Texas Tech University Athletics
Texas Tech Athletics
8-3,0-0Big 12
Northern Colorado
9-2,0-0Big Sky
No. 19 Tech takes down Northern Colorado
December 16, 2025 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK – LeJuan Watts recorded a career-high 36 points after going 12-for-13 from the field and JT Toppin scored 23 points and matched a career-high with five blocked shots to help lead No. 19 Texas Tech to a 101-90 win over Northern Colorado on Tuesday at United Supermarkets Arena. The win extends a 45-game non-conference home winning streak for the Red Raiders (8-3) who are now set to take on No. 3 Duke on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Watts was 12-for-12 shooting to match a program and Big 12 record before missing a 3-pointer with 1:22 remaining in the game. Texas Tech finished the game shooting 59.3% from the field while Northern Colorado (9-2) finished at 56.1% in the fast-paced game that saw the Red Raiders score a season-high points. Toppin was 10-for-16 from the field, including going 2-of-2 on 3-pointers. Tech was 19-of-24 at the free-throw line and shot 12-for-28 (42.9%) on 3-pointers to reach double-digit 3s for the eighth time in 11 games this season.
Jaylen Petty also established a new career-high with 14 points after going 3-for-5 from beyond the arc and Christian Anderson contributed 14 points and a team-high six assists. Donovan Atwell had 10 points with two 3-pointers to give Tech five players in double figures. The Red Raiders shot 35-for-59 in the game and finished with 13 assists and only three turnovers. Watts, who had a previous career-best of 24 points last season against San Francisco, also added four assists and six rebounds to his career-high scoring performance where he shot 92.0%. His 36 points are the most for a Red Raider since Toppin dropped 41 last season against Arizona State.
Watts was 3-for-4 on 3-pointers, including hitting one coming out of halftime. Northern Colorado never led in the game but tied the game at 70-70 with a 7-0 run with 13 minutes to play. A Toppin putback stopped the run and a pair of free throws by Watts and then a layup pushed the Tech lead to 78-72. Watts was 10-for-10 from the field and had 32 points on a basket to give Tech an 83-76 lead as the Red Raiders pulled away down the stretch.
Brock Wisne led the Bears with 29 points and five rebounds while Zach Bloch added 17 points and eight assists. The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for UNC.
Texas Tech took a 56-51 lead into halftime with Watts scoring 20 and Petty adding 11 more. Watts went into the break shooting 6-for-6 from the field and was 7-of-8 at the free-throw line. Watts scored the game's first four points and would hit a 3-pointer to give the Red Raiders a 28-20 lead. Petty was 2-for-3 from beyond the arc, hitting his second for a 36-26 lead while another 3-pointer from Atwell pushed the lead to 45-31 with six minutes remaining in the half. Toppin added nine points while Anderson had five points and a team-high four assists. The Red Raiders were 6-for-13 on 3-pointers in the first half while the Bears were 7-for-16. UNC never led in the first half but went into the break with a 17-9 rebounding advantage. Tech was shooting 66.7% from the field and had only two turnovers while the Bears were shooting 60.0% and had only five turnovers. Â
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