Game Info
Good Guys: Texas Tech Red Raiders (3-0, 0-0)
Bad Guys: Villanova Wildcats (3-1, 0-0)
When to Watch: Wednesday, November 22nd @ 1:30 pm
Where to Watch: Imperial Arena | Paradise Island, Bahamas
How to Watch: ESPN | WatchESPN
How to Listen: 97.3 FM | Affiliates | Varsity Network
The Line: Villanova -2.5
Advanced Stats
| TEXAS TECH | STAT | VILLANOVA |
|---|---|---|
Lineups
| THE STARTERS | Pts / Reb | |
|---|---|---|
| POINT GUARD | Joe Toussaint (6-0/195) | 11.3 / 1.3* |
| SHOOTING GUARD | Pop Isaacs (6-2/180) | 11.7 / 3.3* |
| SMALL FORWARD | Devan Cambridge (6-6/210) | 7.0 / 4.3 |
| POWER FORWARD | Darrion Williams (6-8/225) | 11.0 / 9.0 |
| CENTER | Warren Washington (7-0/235) | 9.7 / 8.3 |
| THE BENCH | Pts / Reb | |
| SIXTH MAN | Chance McMillian (6-3/185) | 8.3 / 4.7 |
| SEVENTH MAN | Lamar Washington (6-4/200) | 5.3 / 3.7 |
| EIGHTH MAN | Robert Jennings (6-7/230) | 0.7 / 1.3 |
| NINTH MAN | Kerwin Walton (6-5/210) | 1.5 / 0.5 |
| TENTH MAN | Eemeli Yalaho (6-8/240) | 0.7 / 0.0 |
| ELEVENTH MAN | D’Maurian Williams (6-3/195) | 2.0 / 0.0 |
| TWELFTH MAN | KyeRon Lindsay (6-8/215) | – / – |
| THIRTEENTH MAN | Drew Steffe (6-5/200) | – / – |
| FOURTEENTH MAN | Jack Francis (6-3/185) | – / – |
| THE STARTERS | Pts / Reb | |
| POINT GUARD | Mark Armstrong (6-2/180) | 6.5 / 1.8* |
| SHOOTING GUARD | TJ Bamba (6-5/215) | 11.3 / 2.3* |
| SMALL FORWARD | Justin Moore (6-5/210) | 16.0 / 3.8 |
| POWER FORWARD | Tyler Burton (6-7/215) | 11.8 / 8.3 |
| CENTER | Eric Dixon (6-8/255) | 8.5 / 7.3 |
| THE BENCH | Pts / Reb | |
| SIXTH MAN | Hakim Hart (6-8/205) | 5.3 / 3.8 |
| SEVENTH MAN | Brendan Hausen (6-4/205) | 6.8 / 1.5 |
| EIGHTH MAN | Jordan Longino (6-5/215) | 8.3 / 1.8 |
| NINTH MAN | Lance Ware (6-9/235) | 0.5 / 2.5 |
| TENTH MAN | Nnanna Njoku (6-9/260) | 1.0 / 1.7 |
* Assists.
Starting 5
1. Stats. Oh, well, Villanova is a terrific offensive team, shooting a very respectable 58% eFG%, good for 59th in the nation, and decent in turnover percentage, 74th in the nation. Where the Wildcats really excel is free throw percentage, 4th in the nation and two-point shooting is 54th in the nation. Defensively, Villanova does a terrific job of stopping teams inside the arc, 19th in the nation. Nova is 213th in forcing turnovers and 200th in free throw rate, so those are items to potentially exploit.
2. Scouting. TJ Bamba is a high-end shooter, 44% from deep, a low turnover rate, and has a low usage rate, so you can think that he’s a good shooter overall. Justin Moore has a higher usage rate, and is taking a ton of shots inside the arc, but outside he’s just shooting 31%. Tyler Burton and Eric Dixon are hte best rebounders, Dixon is better overall, and a better shooter, while Dixon is right there. Both are big men and can shoot from deep.
3. How They Match Up. We need to have a discussion about the turnovers, 319th in the nation, and the shooting, 353rd in the nation. Also, Texas Tech is getting blocked by patsy teams at a terrible rate, 358th in the nation. Offensively, these are all things that need to be remedied, otherwise it will be a very long season. I absolutely get that the defense is good, but making baskets in basketball is important. And Texas Tech is very good defensively, 7th in the nation in opposing team 3-point percentage, and 38th in forcing turnovers and 2nd in opponent free throw rate. Defensively, there are things that are good, but offensively, a lot needs to be fixed.
4. lagniappe | something given as a bonus or extra gift.
pre-@B4AOfficial thoughts 🗣 pic.twitter.com/sUCvT1sha1
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) November 21, 2023
5. Official Site. The official site has their preview right here:
The Red Raiders (3-0) and Wildcats (3-1) are meeting for only the second time after a 2018 NCAA Elite 8 matchup that Villanova won in Boston on its way to winning the 2018 National Championship. The Red Raiders, who seek the 21st 4-0 start in program history, are back in the Bahamas where the program went during a 2019 Summer Tour following their appearance in the 2019 National Championship final that featured games against the Bahamas National Team and Mega Bemax (Serbia). The program is competing in its second straight prestigious Thanksgiving week tournament after also playing in the 2022 Maui Jim Invitational.
At Battle 4 Atlantis, the winners of the Tech-Villanova game and the No. 14 North Carolina-Northern Iowa matchup will play at 1:30 p.m. (CST) on Thursday while the losers of the first-round games will play at 11 a.m. to begin Thanksgiving Day. On the other side of the bracket is Michigan, Memphis, No. 20 Arkansas, and Stanford. The championship game is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on Friday.