Tag: Texas Tech Basketball

No. 22 Texas A&M defeats Texas Tech in the US LBM Coaches Coast-Coast Challenge

Wade Taylor’s 19 points combined with the Aggies’ impressive second half defense led to the 72-68 victory over Texas Tech

Texas A&M (8-2) and coach Buzz Williams have quietly been racking up nonconference wins since the start of last month, as the Aggies earned another potential Quad 1 victory over former Big 12 rival Texas Tech in the US LBM Coaches Coast-Coast Challenge on Sunday afternoon.

While A&M’s 8-2 record is impressive, the Aggies have earned valuable wins over Ohio State, Creighton, Rutgers, Wake Forest, and a one-loss Texas Tech team that will be a threat in the Big 12 this season.

Behind star point guard Wade Taylor IV’s early scoring, A&M’s defense settled in, holding several double-digit leads before the Red Raiders went on their own scoring binge from beyond the arc, as guard Chance McMillian (23 points) and Kevin Overton (17 points) combined for nine of Texas Tech’s 3-pointers.

Holding a thin 34-31 halftime lead, both teams experienced scoring droughts in the second half. At the same time, Texas Tech finally regained the lead with over eight minutes remaining before Texas A&M forward Henry Coleman III combined with senior guard Zhuric Phelps’ clutch three to take back the Aggie lead.

Texas Tech made things interesting late with four consecutive 3-pointers, but thanks to timely fouls and Wade Taylor and forward Solomon Washinton’s clutch performance at the free-throw line, Texas A&M sealed the impressive 72-67 win.

Notable Stats: Texas A&M finished 13-18 from the charity stripe, hitting nine threes despite holding a narrow 37-35 rebounding advantage. The Aggies are now on a four-game winning streak.

In one of the best shooting games of his Aggie career, Jace Carter finished 5-6 from the floor and 3-4 from beyond the arc for 16 points, while Wade Taylor (19 points) and Zhuric Phelps (12 points) were the other double-digit scorers.

Texas A&M will travel to Indiana to face No. 6 Purdue on Saturday, Dec. 14, for an early 11:00 a.m. CT tip-off. The game will air on CBS.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Cameron on X: @CameronOhnysty.

Texas A&M basketball reportedly setting up matchup with Texas Tech in December

Buzz Williams is looking to challenge his team early and often next season

While all eyes are on Texas A&M Football’s first season under head coach Mike Elko, Aggie Basketball should be one of the better teams in the country ahead of Buzz Williams’ sixth season at the helm.

Bringing back more than 80% of the 2023 roster that made it to the Round of 32 of the NCAA Tournament before falling to top-seeded Houston in overtime, Williams has continued to add veteran players through the transfer portal, filling out both the back and frontcourt depth.

Led by star point guard Wade Taylor IV, the loss of versatile guard Tyrece “Boots” Radford hurts, but the addition of SMU slasher Zhuric Phelps should help quell his three-year production. However, the ongoing development of incoming junior forward Solomon Washington should excite every Aggie fan heading into the season.

With an already challenging nonconference schedule, CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein has reported that Texas A&M and Texas Tech are finalizing a deal to play each other in a neutral site in Fort Worth’s Dickies Arean on Sunday, December 8, as the former Big 12 foes would meet for the first time since the 2011-2012 season.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Cameron on Twitter: @CameronOhnysty.

Former UGA basketball guard enters transfer portal again

Former Georgia basketball guard, four-star recruit enters the transfer portal after spending one season at Texas Tech

Former Georgia basketball guard KyeRon Lindsay is entering the NCAA transfer portal again. Lindsay played a portion of the 2022-2023 season with Georgia before transferring to Texas Tech.

The 6-foot-7, 210-pound forward averaged just six minutes per game in his sophomore season with the Red Raiders, averaging 2.7 points per game. Lindsay appeared in nine games for Texas Tech.

Lindsay was a larger contributor for Georgia. Lindsay played 20 minutes per game for the Bulldogs. Lindsay, who is from Denton, Texas, averaged 6.2 points per game and 5.2 rebounds per game with Georgia. Lindsay joins former Georgia guard KD Johnson in the transfer portal for a second time this offseason.

Lindsay is a former four-star recruit. Lindsay played in 10 of Georgia’s first 11 games back in 2022-2023.

During the 2023-2024 season, Texas Tech made the NCAA Tournament before falling to NC State in March Madness. Georgia basketball has advanced to the National Invitational Tournament semifinals.

