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Texas Tech basketball tries to buck recent trend at Oklahoma State: Scouting report, predictions
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- Texas Tech basketball tries to buck recent trend at Oklahoma State: Scouting report, predictions
Coming back from a 16-point deficit to knock off West Virginia on the road, the Texas Tech basketball team appeared to reignite the spark that had diminished through a tough February.
The Red Raiders took the Mountaineers' best shot, absorbed it and then grabbed the game by the throat. Leading by as many as 13 in the second half, the 29-point swing led to an 81-70 triumph in Morgantown.
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Snapping out of the cold spell was reassuring on many fronts, for both the team and its fans. Moving to 20-9 overall and 9-7 in Big 12 play, Texas Tech has achieved the two win totals placed before the conference season that all-but-guarantee a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
Before that can happen, the Red Raiders have two final regular season games and the Big 12 Tournament to get through.
Looking ahead a tad, Texas Tech is now assured of a first-round bye in the conference tournament — starting play March 13, the second round of the tourney, rather than March 12, which is the first round. A double-bye — earning a top 4 seed in the tournament, starting play on March 14 — is still very much in play for the Red Raiders.
To reach that coveted position, the Red Raiders have to keep winning.
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LAST TIME OUT: Toussaint leads Texas Tech basketball to much-needed comeback win over West Virginia
Some will look ahead to the finale on Saturday against Baylor, but the first rematch of the week — Tuesday at Oklahoma State — shouldn't be discounted for one specific reason.
Texas Tech hasn't won a game in Stillwater in five years.
The last Tech team to win inside Gallagher-Iba Arena was the 2018-19 squad. Each of the last four contests in Stillwater have been decided by five points or less with Oklahoma State winning each.
Oklahoma State's season hasn't been great, and the future of head coach Mike Boynton has been questioned throughout. However, the Cowboys have also found a bit of a groove late in the season. Before the team's 16-point loss at Texas on Saturday, Oklahoma State had a stretch of five straight games being decided by single digits.
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Even with a down February, big things are still there for the Red Raiders to grasp as long as they keep that fire burning the rest of the way.
Texas Tech's Darrion Williams goes for a layup against Oklahoma State in a Big 12 conference basketball game, Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, at United Supermarkets Arena.
Trends to watch
Grant McCasland is one win away from tying the late Bob Knight for the second-most wins in the regular season for first-year Texas Tech head coach. Knight tallied 21 victories while McCasland sits at 20. Mark Adams holds this distinction with 23 regular-season victories in his first year as head coach.
Another victory would also put Texas Tech at 10 Big 12 victories this season, which would be just the seventh time in the conference's 28 years of existence the Red Raiders have reached double-digit win totals.
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Warren Washington missed his fourth game in Tech's last five contests with his nagging foot issue. His status for Tuesday is unknown. KyeRon Lindsay, who had been part of the committee to fill in in Washington's absence, did not make the trip to Morgantown.
DIAMOND TALK: Damian Bravo has sixth straight multi-RBI game: Texas Tech baseball takeaways
Key statistic
Even without Washington, the Red Raiders still won the rebounding battle against West Virginia. Oklahoma State is even worse at crashing the boards, ranking 14th (behind Texas Tech at 13th) in rebounding margin (negative-4.7).
Score prediction: Texas Tech 78, Oklahoma State 70
Bottom line: It was one game against the worst team in the conference, but the comeback against West Virginia showed Texas Tech still has fight left in it. This is a chance to prove it again.
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Big 12 Men's Basketball
Texas Tech at Oklahoma State
When: Tuesday, 7 p.m.
Where: Gallagher-Iba Arena; Stillwater, Okla.
TV: ESPN+
Records: Texas Tech 20-9, 9-7; Oklahoma State 12-17, 4-12
Notable: Texas Tech has not won in Stillwater since the 2018-19 season. That marks four consecutive losses in Gallagher-Iba Arena for the Red Raiders.
Big 12 Basketball Standings (Entering the week)
Team Overall Conference
Houston 26-3 13-3
Iowa State 23-6 12-4
Baylor 21-8 10-6
Texas Tech 20-9 9-7
BYU 21-8 9-7
Kansas 21-8 9-7
Texas 19-10 8-8
TCU 19-10 8-8
Oklahoma 19-10 7-9
Kansas State 17-12 7-9
Cincinnati 17-12 6-10
UCF 15-13 6-10
Oklahoma State 12-17 4-12
West Virginia 9-20 4-12
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Texas Tech basketball tries to buck recent trend at Oklahoma State
