 5. Tolbert would always slide to 5 and Kravic would usually go out of the game a few minutes into it. Tolbert is comfortable down low and has the power to be effective. He doesn’t have a good mid-range to outside game, but excels down low in the post around the basket. Tolbert had a slow start to the season last year with it being rough on him having his father pass away, but as the season went on he found his game and became the aggressive post getting to the rim like his freshman year.

Kravic has a nice shot on him, and can even handle the ball quite well for such a big guy… but I don’t think he is extremely effective at the 5 all the time. He is fairly inconsistent on defense, but he does well usually on the offense side of the ball.

Kader Tapsoba is the big guy at the 5 that gets a few minutes in games. I actually thought last season Chris Walker should have used Tapsoba more than he did, but there must have been a reason he didn’t. Tapsoba wasn’t an offensive powerhouse, but he seemed to be fairly good and getting some boards and played descent most of the time on defense. When Tolbert got into foul trouble last season we relied on Tapsoba and Kravic to get it done down low at the 5.

As I wrote above, it will be interesting to see who we have at 5 especially when Tolbert can’t be in the game. I’m assuming with a strong group of 4’s maybe Tubby might think about putting in one of those guys at the 5 if needed.

Off-Season Position Breakdown Basketball - Backcourt

DanSwany — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 19:05:23 -0000

POSITION BREAKDOWN FOR TEXAS TECH BACKCOURT

1 Guard - Point Guard| The loss of Josh Gray hurts the backcourt tremendously. While Gray had his troubles with turnovers and ball-hogging at times, all he had to do was work on his mid-range and downtown shot to really get better as a player. Maturity and experience would have helped him cut down on turnovers and ball-hogging. He was 3rd on the team in scoring, 1st on the team in assists, 1st on the team in steals, and he averaged the most minutes played per game on the team (I know he was 1st in turnovers as well). He did all that as a wet behind the ears freshman. I believe he was going to be a top PG in the Big 12 in the next 2 years. It is a big blow to lose a player of his caliber as floor general of the squad.

I’m not extremely confident in the idea of Daylen Robinson running the team at the 1-position. Robinson didn’t look to have been much of a factor when playing in games last year. I do have high hopes that Robert Turner can be the key guy this upcoming season at PG. Turner might not have the offensive upside that Gray possessed, but he was supposedly a good defensive player and had a pass-first mentality at New Mexico Junior College. He might be the guy needed to run this team coming over half-court with the ball in his hands. Also, maybe Cory Scott could add some depth to this position. He seems amazingly athletic (high jumping) and might get some minutes in games to prove himself into the mix. Adams… love the guy but hate to say, Luke Adams doesn’t have what it takes to cut it at PG if we are going to be competitive in Big 12 games. The point guard slot is going to be a major position battle to stay focused on during the pre-season. The spot is up for grabs to whoever wants to take it and proves they’re ready to Tubby Smith early in camp.

2 Guard - Shooting Guard| I’m concerned at the lack of depth at the SG position. Tubby has a difficult challenge to figure out how to play our guards in the backcourt positions. Dusty Hannahs is a fan favorite. He can bomb the three from just about anywhere on the court. He is a step slower than the other guy some of the time, but when he gets enough room he can nail the shot. I’m glad he got to start for the last half of the season and get some experience after Trency Jackson transferred schools. Hannahs is going to need that experience to show this next season to create space between himself and the defender on offense, work on his drive to the basket, and work on his defense. I think he can be a great 2-guard with some hard work practicing on things. The coaches should be able to polish him up and make him a damn fine SG by his junior or senior year with that sweet shot of his.

Then we have Toddrick Gotcher, Cory Scott, and Jamal Williams that can be back-ups at the SG position. Gotcher did not do bad when put in the games last year, but I see him as more of a secondary role player that comes off the bench and can give a spark to the game when needed. Cory Scott might get a chance to prove himself as getting a lot of minutes at the SG spot, but I think Hannahs has the spot locked up for starter right now. Jamal Williams can help out if needed, but I really like him at the 3-guard spot not as a 2-guard.

3 Guard - Small Forward|Technically the 3 position is part of the frontcourt, but I like to count it as part of the backcourt in college basketball. Most 3-men are considered 3-guards and line up outside or on the three point line when coming down the court on offense.

Jamal Williams did a nice job last season at this position. Williams seems to be the only classic swingman on the team. A swingman is a player that can play the 2 or 3 guard position. He consistently did his job, and was usually the guard called on by coaches to play on the defensive side against the opponent’s best swingman. While offensively he seemed to be hot and cold with his shot from inside and outside, he could drive the ball to the rim when needed. Gotcher is built like a swingman, but he seems to lack some of the skills to play the 3 position and is a better fit at the 2. When we go with a three guard lineup Williams should definitely be at the 3-guard position. Gotcher should be able to fill in backup at the 3-guard if we have a 3 guard lineup in.

Switching gears for a moment, I’m excited to say that I finally think Jaye Crockett is ready to be a cornerman. A cornerman can play the 3 or 4 position on the floor, and good cornermen are truly hard to come by. I have argued with others over the past few seasons that Crockett is way better at the 4 position and not ready to be a 3. This was because he lacked the ball handling skills, passing, and downtown shot that it takes to play at the 3. Now going into his senior year he should be great as a cornerman as he has learned the skills needed to play the position. I would assume Tubby will play him more at the 4, but I think he has made a case over last season he can be at the 3-postion if we want to go for a big lineup against other teams. Crockett only attempted 23 downtown shots in his first two seasons playing, last year he attempted 70. Versatility and athleticism along with an outside shot, the ability to finish at the rim, and size is what it takes to be a cornerman. Jaye Crockett is that guy. Alex Foster is another that is talked about as being a stretch-four (cornerman), but I just don’t see him as developed enough yet at his outside game (ball handling) or having a three-point shot. As Tubby and the coaches help Foster develop, I think he will be a lot like Crockett and can be ready to be a very valuable cornerman in the future for our team.

High Expectations for Red Raiders Basketball

DanSwany — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 06:07:32 -0000

I wanted Chris Walker to be named head coach of Texas Tech. I had hope he could bring our program up, with him getting Keith Frazier, Wannah Bail, keeping Josh Gray, Jaye Crockett, Aaron Ross, and Jordan Tolbert. I saw a good thing happening, and something that was growing here at Tech. I had hope that we would keep building and be the next team in the Big 12 to show we could keep growing from the depths of the cellar to be an elite team in the Big 12. We had a coach that I would back and could keep seeing the positive to strengthen the program. I had hope.

Tubby Smith was named head coach. He comes with a long distinguished background as a head coach in college basketball. Starting his head coaching career at the University of Tulsa in the 1991-1992 season where he stayed at Tulsa four seasons. Smith had a 79-43 overall record as the Tulsa coach, and led the Hurricane to the Sweet 16 twice. He then accepted the head coaching position at the University of Georgia. At Georgia he had a 45-19 overall record (19-13 in SEC) in two seasons, and made the NCAA tournament both seasons. He made the switch the University of Kentucky when Rick Pitino left UK for the NBA. With most of Pitino’s team left on the roster in his first year at UK he won a national championship with the Wildcats. He stayed ten seasons at UK finishing with an overall record of 263-83 (120-40 in SEC) and made the NCAA tournament every season with a couple trips to the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight. Smith resigned from UK to accept the Minnesota job. After six seasons at Minnesota he finished with an overall record of 124-81 (46-62 in Big Ten). He took the Gophers to the NCAA tournament in three of those six seasons. Tubby Smith is now the head coach of Texas Tech.

I now don’t have hope but I have high expectations. I have high expectations for Tubby Smith and our basketball program. He wasn’t brought in to rebuild slow, he needs to rebuild fast. I will not accept a few years to get a few wins in the conference, I want a lot of wins to happen now. With the money we are paying, I’m going to be critical if we don’t see results fast. Tubby has a great basketball background, and we should see sharp changes right away. A young coach had the leniency of figuring out the team and building it as he built the program, Tubby won’t get my sympathy if he doesn’t get the program on track right away.

Tubby Smith comes as a safe hire. And that safe hire comes with high expectations. I will keep giving weekly trends of this Red Raiders team each and every week we play, but I will expect Tubby to show the squad the way to do it better. Wins puts the butts in the seats, wins makes fans happy, and Tubby doesn’t have the luxury of time for me to feel sorry if this doesn’t happen. I will expect it. Sorry if I am being too judgmental, but I expect our hire to live up to its end of the deal. A great coach should do great things. This isn’t Kentucky, this isn’t Minnesota, this is Texas Tech… and we want the best for our basketball program. Please show us the way Tubby, and make Texas Tech basketball relevant. I want Texas Tech basketball to be the best it can be under a national championship coach. Welcome to Tech Tubby Smith, and get your guns up. Wreck ‘em Tech!

Poll | Red Raiders Next Basketball Coach

DanSwany — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 15:52:59 -0000

Just for curiosity, here is a poll for all the fans to see who you would like as our next head coach for the men’s basketball team at Texas Tech. If you vote for “OTHER” please feel free to name who you would want in the comments section. Let your voice be heard!

Poll

Who is your vote for the next MBB coach at Tech?

Chris Walker

275 votes

Tubby Smith

66 votes

Donnie Tyndall

25 votes

Other

29 votes

395 votes | Poll has closed

Chris Walker | Just do it already!

DanSwany — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:17:58 -0000

I have always been one to want Chris Walker hired as our head coach at Texas Tech since midway through our season. He has what it takes to coach the players. It seems as though the Tech players respond to his ways of coaching. When Billy Gillispie resigned from Tech the program was left in a hot mess. Walker took the situation on his shoulders and gave the team legs to stand on. He helped guide the squad to be positive and keep practicing hard. He made their future bright again.

He has now had one full season as interim head coach in the Big 12 under his belt to go along with his 17 seasons of experience as an assistant at Tech, Loyola Marymount, Vanderbilt, Pepperdine, Villanova, UMass, and New Mexico. I think he has had enough time and been around enough basketball programs to figure out the intricacies that a basketball head coach faces while running a program.

He was a terrific point guard at Villanova and helped lead his team to the NCAA tournament twice. He also helped lead Nova to the NIT twice. He knows a thing or two firsthand as a player about postseason tournaments. He can relate to the difficult situations that D-1 basketball individual players encounter in their college career. He can continue to keep helping them throughout the entire process.

We have all heard a lot of names come through the media recently since the end of the Big 12 tournament in regards to the head coaching position at Texas Tech. We know that Tech has fired most all the basketball coaching staff with exception to Chris Walker. It seems that everyone is perplexed by the events that have taken place, because why would we retain Coach Walker if we weren’t going to hire him? Most of the names that have been mentioned by the media have come back and basically nicely said that they were not interested in the job. I’m sure the wheels have been turning behind the scenes of the program to keep this interview process alive, but why keep moving them if you can stop it already?

I know that Tech is in the running and media news broke that 5-star shooting guard recruit Keith Frazier had verbally committed to Tech. Today there are reports that he will delay his decision until after the McDonald’s All-American game. Regardless of his decision, what we had been hearing all along is that Frazier would not come to Tech unless Walker is named head coach. It is speculated that Frazier’s coach at Kimball High School (Dallas), Royce “Snoop” Johnson, will accompany Frazier to Tech and be placed as part of the assistant coaching staff if Walker is named head coach. There has been some discussion amongst Tech fans that Snoop Johnson has a somewhat dirty past… check it out. The other question that arises is should we take a high school coach to get a 5-star recruit as part of a “package” deal?

I’ve thought about for a while and I can say that I’m okay with it. I will take a “package” deal to get Keith Frazier. Other much more prominent D-1 basketball schools have done similar things in the past and it seems to have turned out fine for them. Is it no coincidence that Larry Brown, the SMU head coach and the other school in the running to get Keith Frazier is around this whole thing? Remember, Brown is the one when coaching at Kansas who hired Danny Manning’s father to be an assistant coach to get Manning on his squad back in the day. I have no evidence, but I would bet a million VTM bucks Brown and SMU have told Snoop Johnson and Keith Frazier that they would love to have them in a “package” deal. So, is it wrong for us to do it if SMU is probably going to do the same damn thing? No, it’s not in my opinion.

Back to my main point, with or without Keith Frazier… or even Wannah Bail in the picture for Texas Tech basketball hoops I think Chris Walker is the right man for the job. Why don’t we just go ahead and hire him already? Is Tech trying to save face and not let it seem like one recruit can control the outcome of the situation? Is it the AD or someone in the administration at Tech holding up the process? I really don’t care about all the crap going on, I just want Chris Walker to be named the head basketball coach so we can all move forward and start preparing for next season. Walker wants the job, he is the best man for the job, he seems to be the only one interested in the job, and everyone knows that he will most likely get the job. I wish it would happen already!

