Game Info
Good Guys: Texas Tech Red Raiders (7-2, 1-1)
Bad Guys: Incarnate Word Cardinals (1-3, 0-0)
When to Watch: Tuesday, December 29th @ 6:00 p.m.
Where to Watch: United Supermarkets Arena | Lubbock, Texas
How to Watch: ESPN2 | WatchESPN | ESPN+
How to Listen: 97.3 FM | Affiliates | TuneIn App
The Line: No line on OddsShark, but said to be Texas Tech -33
Advanced Stats
| TEXAS TECH | INCARNATE WORD | |
|---|---|---|
| KenPom | 11 | 344 |
| KP AdjO | 58 | 334 |
| KP AdjD | 1 | 350 |
| T-Rank | 8 | 312 |
| T-Rank O | 68 | 263 |
| T-Rank D | 1 | 327 |
| Haslemetric | 7 | 330 |
Lineups
| THE STARTERS | Pts / Reb | |
|---|---|---|
| POINT GUARD | Mac McClung (6-2/185) | 14.1 / 3.1* |
| SHOOTING GUARD | Kyler Edwards (6-4/195) | 11.1 / 3.6* |
| SMALL FORWARD | Terrence Shannon, Jr. (6-6/210) | 11.8 / 4.7 |
| POWER FORWARD | Micah Peavy (6-7/215) | 6.9 / 2.7 |
| CENTER | Marcus Santos-Silva (6-7/245) | 8.1 / 7.6 |
| THE BENCH | Pts / Reb | |
| SIXTH MAN | Jamarius Burton (6-4/205) | 5.3 / 2.3* |
| SEVENTH MAN | Nimari Burnett (6-4/195) | 6.3 / 2.3 |
| EIGHTH MAN | Tyreek Smith (6-7/220) | 3.9 / 2.7 |
| NINTH MAN | Chibuzo Agbo (6-7/215) | 2.0 / 1.3 |
| TENTH MAN | Clarence Nadolny (6-3/190) | 2.1 / 0.6 |
| ELEVENTH MAN | Vladislov Goldin (7-0/240) | 3.0 / 2.3 |
| TWELFTH MAN | Avery Benson (6-4/195) | 1.4 / 1.1 |
| THIRTEENTH MAN | Kevin McCullar (6-6/195) | – / – |
| THE STARTERS | Pts / Reb | |
| POINT GUARD | Drew Lutz (6-1/165) | 8.3 / 3.3* |
| SHOOTING GUARD | Des Balentine (6-0/178) | 7.3 / 3.0* |
| SMALL FORWARD | Brandon Swaby (6-3/170) | 6.3 / 3.3 |
| POWER FORWARD | Keaston Willis (6-3/180) | 20.3 / 6.5 |
| CENTER | Marcus Larsson (6-11/207) | 10.0 / 8.8 |
| THE BENCH | Pts / Reb | |
| SIXTH MAN | Josh Morgan (6-3/205) | 14.0 / 1.7 |
| SEVENTH MAN | Bradley Akhile (6-7/200) | 3.8 / 1.3 |
| EIGHTH MAN | Godsgift Ezedinma (6-7/200) | 4.3 / 3.3 |
| NINTH MAN | Logan Bracamonte (6-5/190) | 0.0 / 1.0 |
| TENTH MAN | Dakota Reber (6-6/185) | 0.0 / 0.0 |
* Assists.
Starting 5
1. Stats. I think this may be the last of the “not really great” opponents that Texas Tech faces. I don’t have the numbers in front of me, but I think Texas Tech has played a handful of 300+ ranked teams and that’s not exactly great competition. Regardless, Beard focused on regional opponents who could bus to Lubbock and I’m fine with that. The schedule was re-worked late and here we are. Incarnate Word is a weird team. They don’t rebound well (starting 4 guards will do that) and they don’t shoot many free throws. They are 268th inside the arc, they shoot free throws at a terrible rate, 316th, and they get lots of shots blocked, 303rd. The one thing they do really well, which isn’t a surprise, is that they make 43% of their three-point shots, good for 7th in the nation. On the defensive side, they are great at defending the perimeter, 69th (nice) in the nation in defending the three-point line, and they don’t block any shots. What they do terribly? Defend anything inside the three-point line, 305th in the nation in anything inside the arc.
2. Scouting. Willis and Morgan are the best offensive players. Willis shoots the most three-point shot on the team and he makes 33%, while Morgan has made 63%. Incarnate Word has only played 5 games, so the same size is really small, but it’s what we have and I’d imagine they won’t be as good shooting the ball as they have been. Balentine has a good steal rate, while Lutz has an excellent assist rate. Willis and Morgan are the most productive offensive players with Willis getting a ton of the volume and usage. Larson and Ezedinma are the team’s best rebounders. And how about that first name for Ezedinma, Godsgift!
3. How They Match Up. Such a strange lineup for Incarnate Word, 4 guards, none of whom are over 6’5″ and a big center that is productive and does protect the rim really well, but has lost 3 of 4 games. Their lone win was aainst Our Lady of the Lake, but played Wyoming to overtime, Texas State within 8, and a loss to Rice was only by 15 points. Texas Tech should have some clear advantages here in rebounding and defense and I would love to see Kevin McCullar.
4. Tweet of the Day. Beard does say that Kevin McCullar is a game-time decision, just like the rest of us.
“Our objective is to win the game and also get better as a team.” pic.twitter.com/oef299XIp9
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) December 28, 2020
5. Official Site. The official site has their preview right here:
Texas Tech will begin a three-game home stand by hosting Incarnate Word at 6 p.m. on Tuesday in a non-conference game before returning to Big 12 play against Oklahoma State on Saturday, Jan. 2 and Kansas State on Tuesday, Jan. 5 at the United Supermarkets Arena.
The No. 13-ranked Red Raiders (7-2, 1-1 Big 12) enter the final week on the 2020 calendar ranked fourth in the nation by limiting teams to only 54.0 points per game through nine games and are sixth with a 7.9 turnover margin advantage and ninth with 19.56 turnovers forced per game. TTU, which is coming off a 69-67 road win over Oklahoma on Dec. 22, leads the Big 12 and is 14th in the nation by holding opponents to 36.6 percent shooting. The team has 71 steals, topping the conference and coming in at 24th nationally. Tech ranks first nationally in defensive efficiency by kenpom.com and Haslametrics.com.