Game Links:
Tortilla Tossin’ Player of the Game: Picking a player here is tough, but going with Fardaws Aimaq who finished with 13 points on 6 of 14 from the field, 18 rebounds (7 of them offensive), 1 steal and a turnover.
The Motion:
- Of course it would end that way. A fluky rebound put back by McCullar to seal the deal, while Texas Tech would miss critical free throws to either tie the game or go ahead, and a final shot that was a prayer when the refs weren’t calling anything. That’s way too negative, but it still stings. I didn’t like the shot to try to go ahead for Pop Isaacs, I thought that with Aimaq doing so much damage inside, that something could have been done there or even let Harmon who has the physicality to drive and finish at the rim as a better shot.
- Both teams would struggle to shoot the ball well, Texas Tech shot 41% from the field and 19% from deep with Kansas shooting 39% and 22%. The difference was the free throws, Kansas would end up making 18 of 22 free throws, while Texas Tech made 10 of 14 opportunities. I could complain that it wasn’t even, i thought that Texas Tech got bumped inside but wasn’t called, while Wilson seemed to get a handful of calls where he was bumped. I’d still add that Texas Tech missed the critical ones, Harmon missed the back-end to a 1-1, while Aimaq missed the front-end.
- Some stats. Texas Tech out-rebounded Kansas 42-33, including 10 offensive boards to just 4 for Kansas. Texas Tech had 10 turnovers to just 5 for Kansas, so Texas Tech was able to get additional shots by grabbing those offensive boards. Kansas would score 12 off the break, to just 6 for Texas Tech.
- Choosing a TTPOTG was tough and normally Harmon would maybe earn this, but he had 4 turnovers, which were costly, and only 2 assists.
- Jaylon Tyson grabbed 13 rebounds and led the team with 3 assists, but was just 3 of 9 from the field and had 6 points. It is still nice to see that even though he struggles offensively he’s contributing in other ways. He’s by far my favorite player to watch for the team right now.
- Elijah Fisher continues to give the bench their most important minutes from the bench and was subbed in for defense.
- Defensively, the most interesting thing is that in prior games, Kansas would absolutely kill Texas Tech on the swing of the ball and get open shots really easily. That didn’t happen and the defensive rotations were absolutely spectacular last night.
- Head coach Mark Adams: “I thought both teams had struggles on the offensive end, but I thought they made some big plays down the stretch. Especially in the last couple of minutes. It was the difference in the game and that’s what Kansas does – they’re home-court advantage. They know how to win in late games and they did it again against us. I was proud of our guys. I thought we fought hard, and I thought we got better tonight. We’ll just keep moving forward.”
- Up next? Oklahoma State at home on Saturday, March 4th, with tip-off at 5:00 p.m. and broadcast on ESPN2.
Highlights