Texas Tech Athletics
14-4,5-2Big 12
Cincinnati
12-6,2-5Big 12
Road Raiders earn win at Cincinnati
January 21, 2025 | Men's Basketball
CINCINNATI – JT Toppin went for 20 points and seven rebounds while Christian Anderson scored 18 points with four 3-pointers to help lead Texas Tech to an 81-71 road win over Cincinnati on Tuesday at Fifth Third Arena. The Red Raiders (14-4, 5-2 Big 12) extended a three-game winning streak and are now 4-0 on the road to start their Big 12 schedule for the first time in program history after making 12 3-pointers, committing only eight turnovers and owning a 34-27 rebounding advantage.
"I thought we were really playing the game in a way that gave us a chance to win," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. "We didn't get our best game from a few of the guys we've been counting on, but that's what makes a team great. Young guys like Christian Anderson and Kevin Overton coming through in an environment on the road. My favorite part was that they didn't come into the game trying to get a feel for it. They were aggressive from the jump. It takes everybody. They fight for each other. I thought we had a great effort defensively and our ability to get defensive rebounds and not have turnovers was the difference."
Chance McMillian finished the night with 17 points and two assists, while Kevin Overton added 14 points and five rebounds. Anderson matched a career-high with his four 3-pointers, going 4-for-7 from beyond the arc, while McMillian and Overton hit three each in the game. Toppin shot 9-for-15 from the field for the Red Raiders who finished the game 27-for-60 (45.0 percent) from the field along with making 15-of-18 from the free-throw line. Elijah Hawkins added eight points, three steals and three assists, Federiko Federiko contributed six rebounds and Darrion Williams finished with five rebounds, two assists and four points. McMillian was 4-for-4 at the free-throw line, Anderson went 4-for-5, Hawkins 3-for-3 and Williams shot 2-of-2 for the team to finish at 83.3 percent. Tech celebrated a 10-point win after going 12-for-31 on 3-pointers with five players making at least one on the night and now making 10 or more in 10 games this season.Â
"We're one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country," Anderson said. "Even if we start off shooting bad, we always think that next shot is going to fall. Shooting with confidence is what we have. We knew they were going to be one of the toughest, hardest playing teams, we are going to play. We had to hit them hard and boxed them off the glass. Just be physical. We couldn't get relaxed, even when we had a lead. They came back and fought so we stayed poised and finished the game out."
Cincinnati (12-6, 2-5 Big 12) shot 51.9 percent from the field but struggled from deep by going just 3-for-14 from 3-point range. Jizzle James led the Bearcats with 17 points, while Dillon Mitchell had 12 points and four rebounds in a loss that snapped a two-game winning streak.
Texas Tech took a 42-38 lead into halftime with Anderson and Overton hitting three 3-pointers each and the team going 8-for-17 from deep. The first half saw five lead changes and the Red Raiders shooting 15-for-29 (51.7 percent) from the field while the Bearcats were shooting 15-for-25 (60.0 percent) from the field but just 1-for-5 (20 percent) from 3-point range. Anderson led Tech with 13 points after going 3-for-4 on 3-pointers and 2-of-2 from the free-throw line and Overton was at 12 points by also making 3-of-4 from deep. Toppin and Hawkins had six points each and McMillian went into the break with five points after making 1-of-2 from beyond the arc. James led Cincinnati with 11 points in the first half on 5-for-6 shooting, including making the lone 3-pointer with 58 seconds remaining in the half to take the game into the break with the Red Raiders up four points.
"I thought in the first few minutes of the game we rushed some 3s without getting the ball to the inside," McCasland said. "Give them a lot of credit. They are playing great defensively. But as the game goes on, the ability of JT to get baskets inside makes teams make a decision on how to guard us. They brought down different defenders and it opens up the next action and it started to open up. I thought we were ball-strong and that JT and Darrion Williams did a great job of attracting the attention. We had a lot of great possessions."
Overton made Tech's first 3-pointer of the game to cut an early Cincinnati lead to 6-5 going into the first media timeout. The Red Raiders, who scored the game's first points with a basket from Toppin on their second possession before seeing the Bearcats go on a 6-0 run, started the game 0-for-4 from beyond the arc before Overton's shot. Another 6-0 run had the Bearcats up 12-5 before a Hawkins runner got the Red Raiders back on the board with his first points. Anderson and McMillian found their stroke with back-to-back 3-pointers to trim the deficit to 16-15 before another 3-pointer from Anderson tied the game at 18. It was knotted again at 23-all with an Overton and-one followed by Tech taking a 27-25 lead with Hawkins draining a 3-pointer, getting fouled on the shot and making the free throw. Overton continued his strong play, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers for a 35-31 lead with 3:47 remaining in the half, giving him 12 points on 3-for-4 shooting beyond the arc. Anderson's third 3 of the first half gave Tech its largest lead of the first half at 42-35 with 1:23 on the clock. Â
Anderson stayed hot coming out of halftime, drilling his fourth 3-pointer of the game after Toppin had hit his first for a 50-41 lead. Tech was already 10-for-21 (47.6 percent) on 3-pointers three minutes into the second half. The Red Raiders had their first double-digit lead of the game when Toppin pulled down an offensive rebound and made a floater, giving him 13 points and putting Tech up 54-43 with 14 minutes to play. McMillian's second 3-pointer of the game pushed Tech's lead to 59-48 before a pair of Cincinnati buckets forced Tech to call a timeout up 59-52 midway through the second half. Williams scored his first points of the game coming out of the timeout by driving to the basket for a layup to take a 61-52 lead before two Anderson free throws made it an 11-point game with nine to play. With the lead cut to 65-60 on a James fastbreak dunk, McMillian once again answered with a 3-pointer for a 68-60 score before a two Toppin buckets and a McMillian layup pushed the lead to 75-63 going into the final media timeout. Â
Texas Tech returns home to host Oklahoma State at 2 p.m. on Sunday at United Supermarkets Arena. The Red Raiders are currently 9-2 on their home court this season after a 70-54 win over Arizona last Saturday. The Cowboys (10-8, 2-5Â Big 12) took a 92-78 loss to Arizona on Tuesday night in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
Texas Tech started the 1996-97 Big 12 schedule with three wins on the road before losing its fourthÂ
JT Toppin: Finished with 20 points, sixth time this season scoring 20-plus and ninth time of his career
Christian Anderson: Finished with 18 points, seventh time scoring double figures this season and third time scoring 15-plus… Matched career-high with four 3-pointers
Kevin Overton: Finished with 14 points, sixth time scoring double figures this season and 26th of his career… Shot 3-for-5 from behind-the-arc, fourth time this season with a three-plus 3-pointers made game… One off season high
Chance McMillian: Finished with 17 points, 16th time in double figures this season and 10th time scoring 15-plus… Shot 3-for-6 from beyond the arc, eighth time this season with a three-plus 3-pointers made
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