Texas Tech Red Raiders: 24-9, 11-7 in the Big 12
Head coach: Chris Beard (Second season)
Players to watch: Keenan Evans (17.4 PPG, 3.2 APG), Zhaire Smith (11.5 PPG, 4.8 RPG), Jarrett Culver (11.2 PPG, 4.7 RPG)
Season recap: The Red Raiders were one of the biggest surprises of the college basketball season, emerging behind second-year head coach Chris Beard to legitimately challenge Kansas at the top of the Big 12. Texas Tech had a statement win in Lawrence against the Jayhawks at the start of conference play and looked poised to snap Kansas’ streak of Big 12 regular-season titles before fading down the stretch. However, it is a battle-tested team with victories including West Virginia, Oklahoma, Baylor and TCU.
The Red Raiders’ rise was built on the back of their stifling defense. The team holds opponents to just 40.2 percent shooting from the field and 32.0 percent from beyond the arc, only allowing 64.5 points per game. The pressure man-to-man scheme helped Texas Tech defy expectations after being picked seventh in the preseason Big-12 poll.
The Red Raiders have struggled offensively at times, particularly recently as star guard Keenan Evans battled an injury, helping contribute to a four-game losing streak towards the end of the year. But when healthy, Evans is one of the best players in the country, scoring 38 to lead Texas Tech past Texas and 26 to knock off Oklahoma. He is the undisputed center of the offense and typically, the Red Raiders go as their senior leader does.
How they make a run: The defense remains its usual suffocating self, limiting teams and allowing Texas Tech to dictate the game. This coupled with Evans getting fully healthy and taking his performances up a level in March leads to a Shabazz Napier and Connecticut-type championship run.
How they falter: Their defense is solid, but Evans cannot fully recover and the offense falters, causing to the Red Raiders getting stuck in close games in the early rounds before being eliminated in the second round.
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