Texas Tech Red Raiders Basketball Trending - End of the Season

DanSwany — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 12:15:51 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Frontcourt | The frontcourt of our team this season had one key ingredient missing, a dedicated 5 position down low. I think that Jordan Tolbert is a great post player. He sometimes showed flashes near the end of the season with some more aggressive play, but we are in need of a guy that can play smash mouth offense and defense all game long at the 5. Tolbert would play the 4 and 5 position depending on who was in the game. He was a 5 with Jaye Crockett at the 4 position in the game, and that is when we played our best ball. Dejan Kravic would usually start the games at 5 and Tolbert would start at 4. Kravic is not a typical Big 12 5-man. The team really needs to find a dedicated 5 position to solidify the overall frontcourt and give it some depth on the court and on the bench. I thought that our rebounding was not that good down low in the post, overall rebounding per game we were #9 in the Big 12 & #279 in the country. But, when we did well in the frontcourt and had lots of points in the paint our games were much tighter with the opponent down the stretch. I was disappointed that Kader Tapsoba saw such few minutes throughout the season. He never developed into the player I thought he could be, because he was in my mind the type of player that could really help at the 5 position. Jaye Crockett rocked at the 4 position, and that is where he is most comfortable. It was very encouraging to see him extend his game beyond the three point arc as he was hitting a lot more threes than the previous season. Aaron Ross would have really helped our frontcourt depth, since we essentially had no chance in the game when Tolbert, Kravic, and Crockett got into foul trouble. Also, Ross might be that key ingredient we need to play smash mouth ball at the 5.

Backcourt | At the beginning of this season I had very high expectations for our backcourt. I was disappointed that we didn’t play at the level that I had thought we would with our guards. Josh Gray made freshman mistakes over the course of the season, but did a really nice job at running the point as he matured. He needs to work on his mid-range jumper, along with his outside shot and he will be a star in the Big 12. Dusty Hannahs was a great downtown threat, but had trouble putting the ball on the floor and getting to the rim. Trency Jackson had mad defensive skills and some freakish good ability to get to the hole, but he transferred in the middle of the season because of academic issues. I like Jamal Williams, and thought he did a fine job as a starter to try and get his job done but he is not ever going to be an all Big-12 team pick. Our starting lineup at guard at the end of the season was the best we had, but I was frustrated at the lack of athleticism that I had expected from the beginning. It was very hard for our guards (besides Gray) to handle the ball and set anything up on offense by penetrating the defense. All the backcourt that was on the bench tried to help out when they were brought into the games, but nobody dazzled to stick out and be a great back-up at the 1, 2, or 3 guard position. Our three-point shot was pathetic… shooting the worst in the Big 12, and almost the worst in the nation ( #333 at 28.8%). I hope we pick up some valuable guards this offseason, and work on our outside shot.

Offense | We worked with what we had. Coach Walker saw that the run and gun offensive style wasn’t going to work as our offensive strategy as we got closer to Big 12 play. We didn’t have superior athletes compared to anybody in the Big 12. Walker was smart in implementing the one thing that throws more athletic and talented teams off their game, slow the ball down and control the tempo of the game. It was a strategy that worked better than letting teams have three times the opportunities to score off our missed shots or turnovers. We finished second to last in the Big 12 in points per game, and #233 in the country at 65.4 ppg. Our assist to turnover ratio was tied for last place in the Big 12 at 0.75, and we were #308 in the nation. Our offense needs some major work done this offseason.

Defense | I again had high hopes for the full-court press defense that gets teams rattled and gets our offense flying high off grabbing turnovers from the opponents. Coach Walker figured out this team, and realized he didn’t have the right personnel on our team to run the press defense correctly. When we tried the other teams seemed to easily break our efforts and get easy buckets. I did like the man-to-man D he ended up throwing out on the floor all game long. Our guys were playing up in your face defense and tried mightily against everybody they faced. We always moved our feet, and tried to get the better position. You can coach players that have heart, and our guys always played as hard as they could. It was just frustrating to see our guys get crushed on the court going up against more gifted talent basketball-wise. We did finish the season ranked #1 in the Big 12 in steals per game (#40 in the nation) at 8.2 spg. We were feisty and always had our hands up. Our defense might not have been the stifling press defense that I had hoped for that is exciting to watch, but we did do the best we could on the defensive side of the ball with the roster we had playing.

Season Record | We finished 11-20, that is trending up from last season. The only out of conference loss that I was really angry at was McNeese State. Going 3-15 for the regular season Big 12 is better than last year, and getting a win in the Big 12 tournament was a definite plus. We now know that we are not in the basement as the worst team in the Big 12 (thanks to TCU joining the conference), and we knocked off a really great Iowa State team that almost made the Sweet Sixteen this week (I think they got screwed on the call in the NCAA tournament game against Ohio State, just like in the Kansas game in the regular season). The heartbreakers this season were the missed three by Gray to win the game in West Virginia, and the OT loss to UT in Lubbock. Only one shot differently in both those games would have made us 5-13 for the Big 12 season. We won a Big 12 conference tournament game for the first time in a few seasons. Overall we are a better team than we were last season, and that translated to a few more wins this year. I do think we have much room for improvement, and I think that we could do that with gaining a few key recruits like Keith Frazier (who will announce his decision on Thursday), and Wannah Bail. I know everyone is worrying about who will be head coach next season. I have always thought Chris Walker was and is the right man for the job and I still do. He improved the team this season and will do so next year once he is named head basketball coach and signs the contract that Texas Tech needs to give him. Wreck ‘em Tech!

Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament - Championship

DanSwany — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 14:10:49 -0000

Preview & Prediction – Big 12 Basketball Tournament Championship

#1 Kansas (28-5) VS. #2 Kansas State (27-6) | - (Saturday, March 16th at 5pm)

The first time this season that Kansas played K-State they only came away with a 4 point win 59-55. Nobody on KU was overly impressive with Jeff Withey being the best on the team to finish with a double-double (11p/10r). Ben McLemore added 11 points and Travis Releford added 12, but it was a hard fought battle for Kansas to come out on top. K-State star Rodney McGruder was only 4-12 from the field and had 13 points trying to claw back in the game the whole time. Kansas took the lead and each time K-State went for the lead KU used their defense to stop them.

The next meeting against the two in-state rivals didn’t go the same as the first. Kansas whipped K-State 83-62 despite McGruder dropping in 20 points for KSU. Angel Rodriguez tried to help K-State with adding 17 points himself, but the Wildcats were doomed this entire game. Withey of course had another double-double (17p/10r), but the superstar McLemore showed up for this one. He put on a show with 30 points on 9-13 from the field and grabbed 7 boards. I wouldn’t have thought the game would be so lopsided, but it was.

KU rocked Iowa State 88-73 in the semifinals, and K-State kept a lead all game and rolled Oklahoma State 68-57. These two teams are both hungry for the championship, but KSU might be hungrier. K-State wants revenge and to prove all the haters wrong about who is the best team in Kansas. It’s all about who holds the trophy in the end. K-State plays so well-disciplined basketball that I just love watching their games. Kansas has all 5 starters that are all-stars in college basketball, they are the more fun team to watch. K-State will need the help from more than just McGruder to get the win tonight. KSU must play the ballgame without many errors and just keep hammering away against the mighty Jayhawks. I am always for an upset, and I always like to see the underdog win the game. But, I just don’t think K-State has what it takes to win this game tonight. I actually hope they prove me wrong. It should be a battle and may the best team in the state of Kansas win. Predicted Winner: Kansas

Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament - Semifinals

DanSwany — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 11:45:19 -0000

Previews & Predictions – Big 12 Basketball Tournament Semifinals

#1 Kansas (27-5, 15-4 Big 12) VS. #5 Iowa State (22-10, 12-7 Big 12) | - (Friday, March 15th at 6:30pm)

Both times Iowa State (RPI #47) has played Kansas (RPI #6) this season the games have gone to overtime. In the first one freshman superstar Ben McLemore (16.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.0 apg, 1.1 spg) scored 33 points and BANKED a downtown shot with 1 second left in regulation to take the game to OT. KU finished off Iowa State 97-89 at the end of OT. All the Jayhawks starters scored in double figures. Jeff Withey (13.5 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 4.0 bpg) and Kevin Young (7.7 ppg, 6.6 rpg) each had 12 rebounds. The second game was in Ames, IA and was a controversial one with the Cyclones fans. Elijah Johnson had a fantastic game with 39 points, but he was sent to the line with 4.9 seconds left on a questionable blocking call against Iowa State. He made his 2 free throws and the game went to OT. Kansas finished off Iowa State 108-96 in OT. KU is by far the most complete team in the Big 12, and they have 5 starters that are all stars. I can’t wait to see them in the NCAA tournament, because I will be picking them to go all the way to the Final Four. They had a huge letdown against Baylor to end the season. But, yesterday without much effort Kansas creamed Tech 91-63 and McLemore had 24 points (4 three-pointers).

Iowa State had all five starters score in double figures in their first loss to KU. Melvin Ejim (11.0 ppg, 9.4 rpg) had a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds. In the second loss Korie Lucious (10.1 ppg, 5.7 apg) and Tyrus McGee (13.3 ppg, 3.5 rpg) both had good nights with 23 and 22 points, respectively. Iowa State held McLemore to only 7 points in game #2. The two losses to KU doesn’t take away the fact that the Cyclones are a very good team. Yesterday they were down against Oklahoma and had a spark in the second half to come back and win the game 73-66. Ejim had 23 points and 12 rebounds.

After suffering 2 heartbreakers in OT my heart wants to tell me that Iowa State will be ready to get revenge on Kansas. ISU is a three point shooting team that can light anybody up, and pull ahead early in the game today. They have five guys on their team that average double figures in points per game. They have a coach that wants the win against KU so bad that he can taste it. But, I still believe Kansas is the best team in the Big 12 and the better team in this match-up. The game today could go down to the buzzer at the end of regulation like it has all season. I have to go with KU in this game, but I’d be happy to be wrong and see an Iowa State victory. Predicted Winner: Kansas

#2 Kansas State (26-6, 15-4 Big 12) VS. #3 Oklahoma State (24-7, 14-5 Big 12) | - (Friday, March 15th at 9pm)

Another great matchup here. Kansas State (RPI #21) has what it takes to win games. The right players, the right coaching, and the right attitude. The first time this season that K-State played Oklahoma State the wildcats won in a hard fought 73-67 victory. Rodney McGruder (15.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg) is their senior leader and star of the team and he had 28 points to help hold off OSU. The second game was lost by the Wildcats 76-70, but McGruder still dropped in 22 points. K-State rides the back of their senior leader and they feed off of him. He had 24 points yesterday in the 66-49 win over UT. I think K-State plays so well together and has some of the greatest chemistry together when on the court. They are going to be a hard team to beat in the NCAA tournament.

Oklahoma State (RPI #22) had frosh superstar Marcus Smart (15.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 4.3 apg, 2.9 spg) hit for 25 points in their loss to K-State. In the second game Smart had 21 points, but Le’Bryan Nash (14.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg) hit for 24 to help lead the Cowboys to victory. Yesterday OSU almost gave away a game that they had a huge lead in. Smart dropped 21 points, and the rest of his team helped out with four others finishing in double figures. But, OSU held on for the win over Baylor 74-72. Oklahoma State is so fun to watch because they are so hot and cold during games. When they are hot, they are on fire. OSU is a team that is so extremely dangerous with all their talented players. The NCAA tournament fans are going to love getting to watch OSU do their thing in the Big Dance and jump on the Cowboy bandwagon from get-go.

So, the games against these two are always close and they both split wins during the regular season. I again want to say that K-State will win this game with how well I have watched them play in their games. But, I am going to go with the more dynamic of the 2 teams and pick Oklahoma State to get the win. When I watch Oklahoma State they just have what it takes to be winners in a basketball tournament, let’s see if they can send off some fireworks in this one tonight. Predicted Winner: Oklahoma State

Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament - Quarterfinals

DanSwany — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:25:31 -0000

Previews & Predictions – Big 12 Basketball Tournament Quarterfinals

#1 Kansas (26-5, 14-4 Big 12) VS. #9 Texas Tech (11-19, 4-15 Big 12) | - (Thursday, March 14th at 2pm)

The victory over West Virginia was great for our guys and Chris Walker! Everything was fairly even matched, and we were lucky enough to capitalize on the last possession of the game. I felt that the game would be emotional for the players in terms of playing for Chris Walker, and it was. Here is what Dejan Kravic said after hitting the game winning shot, “I let out all my emotions in the locker room, I don't have any emotions left." Our guys had a big lead, lost it, and still finished out the game on top from battling. I’m proud of our squad and happy for them. Our three-pointers were amazing as we were 8-12 for 66.7% from behind the arc. All season in a lot of games we have died by the three, in the one last night we lived by the three for the first time and it felt great! I’m wondering what Kirby Hocutt thought about the game, and what chances were increased for Chris Walker to get the head coaching position in his mind? Anyways, conference tournament wins are short lived and we must get ready for the next one that’s rapidly approaching. Time to bring on Kansas, who doesn’t match up evenly with us at all.