Just a reminder that Mac McClung’s high school mixtape was electric

Mac McClung was brilliant even in high school.

On Saturday night, Mac McClung won the Slam Dunk competition as part of the NBA All-Star weekend. It marks his second straight win in the event.

But those who know…well, they know. And what they know is that McClung has been producing highlights for years, dating back to high school.

McClung was electric, producing jaw-dropping plays and showing off some impressive hops. But despite being one of the nation’s top scorers, the 6-foot-1 guard didn’t register a ton of big-time recruiting interest.

Sure, he had some offers like Boston College, Rutgers and Seton Hall, but McClung’s output on the court was not matched by any interest from college basketball’s blue bloods.

Ranked a three-star and the No. 49 point guard (by Rivals) in the nation out of Gate City (Gate City, Virginia), McClung had originally committed to Rutgers basketball in early August 2017. Three months later, he had de-committed from the Big Ten program just before his senior season.

By mid-October, he had veraballed to Patrick Ewing at Georgetown.

Watch this highlight film and it is hard to figure out why he didn’t have many other big-time offers. His athleticism alone should have made him a matter of intrigue for bigger programs.

Combine that with his scoring ability and McClung should have been a four-star recruit, easily.

Here are his highlights from his senior season at Gate City. The flair he showed on Saturday night in the NBA Slam Dunk competition was certainly not in short supply as a high school senior:

In college, he averaged 14.2 points per game in his first two seasons at Georgetown. He transferred to Texas Tech for the 2020-21 season, where in 29 games (all starts) he averaged 15.5 points per game while shooting 41.9 percent from the floor.

Currently, McClung is in the G League with the Osceola Magic where he is still looking to fully break through to the NBA. He has played in four NBA games, averaging 8.3 points per game.

Texas Tech runs away from Texas basketball in Austin, 78-67

Texas Tech stuns Texas on the court defeating the Longhorns by double digits.

It’s basketball season in Austin. The Texas Longhorns opened Big 12 conference play with a 78-67 loss to Texas Tech.

The Texas Tech Red Raiders ran away with the game behind a high scoring performance from Pop Isaacs. The Texas Tech guard put up 21 points behind a 3-for-5 three-point shooting night and 7-for-15 performance from the field.

Texas is facing the harsh reality of a poor transfer portal haul following the exit of several key players in the offseason. We were critical of the lack of movement by the team in the way of portal additions, and the lack of contributing Longhorns proved evident on Saturday. 54 of the team’s 67 points came from Texas guards Tyrese Hunter and Max Abmas and forward Dillon Mitchell.

The loss drops Texas to 11-3. The team certainly could have gotten off to a worse start, but has lost to perhaps every quality opponent it has faced this season. It isn’t the start we would have hoped to see from the team through 14 games.

Texas Tech, who went an abysmal 16-16 last season, proved to be the better team by a wide margin on Texas’ home floor. Longhorns head coach Rodney Terry has plenty to work on if this team is to make another NCAA Tournament run.

Texas resumes play on the road against Cincinnati on Tuesday night.

Remembering Bob Knight’s time at Texas Tech

Remembering the legendary head coach and his time at Texas Tech.

On Wednesday night I heard the news about the legendary basketball coach Bob Knight and his passing, there were some emotions I didn’t really expect. As a fan of the Texas Rangers, I was trying to enjoy the moment of their first World Series championship. Once the game ended I thought about Knight’s time at Texas Tech.

As a teenager in Lubbock, Texas, I enjoyed the early 2000s as a fan of Texas Tech athletics. Two very polarizing head coaches were on campus at the time with Mike Leach running the football program and Bob Knight putting his stamp on the basketball program. For someone who never had the opportunity to sit down with Coach Leach or Coach Knight, their passings still had quite an impact on me. Leach gave me a love for Air Raid offenses and Knight gave me a love for passionate basketball.

Bob Knight wasn’t always easy to get along with from what I have heard from others in the industry, but for those of us who attended games at the United Supermarkets Arena, we were mostly fond of him. He after all led us to four NCAA Tournament appearances during his time and one of his assistants, Chris Beard, came close to bringing the first national championship to Lubbock in men’s basketball.

Despite all that he did on the basketball court, my favorite memory of Bob Knight didn’t come on the hardwood. On the night of his passing, I remembered a moment that was 15 years prior to the day. It was on the morning before the Texas vs Texas Tech football game when Michael Crabtree gave Red Raider fans a moment we still cherish.

