Red Raiders tested defensively, Toppin & Watts make their debut
Texas Tech has been hammered with injuries early in the season so far, but JT Toppin and LeJuan Watts were back on the floor tonight to make their season debut. Toppin ended with 31 points and 14 rebounds, and Watts had 11 points and six rebounds in his first game as a Red Raider. Despite these performances, fatigue was a factor tonight against an aggressive and well-coached Sam Houston squad.
The Bearkats kept the game close throughout the whole first half, but the Red Raiders were able to pull away a little bit and go into halftime with a 10-point lead. The second half is when Tech began to create even more separation, but Sam Houston did not back down.
“I thought Sam Houston State played really hard. They were physical…they were competitive. I thought they were more physical than we were for majority of the game, and I thought it showed,” head coach Grant McCasland told the media afterwards. “You can tell we haven’t practiced as a whole very enough to be at our best yet…we weren’t good enough defensively tonight in a lot of stretches, and we’ve got a ways to go.”
McCasland’s thoughts on individual performances
It was expected that Toppin and Anderson would come out and have a big night. Still, McCasland liked seeing Tyeree Bryan get more comfortable and make his presence known in the second half. Also impressive was Donovan Atwell, who shot 6-11 from behind the arc. The transfers, combined with the returners, are beginning to gel and continue to build chemistry.
“I thought his (Anderson) floor game was tremendous. He just made the right plays… Tyeree Bryant played awesome tonight too, man. He was great that second half. He made a three in front of the top of the key. He got the offensive rebound tip, and he got the back door cut that got fouled like he started guarding the ball in the middle of the floor. You’re starting to see him,” McCasland said. “Donovan doesn’t lack confidence. He’s got a great set up and shoots it quick enough to where, literally, you got to go really take it away on the catch. You can’t be late. And so he is definitely a recipient of JT’s ability to get double teamed.”
“Does JT make the right play, or what? I mean, like, honestly, he’s got a good heart for our team, and he wants to make the right play… he’s gotten better, and he’ll keep getting better,” McCasland said. “His ball handling is tight. I mean, he doesn’t turn the ball over.”
Still improving defensively
The state of the defense is obviously not where McCasland wants it to be, but that still leaves plenty of room for improvement. Because of fatigue and guys still trying to get back into the rhythm of playing, the Red Raiders didn’t match the Bearkats’ physicality for several moments during the game. Now, with a big road test against Illinois on Tuesday, keeping up defensively and maintaining an aggressive presence will be key.
“The biggest thing to me was the offensive rebounds. I mean, they ended up with, I think, 18 on the night, and that’s way too many. I mean, 18 offensive and 19 defensive. So in a game like this, that was the area that gave me the most concern…you earn it between the lines. What your name says on the front of the jersey does not determine the outcome. It’s how you play when you play. And they, I thought they played better than we did the first half,” McCasland said. “You can tell those guys that didn’t play aren’t in good enough shape. JT will get there. He started cramping during the game… we’ve got the right pieces. We’ve just got to keep getting better.”
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