When we first played Kansas it was in Lubbock and we lost 60-46. If you remember the game back in January then you will recall this is one of the first times that Chris Walker tried to implement the slow-down offense with this team. We had the run-and-gun philosophy in all the others leading up to it. A team like Kansas can be slowed but still will burn you when they can. Check out the stats in our favor; we hit 4 downtown shots compared to their 3, we outrebounded them 28-26, we had 11 assists to their 9. The ones that weren’t; turnovers 16 (TTU) to 9 (KU), and steals 3 (TTU) to 10 (KU). They whipped us inside on points in the paint 18-28. This game was decent to watch through the first half, but in the second you could see how much talent they had compared to us.

I have had nightmares about the last time we went to Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, KS and got a bomb dropped on us. KU won 79-42 as it was their senior night and they were putting on a show for their crowd. I remember watching and thinking that some of the alley-oops that they were jamming home were so entertaining that it was like I was watching the Harlem Globetrotters. No use for me to try and put up any stats, because I checked and we were beat in EVERY single statistical category besides bench points and fouls. We had 11 bench points to their 10, and we had 21 fouls to their 18.

In college basketball any team can win on any given day. I am all for hyping up our team and actually believing we can win most games. I do know we have a chance in this one because we have nothing to lose. It is the Big 12 tournament and anything can happen. If Texas Tech (RPI #213) is going to beat Kansas (RPI #6) there are multiple things that must happen. We need to stop Ben McLemore at the shooting guard position and Jeff Withey at the post. Kansas is so deep that we can’t forget that Elijah Johnson, Kevin Young, and Travis Releford are also guys that can go off and have huge nights too. Jaye Crockett was terrific last night against West Virginia in all aspects of his game, and all the posts need to play like he did. We need to have Dejan Kravic and Jordan Tolbert both have perfect games down low, no fouling out for any of them. Josh Gray really displayed his leadership last night and was crowned player of the game by the announcers of the Big 12 Network in the game. He needs to play even better today. Jamal Williams and Dusty Hannahs will have to hit most of their shots and be ready to fight on defense. If all that can happen we might be able to pull out the victory. I want to win very badly, but I know that I will probably see Kansas in the Final Four during the NCAA Tournament this year. Kansas had a three game losing streak this year, with a loss to TCU who we beat twice. They are coming off a bad loss to Baylor to end the season. I still think they are going to take this one from us unless we can play the perfect game. Predicted Winner: Kansas

#4 Oklahoma (20-10, 11-7 Big 12) VS. #5 Iowa State (21-10, 11-7 Big 12) | - (Thursday, March 14th at 11:30am)

This should be a damn good game. Oklahoma was a surprise in the Big 12 and has done exceptionally well with the help of Romero Osby (15.7 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 1.1 apg), Steven Pledger (12.0 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.5 apg), and Amath M’Baye (10.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg). The first game against Iowa State and the Sooners; OU was destroyed 64-83 and none of their top players scored more than 8 points. When they beat ISU all three scored in double figures. The point is that when the posts Osby and M’Baye are going strong, and guard Pledger gets hot from downtown Oklahoma is really hard to beat.

I love watching Iowa State play. They are exciting and are the #4 team in the nation in points per game. They have FIVE guys that average double figures in scoring. Their leaders are Will Clyburn (15.2 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 2.2 apg) and Melvin Ejim (10.6 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 1.3 apg). When ISU beat OU both guys had nice games with 31 points and 12 rebound combined. In the loss to OU they had 16 points and 7 rebounds combined. ISU is a complete team, and they need the whole team to contribute to win. When their 2 top players struggle the whole team struggles.

Iowa State (RPI #47) is the better team in my opinion, but Oklahoma (RPI #35) is very dangerous when they have their key players doing well. Both teams will most likely make the NCAA tournament and this game will be the deciding factor for how high of a seeding they can get. It will mean something to both teams, and they will both want it bad. I’m going to go with my gut and say Iowa State to me is the better team and will go farther in the NCAA tournament than OU. I like ISU in this game. Predicted Winner: Iowa State

#2 Kansas State (25-6, 14-4 Big 12) VS. #7 Texas (16-16, 8-11 Big 12) | - (Thursday, March 14th at 6pm)

Kansas State has been spectacular this year. They had slip-ups to ISU and OSU, but who wouldn’t. KU has gotten the better of K-State twice. I still am amazed how little love K-State gets in the media because they aren’t a fancy team with loads of talent. They just win games, and that’s it. Their star player is undoubtedly senior guard Rodney McGruder (15.1 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.3 spg). K-State is a team that is well-coached and knows how to play together against the other guys to get a victory.

Texas beat TCU last night 70-57, and Myck Kabongo had 16 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, and a steal. Against K-State last time he had 24 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists but UT still lost 81-69. UT is much better with Kabongo, but against a team like K-State it doesn’t matter. Sheldon McClellan (14.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg) better be ready to step up in this match-up.

I’m not going to be able to say it any nicer than this… UT doesn’t seems to play with great chemistry as a team and K-State has the formula figured out to play with great chemistry. I’d be surprised if UT even has a chance in this game. Anything can happen in college basketball, but I just don’t see this game going in favor of UT. The first game UT and K-State played this season was the Wildcats win 83-57, the second game was won by K-State 81-69. Maybe the gap will get closer, but I still think K-State runs away easily with tonight with the win. Predicted Winner: Kansas State

#3 Oklahoma State (23-7, 13-5 Big 12) VS. #6 Baylor (18-13, 9-9 Big 12) | - (Thursday, March 14th at 8:30pm)

If I had to pick my top match-up of the Big 12 tournament this is it! I get the feeling that whoever wins this game has a chance to sweep the rest of the opponents out the way and grab the Big 12 championship trophy. There’s so much on the line in this game, from OSU desire to get that high seed in the NCAA tourney to Baylor fighting for a chance to just make the Big Dance. Oklahoma State has the Big 12 picks for both player of the year and freshman of the year, the same dude was given both of the awards… Marcus Smart (15.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 4.3 apg, 3.0 spg). He is a hell of a basketball guard and will be lighting it up in the NBA soon after helping OSU make a strong run in the NCAA tournament. OSU also has some other great talent in Markel Brown (15.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1.0 spg), Le’Bryan Nash (14.2 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.8 apg), and freshman 3-point shooting sensation Phil Forte (10.4 ppg, 1.5 rpg). OSU can play with anybody and is a team that has all the right tools to win the conference tournament no problem. They are fast and deadly in a game if you drop your guard with them.

Baylor is another team that has NBA-bound talent. Senior Pierre Jackson (19.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 6.6 apg, 1.5 spg) can light it up from anywhere on the court. He can ball hard while breaking down the defense with his handling skills. I enjoy watching Jackson take on other point guards because he usually eats their lunch on the court. 7 foot frosh Isaiah Austin (13.6 ppg, 8.8 rpg) is a different kind of player from your conventional seven footer. He can dribble and shoot the three, and likes to put the ball on the floor before he goes to the basket. The NBA scouts are drooling over Austin because they are begging to get a chance to develop him and make him into the next big professional star. Cory Jefferson (12.1 ppg, 8.2 rpg) is also a force inside, and can power over anyone in his way.

Both these teams together are a series of highlight reels ready to go up at any time on SportsCenter. This is by far my hardest pick of the entire tournament. I want to go with Oklahoma State because I truly believe they are the better team. Baylor just doesn’t have the right coaching to be able to put all their talents to the use it could be at to win more ballgames. The first game this season these two played was won by Baylor 64-54, the second was only won by 2 points in overtime by OSU. Baylor just came off a huge blowout win over Kansas to end their season. Baylor is a tournament team, and I know they get hyped up for the excitement of the media at the tournaments to get their faces on TV. But, I am going to say I just have to go with Oklahoma State in this one, I think they will crush Baylor’s chances of making the NCAA tournament and have a smile on their face while they do it. Predicted Winner: Oklahoma State

Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament - 1st Round

DanSwany — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 12:02:40 -0000

Previews & Predictions – Big 12 Basketball Tournament 1st Round

#8 West Virginia (13-18, 6-12 Big 12) VS. #9 Texas Tech (10-19, 3-15 Big 12) | (Wednesday, March 13th at 6pm) We just lost a heartbreaker to the University of Texas on Saturday in overtime. The team looks like they might have just got the wind knocked out of them, but I don’t think that is the reality of the situation. This Big 12 tournament is Chris Walker’s last impression that will be left with Kirby Hocutt when a decision is made on keeping Walker as head coach or choosing to go down a different path in the process. The team is closest to this situation and I’m sure it is going to be an emotional game coming into Kansas City with Chris Walker thinking “this might be it”. Our squad will see it on his face and hear it in his voice. I believe they will fight hard for a win that will have a huge future impact on the guy that has mentored them through an ugly Billy Gillispie resignation. The team will be carrying a heavy load on their shoulders tonight.

The first game against West Virginia was lost 77-61. They beat us with the downtown shot on 10-18, where we were only 4-9. Other than the score we were pretty evenly matched with them getting 26-26 for points in the paint. We both had a high number of turnovers 22 (TTU) and 18 (WVU), whereas they scored 27 points off turnovers as to our 19 POTs. They outrebounded us 24-22. We held it together against their starting big guys Deniz Kilicli and Kevin Noreen keeping them to only 11 points and 6 rebounds combined for the game. Aaric Murray did come off the bench for them down low and had 12 points, but only had 3 rebounds. This is the only game that I remember we had Kader Tapsoba start alongside Jordan Tolbert, but Tapsoba only played 3 minutes. Jaye Crockett and Tolbert combined for 23 points and 7 rebounds down low. But as mentioned before, this game wasn’t lost down low. Their guards torched us from the outside to get the advantage in this one. And their freshman guard Eron Harris had 3 from behind the arc to go with 18 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists. Two of their other guards had 3 three’s each as well. Ty Nurse started in this game for us, the only time I remember him starting too, and played 24 minutes with 14 points. Josh Gray was our better guard that day with 10 points, 5 assists, and 3 steals.

Our second meeting when we played at West Virginia was more memorable. It was the game that was frustrating because of the close officiating against our team. The calls seemed to always go against us and we ended with 30 fouls. Crockett, Tolbert, and Dejan Kravic all fouled out of the contest. We contained their downtown shots and only allowed them to make 4-12. We were outrebounded 29-39, but we gained the edge in turnovers 13-18. Points in the paint were close at 24 (TTU) to 20 (WVU). We didn’t contain Kilicli and that beast went off for 25 points with 8 rebounds for his frontcourt. Crockett turned it on in this one with 18 points and 10 rebounds. A HUGE thing to remember is that Tolbert fouled out in only 14 minutes of action, but yet still had 10 points and 3 rebounds. Their guard Harris had another good one with 15 points, 2 assists, and 2 steals. Dusty Hannahs hit for 12 points with 4 three-pointers. Gray added 8 assists, and 2 steals. We could’ve had this one as Gray missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer to win the game that was short off the front of the iron. I wanted Hannahs to take the last shot, because even though they were shadowing him in expectation of taking it he was our best chance from downtown. We had to go for the win because all our frontcourt, besides Tapsoba, were fouled out of the game.

Tech (RPI #227) does have a chance against West Virginia (RPI #120). They have some big guys down low that match up fairly evenly with our post players. We have already figured out that if the WVU guards get hot from behind the arc than we will get torched in the game. WVU might have 6 wins in the Big 12, but they are only against us, TCU, and UT. The games against the Longhorns went to OT once, and the other was a 2-point victory at the end. Our main problem has been the frosh guard Harris, so we need to put someone on him to contain his speed and penetration to the basket. The fouls are something that isn’t an easy thing to control, but we must recognize if the refs are calling a tight game then we have to give them a little space. I’m not saying to play less aggressive, just watch on the reach-ins and be moving our feet more to gain the advantage. I am ready for this game to get started and think that Tech will be playing with more heart than the other guys. Sometimes that is all you need when the game is evenly matched on both sides. Predicted Winner: Texas Tech

#7 Texas (15-16, 7-11 Big 12) VS. #10 TCU (11-20, 2-16 Big 12) | (Wednesday, March 13th at 8:30pm) Myck Kabongo has brought Texas to a new level. They are 5-3 with him back on their team. But, as Texas Tech showed last Saturday anybody that can make Kabongo have a bad day should be able to win the game. I know we lost in OT, but if we had let him start making points the game would not have even been close. We held him to 0-12 from the field. The Longhorns are all about their guard play as Kabongo (15.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 5.3 apg), Sheldon McClellan (14.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 0.8 apg), and Julien Lewis (10.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.2 apg) are all averaging double figures in scoring for the season. They can take the game over. UT puts up a lot of shots, and they actually do a fairly decent job of crashing the boards to get their rebounds. I think UT has a lot of talent besides just Kabongo and the guards, but they don’t seem to put it together all that well when they play on the court. The chemistry to me always doesn’t seem right when the Longhorns are playing and that is going to be what always makes them be a mediocre team.

TCU is bad, but they did beat Kansas in a sort of miracle situation. Also, I have to give them some love on just recently beating a really good Oklahoma squad. In both those wins senior Garlon Green (9.9 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.0 apg) had nice games. In the KU win he had 20 points, and the OU win he had 18 points. Kyan Anderson (12.1 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 3.5 apg, 1.4 spg) is the star player of the team but he needs help. When Anderson and Green are playing great on offense the TCU team can somewhat ball. Other then that TCU is not a very good team on anything else I have watch for this season.

