Red Raider Preview: TCU

Wednesday, January 18

United Supermarkets Arena

6:30 PM

Texas Tech Athletics

TCU

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January 17, 2017 | Men's Basketball

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The Red Raiders have had five of their opening six opponents either ranked or receiving votes in the Top 25 during Big 12 play.

LUBBOCK, Texas – The Texas Tech men's basketball team wraps up the opening third of its Big 12 schedule and faces off against TCU to open a stretch of back-to-back home games Wednesday at the United Supermarkets Arena.

Tip time is on-tap for 6:30 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised by FOX Sports Southwest in addition to being available on the FOX Sports Go app. Robert Giovannetti, John Harris and Adam Doyle will serve as the announcing team.

The Texas Tech Sports Network will carry the game live on its flagship stations 97.3 FM, 100.7 FM and 950 AM in Lubbock. Geoff Haxton and Chris Level will have the call. The radio broadcast also will be available on the Texas Tech Sports Network radio affiliates, online at www.TexasTech.com and the TuneIn Radio app. Fans can interact live with Wednesday's broadcast @GunsUpRadio on Twitter.

Texas Tech (13-4, 2-3 Big 12) will square off with its fifth opponent in Big 12 action that is either ranked or receiving votes in the Top 25 polls. The Red Raiders will look to rebound from an 84-75 loss at Oklahoma last Saturday. Texas Tech is one of four programs joining Baylor, Duke and UCLA to have its men's and women's programs undefeated at home.

The Horned Frogs (14-3, 3-2 Big 12) has matched the program's best start in program history through 17 games under first-year head coach and TCU alum Jamie Dixon. TCU has dialed up consecutive victories over Texas (64-61) and Iowa State (84-77) and are looking for its first three-game conference winning streak since 2008 when the Frogs were in the Mountain West Conference.

Texas Tech has won six of the nine decisions between the two teams since 2012-13 as Big 12 members. The Red Raiders won two of three meeting last season, but TCU picked up a 67-62 decision during the opening round of the Big 12 Tournament.

"The balance between fundamentals," Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard said. "Getting back to rebounding, guarding the ball one-on-one, post defense – all the things that a good defensive team focuses on but also preparing for the next opponent. As coaches, we wish we had four or five hours every day to practice, but we just don't have that because of NCAA rules and players bodies. We have guys on this team that are a little bit older and that are playing major minutes so we are probably practicing less minutes than I'm really accustomed to. It's finding a balance between working on your team and preparing for the next opponent."

Fans can purchase tickets to Wednesday's game for as low as $12 online at www.TexasTech.com or in person at the United Supermarkets Arena Box Office which opens 90 minutes prior to tipoff. It also marks the return of the Student Lounge with free food and drink pregame starting at 5:30 p.m. while supplies last.

About Texas Tech
The Red Raiders have protected their home floor highlighted by midweek wins over No. 7 West Virginia and No. 25 Kansas State in Big 12 play. Texas Tech is rated among the NCAA Top 25 in field goal percentage (50.2 – 11th), rebounding margin (+7.3 – 20th) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.41 – 21th).

Keenan Evans has piled up 10-plus points in a career-long six straight games and 11 of his last 12 games. He has upped his mark to 15.4 points per game in conference games which is seventh on the Big 12 leaderboard. Evans has drained 17 of his 29 three-pointers over his last eight outings and his 48.3 percent shooting clip on treys is good enough for second in the Big 12.

Zach Smith continues to hold Top 5 marks among the Big 12 leaders in double-doubles (5 – 3rd), rebounds (7.8 – 3rd), field goal percentage (59.4 – 4th) and blocks (1.8 – 4th). He has reeled off double figures in four consecutive games and garnered 14.2 points per game which is tied for 11th in Big 12 action. Smith has registered 120 career blocks, second in program history, only behind Tony Battie with 162 career rejections.

Anthony Livingston returned to double figures with 14 points during the Oklahoma game and reached 10-plus points in four of his last six games. He ranks third on the squad with 12.1 points per game. Livingston has sank 31 of his 70 field goals from three-point land where his 40.8 shooting percentage is ninth in the Big 12 rankings.

