Saturday, December 21
Lubbock, Texas
12 p.m.
Texas Tech Athletics
9-2,0-0Big 12
101
vs
57
Lamar
6-6,2-0Southland
1
2
F
Lamar University
22
35
57
Texas Tech
49
52
101
Red Raiders roll in non-conference finale
December 21, 2024 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK – A 38-game non-conference home winning streak will be extended into next season for Texas Tech after a 101-57 win over Lamar on Saturday at United Supermarkets Arena where Darrion Williams led the way with 23 points, seven rebounds and five assists in a game with five players scoring in double figures.
The Red Raiders (9-2) snapped a five-game winning streak by the Cardinals (6-6) and closed out non-conference play with an 8-0 record at home where they outscored their opponents by a 31.8 margin. Tech recorded its seventh game with 10 or more 3-pointers this season by making 13-for-29 (44.8 percent) from 3-point range and also went 16-of-18 (88.9 percent) at the free-throw line. The team went over 100 points for the first time this season and the first since dropping 110 on South Carolina State back on December 27, 2022. The 23 points from Williams were a season-high while Christian Anderson scored a career-high 20, Chance McMillian added 19 points, Kevin Overton dropped 17 and Eemeli Yalaho had a career-high 13 points in his first career start. The Red Raiders played without leading scorer and rebounder, JT Toppin, for the fourth straight game and were without Federiko Federiko who had a double-double in the team's previous win over Oral Roberts on Monday night.
"Lamar had our attention going into this game and I thought the urgency we played with showed that," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. "I thought today showed the depth that we have. Our guard play is awesome. Elijah Hawkins on the ball, his ability to break pressure and decision making in transition. Christian Anderson's floor game, his understanding and defense, Chance McMillian scoring, Kevin Overton attacking the basket and slashing. It just feels like this team is starting to feel what we need to be to win games. What do you say about Darrion Williams? His competitiveness to play multiple positions today. It was a heck of a win going into the Christmas break."
The Red Raiders will open Big 12 play against UCF (8-2) at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, December 31 at United Supermarkets Arena before playing at Utah (Jan. 4) and BYU (Jan. 7) in their first conference road games. The Knights host Jacksonville tonight at 5 p.m. in their final non-conference game before coming to Lubbock for the New Year's Eve game.
Tech's 44-point win was its second largest this season, behind only a 47-point win over Wyoming, and came after it took a 27-point lead into halftime which was the largest margin this season. The Red Raiders shot 62.5 percent in the second half, including going 7-for-14 from 3-point range in the final 20 minutes. Williams matched a career-high with four 3-pointers, finishing the game 4-for-6 from beyond the arc while Anderson was 8-for-10 from the field, 2-for-4 on 3s and also had a career-best four steals. McMillian finished with 19 points to end a streak of three straight games of 20-plus scoring, finishing 3-for-6 on 3s and 7-for-11 from the field. Hawkins led the team with seven assists and added two steals and four rebounds and Overton provided six rebounds to go along with his 17 points.
Yalaho, who made his first start with Toppin and Federiko out, was 5-for-8 from the field and 2-for-2 on 3-pointers. Tech has now made 13 or more 3s in four games and 10 or more in three straight games. McMillian is now 31-for-58 (53.4 percent) on 3s this season and is 23-for-24 (95.8 percent) at the free-throw line after going 2-for-2 against the Cardinals. The Red Raiders are now shooting 79.4 percent at the line as a team and have shot 85 percent or better in three games this season.
Williams is now averaging 16.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game after his season-high 23 points. He has scored 20-or-more in four games this season and five in his career with his career-best coming last season with 30 against Kansas. It was the fourth time Williams has led Tech in scoring and also the fourth in rebounding this season.
Texas Tech took a 49-22 lead into halftime with Williams and Overton both at 13 points and McMillian scoring nine. The 27-point advantage going into the locker room was the largest of the half and came with Anderson hitting a 3-pointer on the final possession of the half. The Red Raiders finished the first 20 minutes of action shooting 48.5 percent from the field with six 3s while Lamar was limited to 29.4 percent shooting and only 2-for-9 from beyond the arc. Tech made its first 11 free throws of the game and finished the first half 11-for-12 with Overton going 4-for-4 and Williams 3-for-4 at the line. Tech owned a 24-17 rebounding advantage with Overton and Williams leading the team with four rebounds each. Anderson had seven points and four steals while Hawkins had five points and three assists going into halftime. Tech built out its lead with a 13-0 run to push the game to 20-7 after an Overton 3-pointer just seven minutes with the run extending to 21-4 and a 28-11 lead. A Williams 3-pointer extended another 8-0 run and had Tech up 26 before Anderson's final shot.