UT (RPI #113) will have an easy time in this one if Kabongo and the other guards start hitting their shots early, but TCU (RPI #226) might stick around if they can take Kabongo out of the game. Both teams aren’t very strong in the frontcourt, so this will be a backcourt battle. I don’t think Green for TCU will get it going like he did against KU or OU, and Kabongo for UT should break out of his slump from last game against Tech to go off for at least 15 or more points. UT should win fairly easily in this matchup. Predicted Winner: Texas

Texas Tech Red Raiders Weekly Basketball Trending

DanSwany — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 13:17:18 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Points in the Paint | It’s really hard to give a proper evaluation and track trending items for a week when your team gets a win by 9 points and a loss by 37, but I’ll try and do my best. Against TCU we went to their weak spot and was able to dump a lot of passes down low. We also had the ability to penetrate around screens and drive the ball to the hoop. We beat them to the basket and on the defensive end we keep them out of the paint. That wins ball games for our team. Tech hasn’t been a 3-point shooting team, and our mid-range shots don’t seem to fall all that often. So we took it to where we could get a lot of high percentage shots down low. We whipped up on TCU 42-22 with points in the paint. Fans were impressed with our shooting percentage being at 62.2%, but that is the numbers that a team will put up when they get to shoot the ball close to the basket. Against TCU we only attempted 9 treys. Now, onto the Kansas game. Where we were outscored 38-22 for points in the paint by KU. We attempted 15 three-pointers and made 1. All game it was hard for us to get those high-percentage shots, so we were settling for mid-range floaters. We ended up shooting a pathetic 26.4% overall for our field goal percentage. Needless to sum up, but our strength is not shooting from anywhere but from only in the paint. If we are going to beat UT on Saturday we better plan on smashing the ball down low and keeping them from getting it inside when we are on defense.

Assists | How a team distributes the ball is very key to winning games. Tech has struggled as a team to set up plays offensively or to find the open man cutting to the basket all season. We are #298 in the nation at assisting baskets with 10.9 assists per game. That number should be much higher, and it was during the TCU game where we had 15 assists. I enjoyed the set plays that worked when we would cut to the basket and throw the ball into the open hands of Tolbert or Crockett waiting at the rim. 15 apg is what the top 42 teams in the nation average. Against TCU we took advantage of them and made them pay with our passing. But, against KU we only had 7 assists all game. The only highlight assist in that one was the alley-oop to Crockett at the start of the game that was jammed home (check out the picture above). Kansas had one guy that almost doubled our entire team in assists (Elijah Johnson had 12). If we are going to beat UT we have got to be able to pull the defense one way and be able to break away from the defenders on the weak side to get open for some passes at the rim.

Jordan Tolbert | Tolbert has found his offensive scoring game over the last half of the season, but especially last week. We all know his heartbreaking story of losing his father in the preseason and missing a few weeks of preseason practices because of it. He has had a rough season, but the team has helped carry him through the tough times and he seems to be showing signs of being able to score like his freshman year. Against TCU he poured in 22 points on 9-10 from the field. He was aggressive and really was battling under the basket to gain position on his defender to get the ball in his hands to score. Even against KU 7-foot giant Jeff Withey he managed to be 5-9 from the field and finished with some help from the line with 16 points. Something that I have tracked all season is Tolbert and his foul trouble. It always affects his aggressive play when he hits 3 fouls, and in the TCU game he had only 2. All game you could see his physicality while he had the luxury of playing all out. I really hope he doesn’t get the calls against him in the UT game, because his presence on the floor is much needed on Saturday.

Turnovers | Again the turnovers are a positive this week! In the TCU game I was scared when we had 8 first half TOs, but we came out in the second with more stability and ended the game with only 11. Against KU we had 14, but still that is below our team per game average. We are at #270 in the country at 14.6 TOPG, but we have actually been getting better nearing the end of the season. This shows that the squad is gaining experience, and that is sometimes all we can ask in these games that get out of hand on the scoreboard.

UT & Big 12 Tournament | We control the Longhorns destiny in the Big 12 tourney. Stay with me as I go through the explanation. If we beat UT on Saturday we assure they are the #8 seed in the Big 12 tournament. Our Red Raiders have already locked up the #9 seed (win or lose). #8 plays #9 in the first round of the Big 12 tournament. So, get ready for back-to-back games against the Longhorns if we can get that win in Lubbock on Saturday! Now, if we lose to UT we still have a chance to play them if West Virginia beats Iowa State on Saturday. I actually would bet on ISU beating WVU, which would mean that if UT beats us (and ISU beats WVU), then West Virginia would become the #8 seed and Tech would play them in the 1st round of the Big 12 tournament. I hate to admit anything good about UT, but Myck Kabongo is making UT a more competitive team. They are 4-3 since Kabongo rejoined the team. I really didn’t think he was going to impact the Longhorns game a whole lot, but I was wrong. They now are stretching defenses a lot more with their depth at guard. I have to remind myself that one star player can make a huge difference for a team in college basketball. I believe in this philosophy, but let my hatred for UT stand in my way from believing it. With that said, I still think we have a chance to win in Lubbock and want to win this game more than any other game we have played all season. I don’t think UT is as good right now as Kansas, K-State, or Oklahoma State (all three losses with Kabongo back). We do have a chance, and I am hoping we can pull a win against UT in the game on Saturday. I wonder what others think? Would you like to see us beat UT on Saturday, and play UT in back-to-back games... or would you rather play West Virginia for the Big 12 tournament? Wreck ‘em Tech!

Big 12 Basketball Matchup & Player of the Week

DanSwany — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 13:14:34 -0000

Top Matchup in the Big 12 This Week

#9 Kansas State (24-5, 13-3) at #13 Oklahoma State (22-6, 12-4) | (Saturday, March 9th) K-State has won 5 games in a row, and it will most likely be 6 after they play TCU this week. KSU beat Baylor last week with a last second shot from their senior leader Rodney McGruder (14.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.0 apg, 1.3 spg). They are a team that does it all on the court together and keeps their chemistry from breaking each and every game unless they are playing KU. Bruce Weber knows how to coach, and it shows with a team like KSU. They might not be a highlight reel team that lacks a true superstar, but they win games. I would rather watch a team like KSU that wins and knows how to play the game as one team, then a team like Baylor that has NBA talent all over it but doesn’t know how to make it work together. Oklahoma State has freshman sensation Marcus Smart (14.6 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 4.3 apg, 2.9spg), leading team scorer Markel Brown (15.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1.0 spg), NBA bound sophomore Le’Bryan Nash (13.9 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.9 apg, 0.6 spg), and other highly regarded freshman guard Phil Forte (10.8 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 0.8 apg, 1.3 spg). They are seen on SportsCenter highlights all the time. Every time you are watching ESPN college basketball, no matter who is playing, Ben McLemore and Marcus Smart are talked about (with KU and OSU mentioned as going to go far in the tournament this year). OSU has a tough one up next against Iowa State in Ames, Iowa. I want to see how that one plays out, because I think ISU might give OSU a hell of a game. But, if OSU can hold off it will make it 4 wins in a row coming into this matchup with K-State. Last time these 2 teams played was at the very beginning of the season. Smart ended up with 25 points, and McGruder hit for 28 points and the win was by 6 for the Wildcats. Both these teams have become much better as the season has gone on, and I think we are going to see a great one on Saturday. I’m going to take into account that OSU might be coming off a loss to ISU and would probably win this game against K-State if that was the case, but I don’t think that will happen. I think OSU will beat ISU, and be really ready for senior night in Stillwater. K-State will have to show OSU how a team with less talent can win on the road when you are properly prepared and coached. Predicted Winner- Kansas State.

Big 12 Player of the Week

Elijah Johnson (Senior, Kansas) | There was a classic last week against KU and ISU that went into OT on a controversial no call by the officials. The win ended up going to KU and the man to lead them was Johnson. He had 39 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists. He had 8 points in the final 29 seconds of regulation, and 12 in OT. Then the next game against WVU he had a double-double 12 points, 10 assists, 5 rebounds, 1 block, and 1 steal and KU went on to the blow out win. Johnson was in my opinion by far the most valuable player to his team last week and a for sure player of the week in the Big 12.

Texas Tech Red Raiders Weekly Basketball Trending

DanSwany — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 15:31:02 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Recruiting | Keith Frazier according to Rivals is the #5 SG in the country and #22 basketball player nationally in the 2013 high school class. Tech is visibly recruiting him as he was seen at one of the games this season on his official recruiting trip. Kendal Yancy-Harris (2013 Rivals - #23 PG, #109 Overall) has been being recruited hard by Tech since release from his LOI to USC, according to rumors. Wannah Bail (2012 Rivals #28 Power Forward, #115 Overall) has been at a Tech game this season and according to rumors will join the team next season if Chris Walker is named permanent head coach. All of you know that I have predicted for months on Viva The Matadors that Coach Walker would be named head coach before the Big 12 tournament. I always thought of it as a way to give a boost of energy to the squad heading into Kansas City, and to really start his official recruiting for Tech as the permanent head coach. High school kids are not going to sign-up to play with someone that has a temporary position. If Chris Walker can get top ranked high school recruits to even come and look at the program he is “temporarily” running, I can’t wait to see what happens when the Chris Walker Era officially starts at Tech.

Free Throw Shooting | Over the last few games our free throws have been horrendous. Against Iowa State we were 13-25 for 52%, and against K-State we were 6-12 for 50%. In both those games it might not have mattered if we made all our free points, but this will simply not cut it when we play TCU next Saturday. I am a firm believer that a team should make over 80% from the line in close games if they want to dramatically increase their chances to win. When we play TCU on Saturday I will be extremely upset if we lose a close game because of misses from the charity stripe. This year free throw shooting has slipped off a lot of the fans radar for this team because in some games we have been being blown out so bad that free throw shots didn’t matter much. We are #253 in the nation in our FT shooting at 66.7%. We miss 1 out of every 3 free points that we could put on the scoreboard. This is a problem that can be fixed by practice. I hope that each of our players is in the gym shooting hundreds of free throws after practice to work on it this week.

Turnovers| At Iowa State we had 12, at K-State we had 14. Not as good as last week, but overall an improvement since I have been tracking this trend each week of the season. To look at it on the positive end, ISU and KSU are two very great teams and we didn’t carelessly give the ball away as much as we did earlier in Big 12 play. Actually we decreased our overall turnovers per game to 14.7 this week and are #269 in the nation for TOPG. This is a sign that our team is actually getting better handling the ball, and making better decisions when passing. That is a major plus for this young squad. We need to keep it up and go under 14 TOs in our next two games against TCU & Kansas. It would allow me to put another up-arrow on this item next week; and that would be 3 weeks in a row trending upwards for turnovers. That’d be the first time in the 2 seasons I have been writing these weekly trending articles that my most stressed trending item has done this! I’d be downright happy if this happens.

Josh Gray | Everybody is giving Gray his much deserved props for last week and I am going to do the same. Gray might have been in foul trouble in the K-State game and only ended up with 2 points in 21 minutes. But, in his previous 2 before that he was a beast. Against Oklahoma he had 26 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, and 4 steals. Against Iowa State he had 20 points, 4 assists, 2 rebounds, and 2 steals. He was honored by the Big 12 as Rookie of the Week. Last night on the Big 12 Network at halftime of the Baylor versus West Virginia game they announced Gray over the broadcast and had spoke very highly of him. I know he laid an egg in the K-State game, but I don’t think that slump will last long. I have always thought Josh Gray was a great player and I am a believer that if he can ever get his jumper and behind the arc shot to fall more consistently he will be at the top of the Big 12 point guard list. He is creating opportunity and knows how to play the game. His passing has progressively become better over the season, yet he still gets caught every once in a while driving and leaving his feet without really knowing where he is going to throw the ball. He’s a freshman right now, but when he is a senior there is no stopping his ability as a star point guard if he can get some accuracy on those shots. I like his attitude on the court and am not mad that he gets a little chippy with the opponents… that’s part of the game and emotions sometimes run high out on the court. I am, and have always been, a Josh Gray fan.

Winning | We all knew the road games against Iowa State and K-State would be grueling. I wanted the team to get some hard knocks on this road trip and gain some experience. Yes, I wanted to be outrageously surprised and pull off the amazing upsets too, but that didn’t happen. I do have some excitement building inside me from the final horn of the K-State game that has been creeping up since early this week. We have TCU coming to Lubbock on Saturday, and I’m going to not only be very pumped-up about this game… but for the second time this season I can say I fully expect our team to win this Big 12 conference game. Earlier this year in a weekly trending post I predicted we would win the TCU road game (we did), and in this post I am going to predict another conference win for our team. Most of the time I am overly optimistic about playing the games for the week, but in this one I am confident. I hope that we can get some fans in the USA and make some noise for our Red Raiders. At the beginning of the season I had thought that this game with TCU in Lubbock on Saturday was the #1 easiest conference game we would encounter on our Big 12 schedule. I still believe that to be true. Let’s get ready to get our 3rd conference win of the season this Saturday and do some much needed celebrating. Come Monday we have to take on KU in Lawrence, but I’m not going to be thinking about that until Sunday morning. Wreck ‘em Tech!

