WHERE: James H. Hilton Coliseum

WHEN: 8:00 PM, Wednesday | Jan. 5th

WATCH IT ON: ESPN U

SERIES HISTORY: Texas Tech is 18-19 all-time against Iowa State. The Red Raiders have won five straight matchups and have a three-game win streak in Ames.

The Cyclones have a 12-1 record this season and are ranked No. 11 in the AP Top 25 Poll and No. 8 in USA Today Coaches’ Poll. ISU was picked to finish tenth in the Big 12 Preseason Coaches’ Poll.

Iowa State lost their first game of the season on Saturday against defending National Champion Baylor, 77-72. The Bears were eight-point favorites, but the Cyclones were able to keep the game close thanks to a career-high 23 points from Kansas transfer Tristan Enaruna.

Iowa State’s T.J. Otzelberger is in his first season at the helm for the Cyclones and has a 12-1 record as head coach. He spent 20 seasons as an assistant coach and previously served on the Iowa State coaching staff for 8 years before returning as the head man in 2021. Otzelberger coached under Greg McDermott and Fred Hoiberg during his previous stints as a Cyclone assistant.

Iowa State went 2-22 last year and were 0-18 in Big 12 play. They’ve advanced to the NCAA Tournament 20 times in school history with their last appearance coming back in 2019.

The Cyclones are a defensive minded basketball team and have held opponents to 65 points or less 10 times this season. Baylor was the first team to shoot above 44 percent from the field, and opponents are shooting a combined 38 percent and 25.3 percent from three-point range.

Iowa State is ranked 42nd out of 358 Division 1 schools in the KenPom college basketball ratings for adjusted efficiency margin. They’re 126th in offensive efficiency and 8th in defensive efficiency, and they have four wins over teams in the KenPom top 50 (Xavier, Memphis, Creighton, and Iowa).

The Cyclones have lost 23 straight Big 12 Conference games with their last win coming in a, 65-59, contest at home against TCU on Feb. 25, 2020.

The senior guard transferred to Iowa State after spending the last two seasons at Penn State University. Brockington currently leads the Cyclones in scoring, averaging 17 points per game and leads the team rebounds, grabbing 8.4 boards per contest. He’s third in the Big 12 Conference in scoring and second in rebounds. Brockington was named Big 12 Player of the Week and Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for his efforts earlier this season. His six double-doubles lead the conference, and he’s shooting 50 percent from the field.

The senior guard transferred to Iowa State after starting in 88 games over the past three seasons at the University of Minnesota. He was a team captain for the Gophers and led the Big 10 with 2.5 threes per game last year. Kalscheur is second on the Cyclones in scoring with 10.3 points per game. He’s second in assists with 2.5 dimes per contest and second on the team in steals, snatching 2 per game. Kalscheur had 30 points, 8 rebounds and 5 steals in the upset win over No. 9 Memphis earlier this season.

The true freshman has burst onto the scene for Iowa State and is widely regarded as one of the best freshmen in the Big 12. Hunter leads the team in assists with 5 per game, and his 2.1 steals per contest is tops on the Cyclones’ roster. He’s bought into Otzelberger’s defensive mentality and is currently one of three freshmen in Division 1 basketball to record 25 or more steals this season. Hunter is third on the team in scoring with 10 points per game, and he’s averaging 3.4 boards per contest.

Big 12 play is finally upon us, and the conference opener for the Red Raiders is set to be a defensive showdown. Texas Tech is ranked 9th in the KenPom ratings for defensive efficiency, and Iowa State is ranked one spot ahead at number eight. Turning the basketball over has been a disturbing trend as of late for the Red Raider offense. Texas Tech had 18 turnovers in their last game against Alabama State, and the Cyclones are 11th in the nation in turnovers forced, averaging 18.6 takeaways per game. Iowa State has struggled with their offensive efficiency this season, and the Red Raiders can’t help make life easier for the Cyclone offense by turning the ball over and allowing them to get easy buckets in transition. Iowa State is a guard heavy team with their top three scorers all standing 6-foot-4 or under. This is another matchup where the overall length for Texas Tech should play to their benefit on both ends of the court. The availability of Terrance Shannon Jr. will be key for the Red Raiders in this matchup, and he’s expected to be a game time decision on Wednesday. The magic number for Texas Tech on the offensive end could wind up being 44. The Cyclones are 12-0 this season when they hold teams to less than 44 percent shooting from the field.