Game Info
Good Guys: Texas Tech Red Raiders (11-2, 0-0)
Bad Guys: Texas Longhorns (11-2, 0-0)
When to Watch: Saturday, January 6th @ 7:00 pm
Where to Watch: Moody Center | Austin, Texas
How to Watch: ESPN2 | WatchESPN
How to Listen: 97.3 FM | Affiliates | Varsity Network
The Line: Texas -3.5
Advanced Stats
| TEXAS TECH | STAT | TEXAS |
|---|---|---|
Lineups
| THE STARTERS | Pts / Reb | |
|---|---|---|
| POINT GUARD | Joe Toussaint (6-0/195) | 14.3 / 4.1* |
| SHOOTING GUARD | Pop Isaacs (6-2/180) | 15.8 / 3.4* |
| SMALL FORWARD | Kerwin Walton (6-5/210) | 7.4 / 1.7 |
| POWER FORWARD | Darrion Williams (6-8/225) | 9.5 / 7.0 |
| CENTER | Warren Washington (7-0/235) | 9.1 / 8.4 |
| THE BENCH | Pts / Reb | |
| SIXTH MAN | Chance McMillian (6-3/185) | 9.3 / 3.5 |
| SEVENTH MAN | Lamar Washington (6-4/200) | 3.6 / 2.3 |
| EIGHTH MAN | Robert Jennings (6-7/230) | 2.7 / 2.8 |
| NINTH MAN | KyeRon Lindsay (6-8/215) | 2.0 / 0.0 |
| TENTH MAN | Eemeli Yalaho (6-8/240) | 0.3 / 0.3 |
| ELEVENTH MAN | D’Maurian Williams (6-3/195) | 0.4 / 0.4 |
| TWELFTH MAN | Jack Francis (6-3/185) | 0.7 / 0.3 |
| THIRTEENTH MAN | Devan Cambridge (6-6/210) | Out for Year |
| THE STARTERS | Pts / Reb | |
| POINT GUARD | Max Abmas (6-0/175) | 17.3 / 4.4* |
| SHOOTING GUARD | Ithiel Horton (6-5/200) | 8.8 / 3.0 |
| SMALL FORWARD | Brock Cunningham (6-6/210) | 5.8 / 5.2 |
| POWER FORWARD | Dillon Mitchell (6-8/205) | 11.0 / 9.3 |
| CENTER | Kadin Shedrick (6-11/231) | 11.8 / 4.3 |
| THE BENCH | Pts / Reb | |
| SIXTH MAN | Dylan Disu (6-9/225) | 11.5 / 3.3 |
| SEVENTH MAN | Chris Johnson (6-5/180) | 6.5 / 1.6 |
| EIGHTH MAN | Chendall Weaver (6-3/180) | 4.2 / 2.5 |
| NINTH MAN | Ze’Rik Onyema (6-8/235) | 4.8 / 2.9 |
| TENTH MAN | Tyrese Hunter (6-0/175) | 12.7 / 4.5* |
* Assists.
Before we start . . . we have things to discuss. Yesterday afternoon, Pop Isaacs was named in a civil lawsuit, yes, civil lawsuit, alleging he had inappropriate relations with a minor. Alleging is always key here and you can read about it at the link and if you’re smart you can figure out why Drew Steffe is not part of the program any longer. Texas Tech responded last night:
According to the lawsuit, Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland was contacted by the plaintiffs Dec. 14. McCasland reported the situation to athletic director Kirby Hocutt and other university officials, it says.
In a statement later Friday night, Texas Tech said once it became aware of the allegations, they were immediately reported to its Title IX office, which commenced its own investigation. According to the school, the athletics department reached out twice to the Title IX office — which operates independently — and was told each time that based on the information it has, Isaacs “remains in good standing, and there is no reason to withhold him from University activities, including basketball competition.”
Texas Tech added that the Title IX office “will continue to follow its process until it is completed, regardless of the civil lawsuit.”
Starting 5
1. Stats. Texas and Texas Tech are similarly situated teams and please note the Haslemetrics value for Texas. The expected outcome for this game is Texas 72.77 and Texas Tech 71.55. Interesting! Texas is a good shooting team, 61st in 3-point shooting and 43rd in 2-point shots. The only thing that they aren’t great at is free throw rate, 223rd, and they are okay at turnovers, 160th overall. Defensively, Texas is fantastic at holding opponents inside the arc, 13th on opponent 2-point shots and they are 12th in block percentage. They aren’t great at guarding 3-point shots, 108th overall and they also allow opponents to gather offensive boards, 181st.
2. Scouting. Abmas is so good at shooting and dishing out assists, but he’s not great at anything else (which is fine because he’s really good at the first two things). Abmas shoots 54% inside the arc and 38% outside. Shedrick is a fantastic guy inside, terrific shot-blocker and has a ton of steals and the one guy that gets to the line. He also shots well inside. Mitchell is the best rebounder and always a threat inside the arc. I should mention that Hunter didn’t start at Texas’ last game against UTA, not sure what the deal is, but if he plays, he’s very good.
3. How They Match Up. The Shedrick and Washington should be excellent, two very good bigs and the matchup with Toussaint guarding Abmas will also be fascinating. I also don’t know if Hunter plays, but that makes a big difference in the Texas lineup. Texas Tech doesn’t allow teams to get to the line very much so if Texas gets to the line, you should wonder if the officials have a tight whistle.
4. lagniappe | something given as a bonus or extra gift.
On starting Big 12 play at No. 20 Texas on Saturday. #TTW pic.twitter.com/03vQfGF4jA
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) January 5, 2024
5. Official Site. The official site has their preview right here:
Pop Isaacs is leading Tech with 15.8 points per game this season, including going for 21 points on New Year’s Day in a 28-point win over North Alabama following a career-high 28 points in a 36-point victory over Sam Houston in the previous game. Isaacs earned Big 12 Player of the Week honors on Tuesday – the first conference weekly awards in his career. Isaacs had 23 points against the Longhorns last season in Austin, hitting five 3-pointers in a 72-70 loss in Tech’s first game at Moody Center and a defeat that snapped a four-game road winning streak against Texas. Joe Toussaint leads Tech this season with 4.1 assists and is also averaging 14.3 points per game, while Warren Washington is at 9.1 points, 8.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.7 blocks per game.
The Red Raiders are playing their first ranked opponent of the season and second true road game and are 0-1 after a 103-95 overtime loss at Butler back on November 30 in Indianapolis. Chance McMillian led Tech in that road game with 24 points after he made a career-high 3-pointers. Texas is currently 9-0 on its home court following wins over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, UNC Greensboro, and UT Arlington over the past two weeks. Max Abmas is leading the Longhorns with 17.2 points and 4.4 assists per game after transferring from Oral Roberts, while Tyrese Hunter is at 12.7 points and 4.5 assists in his second season at UT after transferring from Iowa State. Kadi Shedrick, a Virginia transfer, is adding 11.8 ppg. while Dillon Mitchell is leading the team with 9.3 rebounds, 19 total blocks, and is at 11.0 ppg. in his sophomore season. The only losses for the Longhorns this season came against Connecticut and at Marquette.