Big 12 Basketball Top Matchup & Player of the Week

DanSwany — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 13:18:00 -0000

Top Matchup in the Big 12 This Week

#13 Kansas State (23-5) at Baylor (16-11) | (Saturday, March 2nd) I don’t think anything will be as good as the Big 12 matchup of the week last Wednesday, and this week I probably should have picked the KU vs ISU game that went to OT last night. But, this week I do think a great matchup will be Kansas State and Baylor. Getting to scout K-State last night I again have to say they are the most underestimated top 25 team by the media. They simply get no love for how good they are because they do not have a superstar freshman on their team. Actually if you were watching the Tech vs K-State game last night you’d have recognized that the ESPN announcers were picking their All-Conference starting team and they didn’t have Rodney McGruder on the list. K-State is not flashy, they are #116 in scoring with being #132 in field goal percentage. The Wildcats distribute the ball very nicely (#13 in the country), and their slow down game is very disciplined. They are a team that can sneak up and just take the game right out from anybody because of their discipline and teamwork. Last time against Baylor they whipped up by 20 points for the win. Their only real weakness is KU who is the most complete team in the Big 12 and has twice gotten the better of K-State. Baylor is a disappointment to me because of the raw talent they have on their team, but their record doesn’t show it. They have 2 players that will be 1st round picks in the NBA Draft this year. Pierre Jackson is the #1 scorer in the Big 12, and one hell of a point guard. But, with all their talent Baylor has lost 6 of their last 8 games. I actually blame a lot of the Baylor problems on their lack of depth, and poor coaching. After all that I know and have seen Baylor struggle from the middle of this Big 12 season; I actually still know they can make a run in the Big 12 tournament. I know that I have watched these guys play and seen how electric they can be when they are all playing together and using all their talents. They are #28 in scoring, #32 in rebounding, and #30 in assists. Baylor is a team that needs to be watched and contained or else they will go off for a streak in the game that is hard to come back against. Baylor should be contained by K-State on Saturday, but I think KSU will get a Baylor team that is ready to knock off a top 25 team and do some celebrating. It will get real physical, real fast. I believe this one will be close, but KSU should end up with the win at the end. Predicted Winner - Kansas State

Big 12 Player of the Week

Melvin Ejim (Iowa State)| I wish I could have picked Josh Gray as my player of the week, but I have a certain criteria for picking the player of the week. They have to be the most valuable to their team in securing the wins for the week. Ejim did this for his team, as they won both games last week against Tech and Baylor. Ejim is not the tallest guy at 6’6’’ but he is very strong. In the Baylor game he had 20 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, and 1 steal. In the Tech game he had 13 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assist, and 2 steals. He was all over the floor in both these games and ended up with 2 double-doubles in those wins.

Texas Tech Red Raiders Weekly Basketball Trending

DanSwany — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 13:22:44 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Foul Trouble | This is the biggest thing that has stuck out to everyone while watching the last two games against West Virginia and Oklahoma. We are not a very deep team on the bench, and we are especially shallow at depth in our frontcourt. Coach Walker knows this and was smart at trying telling the team to shot a 3 at the buzzer to go for the win against WVU when Jordan Tolbert, Jaye Crockett, and Dejan Kravic all were fouled out in the game. If that game would’ve gone to overtime we would have been slaughtered down low in the paint. Against OU we had Dusty Hannahs, Josh Gray, Jordan Tolbert, and Jaye Crockett all in foul trouble in the 1st half, luckily no one fouled out of the game in the 2nd. This is unacceptable if we are going to expect to compete the way we want to in the games. Anyone that watched the games will complain that the referees were calling the game to tight, but poor officiating is no excuse. You have to play with what’s put in front of you. Getting into foul trouble makes an individual player go about the rest of the game with a different mentality, and usually means that the player is more hesitant on defense; and apprehensive to drive the ball with force to the basket with fear of getting a charging call against them. If the refs are calling a close game with the whistle then we need to understand that and start moving our feet more to get in front of the opponents with our hands straight up.

Backcourt | Seth has been touching at this in his game previews and post-game thoughts, but Coach Walker over the last few games has found his trusted backcourt and is showing them loyalty. Hannahs got to start and had 33 minutes against WVU & 37 minutes against OU. Josh Gray got to start and had 39 minutes against WVU & 36 minutes against OU. Jamal Williams got to start and had 37 minutes against WVU & 28 minutes against OU. At the beginning of the season, and even throughout most of Big 12 play Walker was substituting out and getting a lot of fresh legs into the game regularly. These 3 guys have now broken away from the pack and earned a heavy load of playing time with the weight falling on their shoulders to be the core backcourt for Texas Tech this season. I actually like all 3 of these guys abilities, and think they deserve it. I don’t know anyone else on the bench that I would be having start in the backcourt and play the majority of the minutes. Together they are not at all going to be rated the best backcourt in the big 12, but they are the best combination we have on this Tech squad to be our best.

Clark Lammert | He didn’t travel with the team to play WVU because of a concussion. To be honest, I get very nervous when our team has Lammert on the floor. He tries really hard and usually comes up a step too slow, and a shot too short every time he gets some playing time. There’s a reason he is a non-scholarship player and that’s because he loves playing the game enough to pay his own way to school to be on the team. The guy came in last night against OU and I watched him drain his only 2 shots, and they were both behind the arc. In his 10 minutes of contribution to the game he also had 3 rebounds. I’m not endorsing that Lammert should get more minutes, but I wanted to point out that he actually did a nice job in the Oklahoma game. It’s got to be tough to ride the bench and only get scrap-time minutes in the games. It’s also got to be tough to be the older brother that rides the bench for a team that struggles, while his younger brother is a freshman on the UT roster who averages 20 minutes per game playing time for the Longhorns. He did good last game and he should be commended for it. I’m sure he has a bright future ahead of him in something other than basketball, and I’m sure he is having the time of his life attending Tech and being a part of the basketball team.

Turnovers | Nice job this week! Really nice job. We only had 13 turnovers in the WVU game, and last night committed only 10. This is in large part due to the fact that we are playing a steady backcourt, and the guys are starting to become comfortable with one another. When you constantly are substituting guards in and out it is hard to get a steady pace flowing amongst the backcourt. Chemistry is a very important thing in the game of basketball, and over the past week I have been impressed with how our team has played against WVU, and a really talented powerful OU crew. We have moved a bit in the rankings and are still only #276 in the country with 14.9 TOPG. But, I rejoice that we have actually brought the TOPG average down over the past week. Keep it up guys!

Road Trip | The team gets to go on the road against two very tough teams. We head this next week out to Ames, Iowa and Manhattan, Kansas. Iowa State is not going to cut us any slack, as they remember the embarrassing loss they suffered back in Lubbock this season. K-State has something to prove to the nation as they are a great team that gets overshadowed in the media to Kansas and Oklahoma State (can you say Ben McLemore or Marcus Smart). These teams are going to be out to get us. I say bring it on! What do we have to lose… nothing. This road trip is going to teach this young inexperienced Tech team a lot, and I hope they grow from it. It might not be fun the fans to watch, but if you do I promise you will see the kids mature in front of your eyes. And I’m going to go on and guarantee that they will come back after this road trip next week ready to destroy TCU in Lubbock. Wreck ‘em Tech!

Big 12 Basketball Top Matchup & Player of the Week

DanSwany — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 13:01:33 -0000

Top Matchup in the Big 12 This Week

#9 Kansas (21-4) at #14 Oklahoma State (19-5) | (Wednesday, Feb 20th)

This battle will be fun to watch. Oklahoma State is the hottest Big 12 team right now winning 7 conference games in a row dating back to January 26th. Two of those games have gone to overtime resulting in wins for the Cowboys against Baylor and Oklahoma. Freshman stud guard Marcus Smart has had 20+ points in four of those games, and hit double digits in scoring in all of them. Junior guard Markel Brown has had 20+ in three of the seven games, and made 10+ ppg in all of them as well. OSU plays an exciting brand of basketball and has one of the deepest backcourts in the Big 12. I really enjoy watching their team play, and if anyone got to catch the OU vs OSU game on Saturday (it was on the Big 12 Network before the Tech vs WVU game) then you know what I'm talkin' about.

Switching to Kansas Jayhawks, they have come back to reality. After winning every Big 12 conference game this year they had a stunning 3 game losing streak. Guess who was the start of the Jayhawks losing skid… none other than the Cowboys. In that stretch there was an unbelievable upset by TCU, and an embarrassing loss to OU. Sometimes this is what happens in basketball when a team has been slapping everybody around and starts to get complacent. They are handed a few upsets to make them come down off their high. Not to mention that eveybody brings their A-game when playing a top 10 ranked team. Kansas is now back to normal form after thoroughly destroying K-State and Texas (with Myck Kabongo) by 21 and 26 points. KU also has a freshman stud guard, Ben McLemore, that hit 30 points in the game against K-State and threw in 13 against UT. Jeff Withey is the Big 12 seven foot center every other team is envious of, as he had his normal back-to-back double-doubles in those last two wins. KU is still the most complete team I have watched in the Big 12, and they have hit their stride again after temporarily stumbling.

OSU no matter how hot they are right now will not win this game. No matter how crazy and loud the arena in Stillwater, Oklahoma gets the crowd will be ultimately disappointed when they get beat by a better KU team. Predicted Winner - Kansas

Big 12 Player of the Week

Jeff Withey (Kansas)| As I stated above, all the other teams in the Big 12 wish they had a seven foot center that was as consistent as Withey. Last week KU crushed K-State and UT and Withey was a big contributor to that. Against K-State he put in 17 points, had 10 rebounds, blocked 5 shots, and had 2 steals. Then against the Longhorns he had 15 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 4 steals. When I look at Withey I am reminded of how much he has developed over the years, his freshman and sophomore years he barley played and averaged less than 3 points and 2 rebounds per game. Last year he was much improved to approximately 25 minutes per game and put in 9 ppg, 6.3 rpg, and 3.6 bpg. This season he is passing up all those numbers. I always have hoped that Tech could find a huge 7 footer and develop him in this way, and I think it’s a key to our success in the future to get a big man we can count on to be consistent all season long if you want to be a top team.

Texas Tech Red Raiders Weekly Basketball Trending

DanSwany — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 12:52:58 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Shooting | Our shooting has become worse as the season has gone forward. Against weaker competition we would get high percentage shots and could get the ball to the rim fairly easily. In Big 12 games we have settled for contested shots with jumpers, runners, and hooks when we get the ball inside the arc. Against K-State we did a decent job of getting some nice shots off and were alright from the field hitting 44%, which is a huge reason we stayed in that game and only lost by 9 points. However, in the Baylor game that we were creamed by 27 points our team only made 28.8% of our field goals. For Tech to have a chance to keep these next games close they have to make their shots, and create high percentage shots. Teams that beat us by a wide margin keep us outside the paint and make us have our back to the basket when the ball is in our hand. Coach Walker needs to set some offensive plays that allow our guys to square up to the basket with open space. In the nation we are #227 at 42.1% for our field goal percentage and this needs to go up for the last part of this season.

Rebounds | I’ve talked about this before, and I do think it’s a huge stat that could help keep us close in most of the games we play. We struggle with rebounding as a team. Tech ranks at #208 in rebounds per game at 34.1, but I care more about the battle in each individual game more than the overall number of rebounds we get in each contest. I know that we have been outrebounded most of the times we have played Big 12 teams. Our last three have been WVU (outrebounded 22-24), K-State (outrebounded 38-20), and Baylor (outrebounded 37-45). I know that we don’t have the biggest frontcourt in the conference, but we need to play tougher inside if we are going to be smaller than the other guys. I watch as shots go up, and don’t see much blocking out that should be going on down low. Rebounding is easier when you have height and weight on your opponent, and technique plays a huge part as well. I still think that we need to practice our boxing out along with being more physical in the paint. Strength and technique go a long way in the battle for the boards.

Jaye Crockett | Against K-State he had 4 points and 3 rebounds in 20 minutes. Against Baylor he had 7 points and 3 rebounds in 22 minutes. Crockett was at one time at the top in the Big 12 for points and rebounds, he has now dropped to #14 in ppg and #6 in rpg in the conference. Crockett is also seeing less time in the last few games than he normally gets. Since the start of the Big 12 the struggle for Crockett has begun. It’s eerily similar to what happened to Jordan Tolbert last year. It seems that other teams have picked up on who is the must watch player on the court, and tend to shadow Crockett more alertly. The only way he is going to break out of his slump is to pass the ball off and create opportunities for others with the defense paying so much attention to him. Tolbert has been stepping up his game, and it is going to take the defense to forget about Crockett and worry about others before he gets some easier looks at the basket. Also, he seems to be moving around less with the slow-tempo offense then he did in the up-tempo style game which is limiting his touches on the ball as well. I think Crockett is a great player, he just needs to help himself out more while on the court to get some points.

