Game Links
Game Recap
Tortilla Tossin’ Player of the Game: I think I’ll go with Davion Warren, but I’ve only got 7 options so the pickens are slim. Warren scored 12 points on 4 of 11 from the field, just 1 rebound, 2 assists, and led the team with 4 turnovers. Not perfect by any means, but I’m going with it.
Multi-Purpose Player of the Game: Arms may have been the better and more important player, but he scored just 7 points on 3 of 9, but grabbed 8 rebounds, had 2 assists, 2 turnovers, and 4 steals.
Game Notes:
- Can it be true that there’s no way that you should be in a game and also no way that you should have lost a game? I do not know how Texas Tech kept this close (I do and we’ll talk about that) and yet I’m frustrated that Texas Tech didn’t hit enough free throws to win this game. I can even handle missing all of the three-point shots, but not the missed free throws and I sort of feel that this one slipped away. Now, if I’m Iowa State, I’m asking what the hell am I because they should have blown the doors off of that team as they were at full strength.
- I don’t want to sound too down because this team fought really hard. They were in a game they had no business being in and they played well enough to win on the road in the Big 12. So yeah, credit to Mark Adams, the coaches, and players for nearly pulling that off. Heck, from a pure conditioning standpoint, I don’t know how Texas Tech managed to stay in the game. So there’s a sense of pride to an extent, but disappointment too. Both can be true.
- The technical foul on Nadolny was weak AF.
- Defensively, that’s as good as of a game that I’ve seen Texas Tech play. The cyclones were held to 31% from the floor and 28% from beyond the arc with 18 turnovers and just 9 assists on the night. Iowa State could find no rhythm and Texas Tech’s defenders were responsible for that.
- One of the things i dislike about Williams’ game was that he didn’t contribute any other way other than scoring really. Obanor continues to have issues finding his shot, which doesn’t make much sense to me, but he did grab 10 rebounds and thought he played really good defense. I’d also state that Williams desire to just put his head down and dribble seems counterproductive to the flow of the offense. That’s not what his job should be. The possession with about a minute left is excluded from this thought.
- The offensive flow in the last 5 minutes was better than the other 35 minutes. I get why they really couldn’t find their way because the guys who normally lead the offense weren’t playing, but it just seemed disjointed for the most part and I would have appreciated an offense that drew from more set plays than trying to flow their way through the game. Even the Arms’ missed 3-point shot was fine because it was open and the ball swung. I think if they had to do that all over again, they’d run more set pieces with a smaller roster.
- By the end of the game, the missed free throws, only 6 of 15, and the lack of a true shot creator on the floor led to the loss. A couple of missed passes late were an issue, but to go 40 minutes and be in the game without a shot-creator says a lot too.
- Curious as to who was a net positive for Box Score +/-? Arms, Nadolny, and Santos-Silva were the only ones in the positive. Obanor and Warren were the worst players overall.
- Texas Tech dominated the paint, 28 to 6, while Iowa State scored 21 off the bench to just 6 for Texas Tech.
- Head coach Mark Adams: “I’m really proud of the way our guys came out and performed. Obviously we didn’t shoot the ball very well and missed key free throws, but the effort was outstanding. We felt like at halftime we couldn’t have played much worse and we still felt like we could win the game. We fought until the very end. This is something we can build.”
- Up next? Kansas at home on Saturday, tip-off is at 3:00 pm. Playing Kansas with potentially 7. Let’s do this.
Highlights