Follow the Red Raiders: Keep up with Tech men's basketball news at TexasTech.com and at the team's social media on Instagram, X and Facebook.
The Red Raiders (9-2) snapped a five-game winning streak by the Cardinals (6-6) and closed out non-conference play with an 8-0 record at home where they outscored their opponents by a 31.8 margin. Tech recorded its seventh game with 10 or more 3-pointers this season by making 13-for-29 (44.8 percent) from 3-point range and also went 16-of-18 (88.9 percent) at the free-throw line. The team went over 100 points for the first time this season and the first since dropping 110 on South Carolina State back on December 27, 2022. The 23 points from Williams were a season-high while Christian Anderson scored a career-high 20, Chance McMillian added 19 points, Kevin Overton dropped 17 and Eemeli Yalaho had a career-high 13 points in his first career start. The Red Raiders played without leading scorer and rebounder, JT Toppin, for the fourth straight game and were without Federiko Federiko who had a double-double in the team's previous win over Oral Roberts on Monday night.
"Lamar had our attention going into this game and I thought the urgency we played with showed that," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. "I thought today showed the depth that we have. Our guard play is awesome. Elijah Hawkins on the ball, his ability to break pressure and decision making in transition. Christian Anderson's floor game, his understanding and defense, Chance McMillian scoring, Kevin Overton attacking the basket and slashing. It just feels like this team is starting to feel what we need to be to win games. What do you say about Darrion Williams? His competitiveness to play multiple positions today. It was a heck of a win going into the Christmas break."
The Red Raiders will open Big 12 play against UCF (8-2) at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, December 31 at United Supermarkets Arena before playing at Utah (Jan. 4) and BYU (Jan. 7) in their first conference road games. The Knights host Jacksonville tonight at 5 p.m. in their final non-conference game before coming to Lubbock for the New Year's Eve game.
Tech's 44-point win was its second largest this season, behind only a 47-point win over Wyoming, and came after it took a 27-point lead into halftime which was the largest margin this season. The Red Raiders shot 62.5 percent in the second half, including going 7-for-14 from 3-point range in the final 20 minutes. Williams matched a career-high with four 3-pointers, finishing the game 4-for-6 from beyond the arc while Anderson was 8-for-10 from the field, 2-for-4 on 3s and also had a career-best four steals. McMillian finished with 19 points to end a streak of three straight games of 20-plus scoring, finishing 3-for-6 on 3s and 7-for-11 from the field. Hawkins led the team with seven assists and added two steals and four rebounds and Overton provided six rebounds to go along with his 17 points.
Yalaho, who made his first start with Toppin and Federiko out, was 5-for-8 from the field and 2-for-2 on 3-pointers. Tech has now made 13 or more 3s in four games and 10 or more in three straight games. McMillian is now 31-for-58 (53.4 percent) on 3s this season and is 23-for-24 (95.8 percent) at the free-throw line after going 2-for-2 against the Cardinals. The Red Raiders are now shooting 79.4 percent at the line as a team and have shot 85 percent or better in three games this season.
Williams is now averaging 16.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game after his season-high 23 points. He has scored 20-or-more in four games this season and five in his career with his career-best coming last season with 30 against Kansas. It was the fourth time Williams has led Tech in scoring and also the fourth in rebounding this season.
Texas Tech took a 49-22 lead into halftime with Williams and Overton both at 13 points and McMillian scoring nine. The 27-point advantage going into the locker room was the largest of the half and came with Anderson hitting a 3-pointer on the final possession of the half. The Red Raiders finished the first 20 minutes of action shooting 48.5 percent from the field with six 3s while Lamar was limited to 29.4 percent shooting and only 2-for-9 from beyond the arc. Tech made its first 11 free throws of the game and finished the first half 11-for-12 with Overton going 4-for-4 and Williams 3-for-4 at the line. Tech owned a 24-17 rebounding advantage with Overton and Williams leading the team with four rebounds each. Anderson had seven points and four steals while Hawkins had five points and three assists going into halftime. Tech built out its lead with a 13-0 run to push the game to 20-7 after an Overton 3-pointer just seven minutes with the run extending to 21-4 and a 28-11 lead. A Williams 3-pointer extended another 8-0 run and had Tech up 26 before Anderson's final shot.
Follow the Red Raiders: Keep up with Tech men's basketball news at TexasTech.com and at the team's social media on Instagram, X and Facebook.
Team Stats
Lamar
TTU
FG%
.329
.554
3FG%
.300
.448
FT%
.556
.889
RB
36
42
TO
13
8
STL
3
9
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
23
FGM
7
3FGM
4
FTM
5
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
19
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
17
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
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