Turnovers | I was so proud to only have 4 turnovers in the K-State game, and then came back to reality in the Baylor game when I watched 17 happen. The K-State game was well managed by our squad, KSU was just the better team. In the Baylor game I think we got rattled by all those dunks we were getting shoved down our throats and started making some really poor passes. A rule I remember learning back on my junior high team was do not leave your feet if you don’t know where you are going to throw the ball. I get aggravated when I see our guys jump in the air without knowing what they are going to do with the ball and just throw it to the other team. We are now #291 in the entire country at 15.2 tpg.

Remaining Big 12 Games | We still have eight Big 12 games left before the conference tournament. Call me crazy, but I think this team has another win or two in them. My games I think we will get victories in are the TCU and UT matches in the United Spirit Arena. We all know we are better than TCU, and I still think that UT is not very good. When we get both these games in Lubbock we should pull it out and give ourselves a little momentum going into Kansas City for the tournament. I know some fans are down on our team right now, but I just remind myself that we have already doubled our Big 12 win total from last year so we have nothing to lose. Let’s try to triple or quadruple it! Wreck ‘em Tech!

Big 12 Basketball Top Matchup & Player of the Week

DanSwany — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 13:13:40 -0000

Top Matchup in the Big 12 This Week

Iowa State (16-6) at #13 Kansas State (17-4) | (Saturday, Feb 9th) Iowa State had a hard one against Oklahoma State that they loss last week then got back on track and beat Baylor and Oklahoma back-to-back. They are playing some really nice ball, and their stats show for it. ISU ranks #11 in points per game, #16 in rebounds per game, and #14 in assists per game. ISU is the definition of a complete team. They have four guys that average double figures in scoring, and two others that average above 9 ppg. I cannot say enough good things about the Cyclones, as I do think they are one of the most fundamental teams that I watch play in the Big 12. This weekend they will go up against Kansas State, who is taking on our Red Raiders today. If you get a chance to watch the game you will see a very controlled KSU team that likes to play the slow-tempo pace with us. I expect us to do well against the #13 team in the nation and wouldn’t be surprised if it is closer than most expect. But, back to this weekend with ISU & KSU. KSU is #152 in ppg, #73 in rpg, and #23 in apg. ISU and KSU play two totally different styles. Rodney McGruder is the star of the Wildcats with 14.5 ppg and 5.2 rpg. Last time KSU played Iowa State, McGruder played all 40 minutes of the game and finished with 13 points and 7 rebounds but it wasn’t enough to hold off the Cyclones. I think that this game will be another great matchup between the two, but this time I get the feeling that the Wildcats are not going to forget the loss they suffered to ISU a few games ago. The Cyclones will have to go onto K-State’s home court and play some fantastic basketball to knock off KSU and get the upset again. I don’t think ISU will do it twice this season, so I’m going with Kansas State as the winner in this matchup. Predicted Winner - Kansas State

Big 12 Player of the Week

Marcus Smart (Oklahoma State)| I really thought when I saw that Isaiah Austin of Baylor had 19 points and 20 rebounds in a loss to Oklahoma that he would be my player of the week. Then Baylor loss to ISU (as I predicted last week) and Austin had 9 points with 10 rebounds, and I thought even though he had two losses this week he was still the best player last week until I saw OSU. Not so much, as I caught that Marcus Smart and Oklahoma State knocked off the #2 Kansas Jayhawks on KU's own court and had 25 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 steals. This is to go along with earlier in the week a 21 point, 6 rebound, 7 assist, and 4 steals night against Iowa State in a win. Smart is my Big 12 player of the week. It’s amazing that both Austin & Smart are only freshman. I’m don’t think either will be back next season, as we will probably see both as Lottery picks in the NBA draft after this year.

Texas Tech Red Raiders Basketball Trending

DanSwany — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 13:04:14 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Points-in-Paint | In the win against Iowa State last week we took it to the hole for shots and we dumped the ball down low for some of our points. We didn’t let ISU get the ball inside on us as much and made them settle for lower percentage shots away from the basket. This was a great effort from our guys against the Cyclones. We won the battle down low on rebounds and points. Tech scored 24 while the Cyclones only had 20 points in the paint and we won the game. Last game against Texas we couldn’t keep them away from the basket. They seemed to drive at will to get inside. The Longhorns also dumped the ball off to their big guys many times for quick easy uncontested layups. As we got spanked by UT they outscored us 38-22 in the paint. It goes to show how important it is for our guys to keep the ball away from the basket on defense if we are going to have a chance to win the game. Tolbert, Crockett, and Kravic have to defend well against our opponents big men and our guards need to stay in front of their guys on D.

Floor Percentage | To those of you unfamiliar with what floor percentage is here is a definition from www.rawbw.com/~deano/articles/flpbypop.html “The entire purpose of an offense is to score as often as possible while making as few mistakes as possible. When a team scores, whether just one point on a free throw, two points on a field goal, or three points any way it can, and the other team takes possession of the ball, then the first team has just had a scoring possession. Any time there is a change of possession, then one total possession is accrued. Floor percentage (floor%) is the ratio of scoring possessions to total possessions.” It is extremely important if you are playing a slow-tempo game that each possession counts and you make the most of your opportunity to score each time your team gets the rock. We actually are trending up in this stat from last week and it is a positive thing to be happy about. Right now Tech is #159 in the nation at 51% floor percentage. If the guys are going to win more game then they need to keep on improving this stat. I would like to see us getting the ball and taking high percentage shots along with grabbing the offensive rebounds for second chance points when we get the ball in our hands. Scoring possessions are critical in our current offensive philosophy.

Jordan Tolbert | Tolbert has stepped up his play over the last three games. The sophomore had 10 points and 3 rebounds against Oklahoma State. Then against Iowa State he had 13 points, 8 rebounds, and 1 steal. Last game he was the Tech MVP against UT when he finished with a double-double with 18 points, 13 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 block. He is definitely trending up and this is such a wonderful thing. We all know Tolbert lost his father and missed a lot of the preseason practices with the team early this season. He had been struggling to get back to where he left off last season and he has now looked to have made it back. I applaud his efforts and think it is so fantastic that he is doing well after all he has gone through. Tech needs all they can get from Tolbert as he is relied on heavily down low on the court from our squad. He will be on the All Big 12 First Team by the time he leaves our school. Our chances of getting a win increase when Tolbert is at the top of his game.

Turnovers | This is getting ridiculous how bad we are doing in this category. The team needs to find a way to cut back on turnovers so badly, but yet we keep on getting worse. Last week against Iowa State we gave away 15 turnovers, and against UT we had a whopping 19! We have now moved to #290 in the country on ball possession and average 15.4 tpg. We have young inexperienced players on our team, but they should have hit the learning curve by now in the Big 12. I think it will get better by the end of league play and I will be happy each game we get below 15 TO’s to bring our average down.

Introduction to the Big 12 | In football we introduced West Virginia and TCU to the Big 12 by handing them losses. This season in basketball we have already properly introduced TCU basketball in Ft. Worth to our Red Raider basketball program. I would like to keep up this season long tradition and beat the Mountaineers when they come to Lubbock on Saturday. We can win this game as WVU is only 9-11 (2-5 in Big 12) with wins over UT and TCU. I’m not going to lie and say that they aren’t the better team, but I will say I expect that if our guys play a controlled pace and take away the easy shots from WVU we can come away with a victory. I hope they come into the United Spirit Arena and leave with a bitter taste in their mouths from getting smacked around. I’ll be watching and cheering wildly for this one. I want victory bad! Wreck ‘em Tech!

Big 12 Basketball Matchup & Player of the Week

DanSwany — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 13:19:51 -0000

Top Matchup in the Big 12 This Week

Baylor (14-5) at Iowa State (14-5) | (Saturday, Feb 2nd) Iowa State had a surprising loss to us last week, but made up for it by knocking off the #11 Kansas State Wildcats their very next game. They are going to have another hard one against Oklahoma State this week, but regardless if they lose to OSU the game against Baylor on Saturday should be the best game of the week in all the Big 12. Baylor has gotten off to a great Big 12 start and is 5-1 currently in conference play. Their only Big 12 loss is to the top ranked KU Jayhawks. I think Baylor should take down OU beginning this week and go into this match Saturday thinking they might have a chance to lose. Baylor and Iowa State will be making the NCAA tournament this year, and they both have chances to knock off the Jayhawks in the Big 12 tournament to take the title. When I watch Baylor I think sometimes they are unstoppable with Pierre Jackson, Isaiah Austin, and Cory Jefferson running their talented offense. They like to take control of the game and run away with it, usually not looking back. Then I remember the games that they have lost and remind myself when they lose it is usually very ugly. ISU on the other hand gets going with their squad and wants to play the game fast to keep pace with anybody. They don’t lose big in games. The reason Texas Tech beat ISU was we were lucky they had a bad shooting night, and we slowed down the game without letting them get into their rhythm. This game on Saturday will not be that way. ISU and Baylor are going to be running, dunking, and shooting the threes without blinking. It will be a wonderful game to watch if you want to see some highlights happen. ISU has 5 guys that average double-figures in scoring and I bet they all get there on Saturday. In my opinion Baylor has the better players, but Iowa State has the better team that plays together. Baylor might pull this one out and establish they are the clear #2 team in the Big 12, but I think Iowa State will not let this happen on their home court. Predicted Winner - Iowa State

Big 12 Player of the Week

Phil Forte (Oklahoma State)| The freshman guard had a quiet game early last week to Baylor in a loss that he left with 4 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 steals. Then in the game against West Virginia on Saturday he when off from downtown. Forte hit 3 outside shots on a first half 19-3 run by OSU, and put in 2 on a second half 11-4 run. OSU won the game and Forte finished with 26 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists, and 1 steal. He hit 6 threes in the game, and was a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line while doing it all coming off the bench.

Texas Tech Red Raider Basketball Weekly Trending

DanSwany — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 13:08:16 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Winning | Damn it feels good to be a Red Raider! That was a much needed upset that we pulled out last night for the Texas Tech basketball team and our fans. Iowa State is a great team and rank high in just about every statistical category in college basketball. Iowa State is going to make the NCAA tournament this season. But, our squad fought hard to pull out the win and dictated the pace of the game. Watching it reminded me so much of the 1st half in the Kansas game, but in this one Tech played it out the entire game. I am so proud of this win for the basketball team and hope it gives them the confidence to win against anybody in the conference. Another thing this does is get Coach Walker a step up in getting the interim tag vanished from his position title. I expect if we can pull a few more wins (TCU, Texas, West Virginia), and one more upset like this there will definitely be no coaching search at the end of the season. Our fans are really buying into what Coach Walker can do after this game. Now it’s time to bring on UT this Saturday and keep the win streak alive! Wreck ‘em Tech!

Game Pace | Early this season we were a run and gun team with a controlled chaos mentality that was being implemented. As we started to face tougher competition and realized this style of play didn’t work Coach Walker wisely changed the offensive philosophy to a slow down game. Nowadays with a shot clock in place you cannot run a true four corners style offense, but you can pass the ball outside along the top of the perimeter with a motion offense that takes away lots of ticks on the shot clock. Tech is learning how to make the opponents scramble for a length of time on defense, and this allows Tech to control the pace of the game. It frustrates teams that have to play a different style game then what they want. This slow down pace has worked and we are working on learning it better and it shows. Against Oklahoma State the slow down game did not work, but against Kansas and Iowa State it worked just fine. It’s going to be fun to watch how our team will play against different opponents for the rest this season, and if they are going to try and keep the slow down game for every game from here on out.

Rebounding | In the Kansas game that we keep relatively close for a lot of the game, we outrebounded them 28-26. In the OSU game that we got blown out the water we were outrebounded by them 26-43. In the Iowa State win last night we outrebounded them 38-29. The point of emphasizing the rebounding is being with a slow down style offense, rebounding becomes one of the most important stats to follow. I still think turnovers are the most important. But, second chance possessions are huge and grabbing a quick rebound after a shoot is big too. You want to get the opponents tired on defense, then have them turn around and quickly jack up a bad shot on their end to have them go play defense for another extended set after that. Or you can grab the rebound on offense after shooting it with 3 seconds left on the shot clock, and eat up another chunk of time making the opponents defense work twice as hard, for twice as long. Rebounding is key if we are going to make the slow down game work! We are only #167 in the nation at rebounding at 35.4 rpg, we need to bring this number up, and focus on getting more then the other guys each time we step out on the floor.

Turnovers | Aginst Kansas we had 16, against OSU we had 13, and against ISU we had 15. We are still #273 in the nation at turning the ball over at 15.2 tpg. Quite simpley we need to do better at handling the ball. If we get this slow down game going, can grab the boards, and don’t give the ball away then we have a really good shot against every team in the Big 12. This is assuming the other team isn’t red-hot from the field. Our team is still inexperienced and throwing some passes into traffic that they shouldn't, or throwing it out of reach from their teammates. We really need to get better at these things and show progress as we play more games. It’s still not showing right now with having this many turnovers in our games.