That morning on College Gameday, Knight was the guest picker and I couldn’t help but laugh and cheer along with all those Red Raider fans who gathered to see Tech finally get to host the weekly event.

Rest in peace coach. As we remember the legendary coach, here are several photos from his time on the Plains of West Texas.

Sports world reacts to death of Indiana basketball coach Bob Knight

Controversial basketball legend Bob Knight has died at 83.

Bob Knight, the legendary Indiana basketball coach and firebrand courtside personality, died at the age of 83 on Wednesday, his family confirmed in a statement.

From winning three national titles with the Hoosiers to being ejected for throwing a chair onto the basketball court in frustration in 1985, Knight became synonymous with college basketball, for better and for worse.

After joining the Hoosiers in 1971 following a stint at Army, his Indiana teams were some of the most ferocious of the 1970s and 1980s, and he entrenched himself in Bloomington as the most notable sports figure in Indiana history.

Knight’s career cannot be remembered without his infamous temper and a lengthy history of violent acts, like in 1997 when he was videoed choking one of his Indiana players.

He played college ball at Ohio State and coached at Texas Tech after he was fired from Indiana in 2000. He led the Red Raiders from 2001 until 2008, where he would win his 900th game and eventually retire. His son Pat coached at Texas Tech for three seasons after his father’s exit.

After his coaching days, Knight worked as a broadcaster at ESPN until 2015. He finally returned to Indiana in 2020, roughly two decades after his firing, for a basketball game.

Many in the sports world offered condolences for Knight’s passing, remembering his coaching and his short fuse.

Texas Basketball: Looking at the biggest games of the 2023-24 season

Texas has exciting matchups in basketball heading into the upcoming season.

The Texas basketball season is under a month away. The Longhorns will look to match last season’s terrific results after reaching the regional finals of their bracket.

This team is going to look different. While Dylan Disu, Dillon Mitchell, Tyrese Hunter and Brock Cunningham are among last season’s contributors, more than half of the team’s most integral players from last season are gone.

Oral Roberts guard Max Abmas and Virginia forward Kadin Shedrick stand as the big headliners from the Longhorns’ portal class. After averaging over 21 points and four assists last season, expect Abmas to be a major part of this year’s team.

The Longhorns are going to face several big matchups in the 2023-24 season. Here’s a look at some of the team’s biggest games.

Kansas beats Texas Tech, improves USC’s bubble position even more

Kansas created a situation which should keep at least one bubble team out of the NCAA Tournament, possibly two. We have details.

The Big 12 bubble landscape is becoming more favorable for USC as the calendar moves into March.

Texas Tech, which lost last Saturday to TCU, lost again to Kansas on Tuesday night. USC is gaining a little more separation from Texas Tech on the bubble, but there’s more to the story than a simple comparison of the Trojans and the Red Raiders.

The Big 12 and Big Ten have cluttered bubble situations with multiple bubble teams in play. In addition to Texas Tech losing consecutive games over the past few days, Oklahoma State has done the same thing. Those two teams are both in big trouble for an at-large berth. They are moving in the wrong direction.

Notable is the fact that Oklahoma State and Texas Tech play each other this Saturday. Had the Cowboys and Red Raiders both won their most recent games, this upcoming contest would be a “winner in” bubble game in which the loser is still in the hunt for the NCAA Tournament. However, because of the recent losses by both teams, this game will be more of a “loser out” bubble game in which the loser will have to win the Big 12 Tournament just to make the NCAA Tournament.

If Oklahoma State beats Tech on the road, the Cowboys’ NCAA odds probably will rise above 50-50. If Tech beats Oklahoma State, the Red Raiders and Cowboys would both be near the cut line and would need at least one win at the Big 12 Tournament to feel moderately good about their position.

Ultimately, it’s very unlikely that both teams can get into the NCAA Tournament, which is great for USC. That’s at least one bubble spot the Big 12 won’t claim. The hope for USC is that both Texas Tech and Oklahoma State will miss the field. A Tech win on Saturday, followed by losses for both teams in the first game of the Big 12 Tournament, could bring about that result.

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Former Texas HC Chris Beard reportedly drawing interest from Ole Miss

Ole Miss is reportedly considering Chris Beard for its head coaching position.

A couple months ago Chris Beard ceased to coach the Texas Longhorns. It looks like he could find a new team soon. Continue reading “Former Texas HC Chris Beard reportedly drawing interest from Ole Miss”