Aaron Ross has been a consistent factor off the bench with 11.0 points per game. He paces the Big 12 with a 92.9 free throw percentage in league games, a statistic where he finished in second place a season ago. Overall, Ross has provided double figures in eight of his 12 appearances.

Justin Gray and Devon Thomas have started the last 13 games for the Red Raiders. Thomas has garnered a balanced 5.4 points, 3.9 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. His 66 assists lead the team and he has had one turnover or less in 14 of 17 games this season. Gray has hit on 60-of-91 from two-point territory and will look to reach double figures for the first time against Big 12 competition this season.

Thomas Brandsma, Shadell Millinghaus, Norense Odiase, Niem Stevenson and Matthew Temple round out Texas Tech's 11-man playing rotation. The duo of Millinghaus and Stevenson have teamed up for eight games with double digit points

What we do is simple, we have a day-to-day process," Beard said. "Every day you get up, and you have to take care of your business … That's by design because I really think that's how you win. We have to make sure we always have great days of practices, great film sessions, get in the gym for extra shots and the guys get good night sleep the night with a big game coming up. That's always what our main focus is. I think our players have really adapted to that. Like Anthony Livingston is a great example. This guy has transformed the way he goes about his business. I couldn't be more proud of him in his pro process. Devon is have a great senior year. It's not because he is playing great on game nights but because of what he is doing every minute of the day."

About TCU
The Frogs are the top receiving vote getter in this week's Associated Press Top 25 poll. TCU has posted a 13-0 mark when outrebounding its opponent but are 1-3 when the opponent secures more rebounds. The Frogs haven't had a single player start in all 17 games on the season but have eight players with over five points per game.

TCU is sparked by Vladimir Brodziansky, the reigning Big 12 Player of the Week and first player in program history to earn the award. He averaged 22 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks during the Texas and Iowa State wins. Brodziansky amassed his first double-double of the season with 25 points and 14 rebounds against Iowa State on Saturday.

Alex Robinson, a transfer from Texas A&M, has chipped in 10.8 points and 5.4 assists per game. He has produced five or more assists 11 times on the season. He has reached double figures 10 times highlighted by a Big 12 season's best 18 points versus Oklahoma on Jan. 3.

Jaylen Fisher has provided 9.9 points and 4.7 assists per game as a freshman. He has connected on 23 of his 57 field goals from beyond the three-point line. Fisher is the highest ranked recruit by ESPN to play at TCU. His season-highs are 16 points which came at Texas on Jan. 11 followed by 11 assists during the Iowa State game on Jan. 14.

Kenrich Williams has nearly turned in a double-double with 9.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game after his missed the entire 2015-16 season due to injury. He ranks at the top of the Big 12 leaderboard in both offensive and defensive rebounds. Williams has notched a Big 12-leading six double-doubles most recently a 13-point and 13-rebound effort against Iowa State last Saturday.

Brandon Parrish has tacked on 7.1 points per game and knocked down a team-leading 26 treys. He has hit eight of his 14 shots from three-point territory in Big 12 action. Parrish's 15 points versus Iowa State was his second-highest scoring output of the season.

"Coach Dixon has t them believing, and they are playing with great confidence," Beard said. "They have won some close games in our conference. The first step to trying to be relative. I put our program and TCU's in that same category. You have to believe. Everyone in your program has to believe in the team – not just the players and the coaches but the administration, the fans and people that are around the players on a day-to-day basis. What is really evident to me on the outside looking in is the confidence that the program has. When I watch TCU on film, the team expects to win. That's a huge compliment to Jamie and his staff. They have brought a winning mentality, similar to us. It wasn't a rebuild job at TCU. It was a job saying let's go and try to win year one."

Up Next
Texas Tech plays its first weekend conference home game versus Oklahoma State on Saturday. Tip time is slated for 1 p.m., and the game will be televised by ESPNU along with the Watch ESPN app.

Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/TexasTechMBB along with @TexasTechMBB on Twitter and Instagram.