Trency Jackson | Losing Jackson was a pretty big blow to our team. He was declared academically ineligible by the NCAA and is not allowed to play for the rest of the season. According to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal he has told a news station in Jackson, Mississippi (his hometown) that he plans to transfer. Jackson was regarded to be one of the best defenders on the team. He was super quick, and could shadow just about everyone he guarded by moving his feet to keep in front of them and blanketing them when they had the ball. He did have some trouble defending against Pierre Jackson of Baylor, but who doesn’t. On offense he could slash to the bucket relatively easily with the quickness he possessed, but he had trouble finishing at the rim. One of the main reasons the loss of Jackson is so hard is because he averaged over 22 minutes a game and was a starter. Jamal Williams has replaced Jackson in the starting lineup with his playing time increased since the loss of Jackson. Williams will bring more to the offense side of the ball as a scorer, but he is not as talented on the defensive end as Jackson was. Williams is going to have to step up his game big on the defensive side.

Big 12 Basketball Matchup & Player of the Week

DanSwany — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 13:08:23 -0000

Big 12 Matchup of the Week

#3 Kansas (16-1) at #11 Kansas State (15-2) | (Tuesday, Jan. 22nd) This is going to be one hell of a game as the two in-state Big 12 rivals take the court in what should be a top game of the year. Kansas hasn’t lost a game since they stumbled to #13 Michigan State (16-3) back in mid-November. They are the best team I have seen in the Big 12 by far this year, and the most complete team you will watch play a game all season. They have the freshman star shooting guard Ben McLemore (16.4 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.3 spg), seven foot senior center Jeff Withey (13.1 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 4.6 bpg), and senior guard Travis Releford (12.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2.6 apg) as their top scorers. Add in 5 assists per game by Elijah Johnson and 6.9 rpg by Kevin Young and you are looking at a Final Four team of the NCAA tournament for sure. Kansas can do it all, and will most likely be a #1 seed in March unless they take a drastic turn and go down a losing path. I don’t see that happening. The teams that I thought to have a fighting chance against KU were Baylor (KU won 61-44), ISU (KU won in overtime), Oklahoma State (yet to play), and surprise Big 12 contender Kansas State. KSU has only lost to #2 Michigan (17-1) and #10 Gonzaga (17-2). KSU hasn’t blown any Big 12 teams out of the water in their conference games this year, and barley won against a mediocre Big 12 team in West Virginia (8-9). They are not as complete a team as KU, and will not make the Final Four this year. Although they will go to the NCAA tournament and make a nice run probably in to the Sweet 16. They switch a lot of guys in and out throughout the game and rely on one guy in Rodney McGruder (15.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.2 spg) to make things happen while the entire unit has to pitch in to get the wins. KSU is a good team just not nearly on the level of KU. But, I have to go with my basketball instinct and say Kansas is long overdue for a loss to bring them back to reality. Iowa State (13-4) gave KU a scare on their home court in Lawrence, and I think a game on the road to bitter rival KSU is maybe something that spells disaster for KU. Don’t ask me why, let’s just say I smell an upset in the air by a KSU team that will be fighting for a win to prove that they are the team to beat in the state of Kansas to everyone.

Big 12 Player of the Week

Melvin Ejim | The Cyclones junior forward had back to back double-doubles in wins against West Virginia and TCU. When you get two wins and two double-doubles in a week you definitely deserve to be player of the week. Against WVU he had 16 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, and 1 steal. Against TCU he had 10 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 assists. He’s not the biggest forward at only 6’6’’ but he knows how to box out down low, and fights hard for his rebounds. That is why he is #1 in the Big 12 conference in rebounding at 9.7 rpg.

Texas Tech Red Raiders Basketball Weekly Questions

DanSwany — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 21:08:28 -0000

Q: Will Josh Gray start against Kansas (after being benched the entire rest of the Baylor game when he received his technical foul)?

A: Yes. I would hope that his punishment was served being benched by Walker in the Baylor game, and in whatever way Walker seemed fit off the court. Gray has started ever game this season for the Red Raiders and is one of the top players on this team. He does have a tendency to turn the ball over and takes some ill-advised shots, but he is 2^nd on the team in scoring, 1^st in assists, and 1^st in steals. He is a freshman that got frustrated by the best point guard in the Big 12, Pierre Jackson. He said some words to Jackson after a backcourt call on Tech while Jackson was walking to his own bench for a timeout. It was when we were getting crushed which made it embarrassing, but everybody in the USA that night was frustrated. This is a game that gets heated at times, and ugly words are exchanged. I do really hope he learns from it and settles down enough for Walker to feel he can keep him in our starting line-up. Tech needs him in the game to be our floor general.

Q: Who will defend and try to stop Kansas freshman star shooting guard Ben McLemore?

A: Trency Jackson or Ty Nurse. I say this because Walker started Trency against PG Pierre Jackson at the beginning the Baylor game, which must mean that Trency is thought of to be the best backcourt defender. Trency got smoked by Pierre, but I think might have a better chance against McLemore. Pierre Jackson is small and quick, where McLemore is a bigger guard 6’5’’ and 195 pounds. Trency or whoever defends McLemore is going to have their hands full, because the guy can straight ball. He scored 33 points in an OT win against Iowa State (6-6 from three, 7-7 FTs). He can drive or shoot, so you better be ready at all times and try to not foul him (89.3% FT shooting). If Trency doesn’t work, then Ty Nurse might be the answer. Nurse might not have a lot of offense but he is good on the defensive side of the ball. Nurse helped in our comeback against Alabama with his D. I think both our guys should get a chance to go against McLemore in the game.

Q: Will we get more fans in the stands at the United Spirit Arena for #6 Kansas than the Baylor game?

A: Yes. Baylor is really good, but Kansas is the #6 team in the nation. We had the official attendance recorded at the Baylor game as 6,385. More fans always come to see top teams play, and hope to experience a spectacular upset. I think we will definitely have a higher number of fans at this one. If we win this game it will be a monumental upset, and I’ll be ready to celebrate it. Wreck ‘em Tech!

Red Raiders Basketball Weekly Trending

DanSwany — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 21:22:56 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Defense | In the beginning of the year we were full-court pressing and creating turnovers. Now, we have fallen off of that as the competition has increased. We seem to play a lot of zone defense with man-on-man thrown in there some the past few games. Tech has gotten away from the pressure defense and is letting their opponents come down the floor and set up their offense. This is probably because we are now facing squads that can run with us and break our press by passing behind our defenders. When we played TCU and we wanted to shut down one guy without running the press it can be easy. But, when we have to defend guys like Jackson, Austin, and Jefferson of Baylor it probably isn’t going to be easy to win those games without the press. We need to get back to doing the full court-press and putting a lot of pressure defense on teams with multiple stars. We had at the beginning of the Baylor game Trency Jackson on Pierre Jackson, and then Robinson, then before half switched to Gray. Against Jackson, Gray was the only one to sort of slow him down. Dejan picked up Austin, and then after getting burned we had Crockett try Austin who kept scoring buckets. Some Baylor guys burned us, but nobody on TCU was going to burn us. My point is when we are outmatched talent-wise we should probably implement our full court press and hope to trip people up into playing our up-tempo game. I’d like to see the press come back against Kansas.

Assists | Tech is averaging 11.9 apg, which is only good enough to be ranked #239 in the nation in that stat. We really need to start distributing the ball a lot better. In the TCU game I saw some nice passing and good looks down low off some drives to rack up 14 assists. It was really hard to dish the ball to players in the Baylor game because they had the answer for us, which is shut off the inside pass to our best weapons in Crockett and Tolbert and not let us drive. If we did try to drive they blocked us from getting inside to dump the ball. All we could seem to do was pass the ball around the perimeter and set pick-and-pop screens with Crockett and Dejan. We ended the Baylor game with only 6 assists, Josh Gray had 3 of them. Our guys really need to learn how to create space and pass the ball, or teams will follow the same game plan as Baylor and stack the inside with big bodies to beat up on us.

Three Point Shooting | In the TCU game we shot only 10 downtown shots. We made 6 of those shots and won the game. We were able to penetrate the ball inside and didn’t have to jack up outside shots to gamble with scoring. In the Baylor game we shot 24 behind the arc, and made only 5 of them! This was because we couldn’t get inside with the ball, and also because as we started sinking deeper on the scoreboard and tried to play catch-up with long bombs. It’s not going to work for us. We have the poorest three point shooting percentage in the Big 12 at 27.1%, and it is almost the worst in the country #335 of 347. Out of the 60% three point percentage we hit in the TCU game, Dusty Hannahs hit 4 of 6. In my opinion only Hannahs should have a open green light for downtown shots on the floor, unless a guy has a hot hand like Jaye did against Baylor.

Turnovers | We actually stayed at 15.4 TOPG, and are down to #273 in the nation in turnovers. Against TCU we had 16, and against Baylor we had 15. I have nothing to say about this stat at this time except I hope we can get better. Until we do better in this stat I am just going to track it week by week.

Big 12 Games| Hey, we looked good against TCU and know we are not the worst team in the Big 12. These young guys needed to know they could win on the road and in a Big 12 matchup. But, against a team like Baylor we got literally run out of our own Arena. We were frustrated and Gray picked up a technical for talking mess to Jackson so Walker benched him the rest of the game. Crockett got a T for taunting Austin when we were down by 20+ and made a layup. If you had a chance to watch the game and saw these technicals then you already know, it was embarrassing. Let’s learn from our mistakes. We need to pick up the pieces fast and get ready to take on the best team in the Big 12. Let’s see if we can pull off a miracle against Kansas. Wreck ‘em Tech!

Big 12 Basketball Top Matchup & Player of the Week

DanSwany — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 16:51:22 -0000

Sorry that I haven’t had my Big 12 top matchups up for the last 2 weeks, I had been slacking on watching all the games with travel during the holidays.

Top Matchup in the Big 12 This Week

Texas (8-6) at Iowa State (10-3) | (Saturday, January 12th) This is the only intriguing matchup I think that will be played this week in Big 12. Besides maybe the Oklahoma State at Oklahoma game, which I think OSU will win handily after being smacked with 2 straight losses to top #25 teams, all the other Big 12 games don’t stand a chance to predict close contests. But, in this one we have a Texas team that has one very embarrassing loss to Chaminade and a few other losses to some great teams (Michigan State, UCLA, Georgetown). UT went down in OT to a good Baylor team last Saturday, but destroyed a decent North Carolina team a few weeks back. I cannot figure out if the Longhorns are good or not, and this game should be an indicator. Iowa State is definitely a good team as they have only losses to great teams in Iowa, UNLV, and Cincinnati. Iowa State should be a contender this year in the Big 12 alongside Kansas State and Oklahoma State trying to take down top dog Kansas. Iowa State is ranked in the nation #7 in scoring per game, #6 in rebounding per game, and #18 in assists per game. They are outstanding in knowing how to play together and win as a team. They have four guys that average double figures in scoring (Will Clyborn, Tyrus McGee, Georges Niang, and Melvin Ejim). I really enjoy watching this team play and see their transitions from offense to defense on the court and vice versa. UT is still a mystery to me as they have some great talent on their team, but besides sophomore guard Sheldon McClellan (15.6 ppg, 4.7 rpg) I don’t think they really have the right chemistry to be at the level that they could with all their talent. This game will definitely be interesting to see how well UT does against a really great Big 12 team. It might be closer than most think, but we will see which UT team shows up on the court. Realistically Iowa State should win this one by 10 and even further establish their dominance in the Big 12 as a top team. Predicted Winner - Iowa State

Big 12 Player of the Week

Rodney McGruder (Kansas State)| The senior guard took down #22 Oklahoma State scoring 28 points with 5 threes, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. McGruder is the star of a Kansas State team that has come out of nowhere and is now one of the best Big 12 teams in the conference. Also, earlier in the week against South Dakota he had 15 points with 3 threes, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. I know Jeff Withey (Kansas) had 9 blocks yesterday against Temple, but I still had to give the honors to McGruder because he was the spark that KSU needed to be able to knock off an impressive #22 Oklahoma State team.

Red Raiders Basketball Questions

DanSwany — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 21:15:00 -0000

Q: From a Seth C comment last week, "This team has had three different styles in three years. Pat, to BCG to Walker. Sorta reminds me of the football team and defensive schemes. What is your ideal system or what do you want this team’s identity to be?"

A: This is more of a wish then an answer to the question, but my favorite type of team to watch and root for is a team that can drain the three ball and play hard-nosed defense. I really like the up-tempo style that we run now, and absolutely find the press defense fun to see ran on the court. But, if I could choose out of any identity I’d want it is to make a lot of our downtown shots, and be known for our toughness on defense (not dirty, but physical). Walker lets our guys shoot a tremendous amount from behind the arc; we just need to start making more of them instead of being ranked #335 in the country at 26.3% for 3-point percentage. Our press defense is great at times, but we get beat down the court on long passes behind our D and fast guards driving by us for easy points a lot as well. If we played more physical and got our bodies against the other team more they might think twice when running set plays or press breaks. I don’t know if what I want for this Tech squad’s identity is realistic, but it is what I would wish for. I think with some better 3-point shooting, and playing some more aggressive D it might be a possibility.

