Although there was plenty of offense, Texas Tech’s defense turned the tide in a 102-80 triumph over visiting Oklahoma State on Saturday as the teams opened the Big 12 Conference season in Lubbock, Texas.
Balanced scoring and 21 assists on 37 made shots were key for Texas Tech (11-3, 1-0), and JT Toppin helped his team control the boards 48-36.
The Cowboys entered the league campaign as the second-best offense in the Big 12, but it was the Red Raiders who notched their highest scoring offense this season.
All five Red Raider starters finished in double figures, with Toppin leading the way with 23 points and 14 rebounds. Christian Anderson had a double-double with 19 points and a career-high 13 assists and LeJuan Watts also scored 19 and grabbed 9 rebounds.
Anthony Roy paced the Cowboys (12-2, 0-1) with 22 points, and big man Parsa Fallah scored 20. Those two combined to make 14 of 22 field goals — Roy was 6 of 8 from 3-point range — but Oklahoma State struggled to get much from anyone else in a fifth straight loss to the Red Raiders.
Besides Roy and Fallah, the other Cowboys struggled to make shots, finishing a combined 15 of 45. They missed 12 of their first 17 attempts in the second half.
Trailing 46-38 at halftime after erasing half of a 16-point deficit, OSU struggled to pull away after halftime with just one point in the first 4 1/2 minutes. This allowed Texas Tech to take control, shooting 53.8% as fuel.
The Red Raiders were hot from beyond the 3-point arc most of the day and finished 17 of 37 from deep. OSU never found its rhythm in this department and finished 8 of 26 – everyone except Roy finished 2 of 18.
Texas Tech gradually built an early lead and was in cruise control, up 35-19 on Donovan Atwell’s 3-pointer with 6:23 left before halftime.
But Roy buried a 3 moments later to spark a 10-0 Cowboy run that provided a glimmer of hope that quickly faded in the second half.
–Field level media