Q: Will true freshman guard Dusty Hannahs start for the 4^th straight time?

A: Yes. My reasoning is that he is the one guy that is consistently making 3-point shots. He broke into the starting lineup against Arizona State and started alongside the backcourt of Jamal Williams and Josh Gray. Then he started alongside Trency Jackson and Josh Gray while Williams was sidelined to 0 minutes in the last two games. Even if Williams is ready to go, I believe Hannahs has the hot hand and should be starting for us against TCU. Numbers on Hannahs this season; 14.8 mpg, 6.1 ppg, and 42.1% 3-point percentage on 16-38.

Q: Are some Red Raiders fans going to be at the Daniel-Meyer Coliseum cheering Tech on against TCU on Saturday?

A: Unfortunately I’m in Houston and just got back from a 4 day trip in Chicago or I would. And also, if I lived in the Dallas/Ft Worth area it’d be a 100% YES to the answer for this question. I am hoping to see a lot of red and black in the stands from the TV, and would imagine quite a bit of Tech fans will make it out to the game. The basketball game is being played less than 40 miles west of downtown Dallas. Get ready to see our first Big 12 win since February 11, 2012… I do think it will happen! Wreck ‘em Tech!

Texas Tech Red Raiders Basketball Trending

DanSwany — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 17:12:36 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Shooting Percentage | Last week we shot the ball good against North Carolina A&T and not so good against Florida A&M. Our percentages in those games were 48.5% and 39.2%. We rank #91 in field goal percentage out of the country at 45.4% which is decent, but the stat has been trending downward as the season has gone on. I expect that as Big 12 play opens up this stat will go down even more rather than go up. I could be wrong, but I wouldn’t bet that we will be seeing any more easy shots against our conference teams then we did in our non-conference games. One of the things that brings our field goal percentage down is our poor three point shooting percentage, NCAT (25%) and FAMU (21.4%). If you watch our games we get good buckets inside, but can’t hit our three point bombs. I think we may need to start taking a few less treys and try and get the drives and screens going on to take more inside shots. I know I love the three ball and how it creates open space down low, but if it isn’t dropping lets take a few less outside shots.

Steals | At 10.1 spg, Tech is still a top ten team in the nation in steals per game. The NCAT game we only had 7, but against FAMU we had 12. Steals are something that I get the feeling could be a stat that won’t ever fall off too much with our team keeping the same defense and pressing the way they do as Big 12 play begins. Steals lead to fast break points, and fast break points are a key to the up-tempo style ball playing. Steals and fast break points also always tend to get the crowd more enthusiastic and give a team momentum. As I have watched this team over the non-conference schedule I think all fans would agree we have a squad that has runs over the course of the game, we don’t play with a steady pace throughout the game. This is just Coach Walker’s controlled chaos style of play he is using, and I like it. We will see if it works in the Big 12 conference this season, it has for teams like our old conference partners Missouri in previous seasons.

Ty Nurse (Senior Guard) | Nurse is averaging 11.8 mpg, 1 ppg, 0.9 rpg, and 1.1 apg. He did well defensively 2 weeks ago in the Alabama game in which he played for 24 minutes. He was stealing some playing time away from Trency Jackson because he had a role in the large comeback that Tech was mounting in the 2nd half of that game. Since that time he has seen his minutes per game go up tremendously with ASU (12 minutes), NCAT (15), and FAMU (20). He had 4 assists in the NCAT game but other then that has had 2 points in three of those games combined on 1-6 shooting. While I like the way Nurse plays defensively, I am nervous about how much playing time he is getting lately. I know he is more experienced than most any other player on the team in a Tech uniform, but I still am apprehensive. This is probably because of his inability to run the point last season with a tendency to turn the ball over. Walker has shifted him to more of a shooting guard position and lets Josh Gray and Daylen Robinson handle the ball most of the game at the one-guard while Nurse is playing the two-position. It will be interesting to see if Nurse keeps getting more minutes in Big 12 games.

Turnovers | This is a stat that keeps getting worse and worse as the season goes along. I’m not going to go much into this stat right now, but just will probably track it most every week because it is so important to showing the progress of a teams improvement over the season. I get sick of writing each week about how much of an indication it is, and watching each game is frustrating at times with our team make silly plays that they should have learned from games ago. Last week against NCAT we had 15 turnovers, and against FAMU we had 21. That is miserably bad against the type of competition we were playing. We are now at 15.4 TOPG on the season and have become the #264 team in the country to turn the ball over (#8 in Big 12).

Winning Streak & Start of Big 12 Games| So we ended our 3 game losing skid, and finished up against two lower level teams getting wins that were much needed. Finsihing the non-conference with a 7-4 record is one more loss then I had planned on and wanted to have at this point, but it is still better than some people thought we would be. This team is young and inexperienced in the backcourt with a lack of depth in the frontcourt. But, if you watch these guys play it is a much more fun and entertaining brand of basketball then last season. We do have raw talent on this team, and we will get some wins in the Big 12 this season. We will probably take some poundings as well, but the neat thing about watching this team is they don’t give up in games and play until the final buzzer sounds. I hope we can get the Big 12 started right and whip TCU as this team goes on the road for the first time all season on Saturday. Wreck ‘em Tech!

Red Raider Basketball Questions

DanSwany — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 20:22:38 -0000

Q: Which stat needs to improve for our Red Raiders basketball team this week?

A: Turnovers. Last week we had 16 turnovers against Arizona State and 14 against Alabama. We average 14.8 TOPG and are currently rank #113 in the nation on giving the ball away to the opponent. I always hold this stat as a very high indicator on whether the team is developing in a positive way with gaining more understanding of their own game and learning how to play as one unit on the court. I would like to have less than 12 turnovers in each game we play against North Carolina A&T and Florida A&M. I think this is a must improve stat this week before Big 12 conference play starts.

Q: What would your starting line-up be for our team right now that gives us the best chance for a victory over any team we play?

A: Gray, Jackson, Williams, Crockett, and Tolbert. I think with this group we have the best chance in any game to win. Gray, Williams, and Jackson seem to play the best together in the backcourt. They all can handle the ball, drive, and play defense well. Tolbert and Crockett together are the best frontcourt combo we have to get inside points and rebounds. I just don’t think anybody else on the roster is better than any of these guys right now. I’d really like to see this starting rotation in to begin a game, it hasn’t happened yet this season.

Q: How many of you will be watching the Tech versus North Carolina A&T basketball game before switching over to the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas?

A: I will. Most of the basketball games have been averaging a length of less than 2 hours on TV. Perfect to watch at 6pm and then switch over to the Red Raider football game when Tech basketball ends around 8pm. It’s on Fox Sports Southwest Plus if you get it, easy to put it on in the house, sportsbar, or wherever you are getting settled in ready for the Car Care Bowl. My fiancée is going to be thrilled… this Friday evening is going to be a fun time at my house, I won’t move from the couch for a solid 5+ hours! Wreck ‘em Tech!

Texas Tech Red Raiders Basketball Trending

DanSwany — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 16:09:52 -0000

TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH

Dusty Hannahs (Freshman Shooting Guard) | Over nine games Hannahs has done a quietly good job averaging 4.2 ppg hitting 38.5% from three-point range in only 12.7 mpg. Tech fans know he has an outside shot, and want to see him be a deep threat each time he gets into the game. Coach Walker switched up the starting lineup last contest against Arizona State and put Hannahs in over Trency Jackson. Hannahs hit two downtown shots early in the game then went invisible until late in the game when he hit another trey. In the ASU game he ended up playing 27 minutes and was 3-7 from behind the arc, with one running floater from along the baseline that was a miss. While Hannahs has an excellent three ball when on the floor, I didn’t see anything else out of him defensively or offensively that really helped the team. The close game between Alabama Hannahs only played 5 minutes and missed two 3 balls in that game. I would like to see him develop his all-around game more to be a solid contributor on the court. He is getting excellent experience and only needs to add a few more talents to be a better player. If Hannahs could learn how to drive and dish the ball with his ability to drain the trey it would be really hard for defenders stop him.

Turnovers | Over the last three games our turnovers have steadily gotten worse. In the McNeese State game we had 12, Alabama 14, and Arizona State 16. We are up to an average of 14.8 turnovers per game. That puts us as a team at #114 in TOPG, which is much better than last year but still not good enough. I know our competition went up over last week with Alabama and ASU coming to town, but we need to contain our turnovers now before Big 12 games start. I feel that if we can have less than 12 turnovers in the next two non-conference games against North Carolina A&T and Florida A&M we will be back on the right track for the Big 12 play. Turnovers will be a very interesting trend to watch over the course of conference play.

Field Goal Percentage | Tech is #77 in the nation in field goal percentage. That is not something to be ashamed of but we were a lot higher than 77th before last week. As a team Tech is making 45.6% of every shot they put up. Our number went down in the Alabama game as we ended up with a 37.9% and Arizona State was 43.1%. When I watch our team inside the three point arc we usually take good shots. Even when our shots are contested we have very good close and mid-range shooters on this team. The problem is when our opponents are better defensively they take away the more easy inside and mid-range shots causing us to take lower percentage long-range shots. We need to find a way to get the ball inside and create space to keep taking high percentage shots.

Pick and Pop | Over the last week I have been carefully studying the offense each game. Our team doesn’t seem to run many offensive sets, but instead runs a lot of pick and pop plays to try and get the deep shot or drive all the way to the basket. For those that are not familiar with a pick and pop, it is just a pick and roll with the player setting the screen popping out away from the basket instead of rolling towards the hoop. It doesn’t seem to be working as great as it did earlier in the season for us. Also, a pick and pop team is usually a great three point shooting team which is not our strength right now. Our strength is our inside guys of Tolbert and Crockett (who I was ecstatic about finally being in the starting line-up against ASU) and I think we need to find a way to get the ball in their hands more by running a few more sets with post screens.

Losing Streak | Our losing streak is at 3 in a row right now, and the loss to McNeese State was a big stinger to start our skid. We have North Carolina A&T and Florida A&M who we NEED to beat before Big 12 games start up. The team looks like they still are learning one another and haven’t been able to be comfortable enough to play together for one whole game. We need these next two games to come out and play well together and gain back some of the confidence we had at the beginning of the season. For anyone that was able to watch the Alabama game you could see the team having fun playing and doing very well in the 2nd half of that game. The other two games against McNeese State and Arizona State, and the 1st half of the Alabama game it didn’t look like the guys were having any fun at all. I’d like to come out these next two games and cream our opponents and have a good time while doing it. Wreck ‘em Tech!

Texas Tech Red Raider Basketball Questions

DanSwany — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 20:48:56 -0000

Q: Will Texas Tech keep shooting over 21 three point shots per game?

A: No. They shouldn’t. While I don’t have a problem with a team shooting a lot of downtown shots to keep the opponents D from backing down inside, I would stray away from the "live by the three die by the three" philosophy if you are going to constantly die by it. I think it’s vital we become a better three point shooting team before throwing up as many treys as we do. Tech has shot 170 threes over 8 games, and made 46 of them. That’s a three point percentage of 27.1% and we rank #325 out of 347 schools in this category. Tech should still bomb a few every game to help create space for drives and passing the ball down low from the perimeter. But, we need to starting making a few more for the other team to believe it’s worth guarding our three shots or else they will back inside to crowd the lane whether we shoot the deep ball or not.

Q: Will Jaye Crockett be the Texas Tech leading scorer for the 8^th straight game?

A: Yes. I love watching Jaye play ball! I can’t say enough good things about this guy. The ESPN announcers during the Alabama game said the coaching staff told them Jaye is the hardest worker in practice and always gives 100%. He has turned into one of the main leaders on this team, and has a chance to be one of the best players in the Big 12 if he keeps it up. He currently is ranked #2 in the Big 12 in both scoring 16.4 ppg, and rebounding 8.9 rpg. I just don’t see him slowing down anytime soon. I hope he does it again in the Arizona State game, and I do think he will.

Q: Who will have the best success guarding Arizona State 7’2’’ Jordan Bachynski next game?

A: I’m going for a long shot on this one, but I am going to give 6’11’ Dejan Kravic a chance. Kravic plays more like a forward then a center and Bachynski (10.6 ppg, 7.5 rpg, and 4.8 bpg) will challenge Kravic down low. A few games back Bachynski had 13 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 blocks and set a single game record for being ASU’s first ever player to record a triple double. Bachynski is much improved from last year, but he still is only 250 pounds to Kravic at 240 pounds and Bachynski sometimes is known for his tendency to not be aggressive or tough enough inside. This is a problem Kravic has too. It’d be nice to see Kravic do a good job against this guy, because if he doesn’t we will turn to Tolbert to use his power and strength against Bachynski. Tolbert was a force last game in Alabama, and I hope he keeps it going into this ASU battle no matter who he expected to defend. I hope Kravic doesn’t let us down and has a good showing against Bachynski. Wreck ‘em Tech!