Game Details
Where: United Supermarkets Arena, Lubbock, Texas
When: 5:00 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 20
Watch it on: ESPN+
What to know: BYU
Head coach: Mark Pope
Preseason conference selection: 13th
Just days after suffering its first loss in the Big 12, Texas Tech will aim to get back on track Saturday, with BYU coming to town for the pair’s first matchup as conference foes. It is the first time since 1995 that the Red Raiders will square off with the Cougars, who own a 3-1 advantage in the all-time series.
It has been a meteoric rise for BYU in its fifth season under head coach Mark Pope, who has his Cougars ranked No. 20 in the AP Poll, at one point sitting as high as twelfth-ranked in the nation. BYU currently maintains a top-10 ranking in KenPom.com rankings, at No. 9. The Cougars are highly-regarded in the NCAA’s NET rankings, holding the No. 4 spot with a 3-3 record in Quad 1 games.
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The recipe for BYU has been reflective on what the game of basketball has become since the mid-2010’s– shooting the ball from deep at a nuclear rate. The Cougars are the top-scoring offense in the Big 12 and top-10 in the country, averaging 85.7 points a game as a team. This, stemming from their nations-best average of 12 made three-pointers a night. BYU has made almost 60 more (211) from beyond the arc than the next on the list (Oklahoma State, 157) in the Big 12.
The efficiency and effectiveness of BYU’s offense comes from their ball movement. The Cougars are averaging 21 assists per game, with a season-high of 29. The actions of the offense set up their shooters for cleans look outside, and if that option does not present itself, the Cougars are quick to slip screens or perform back cuts to the basket. The offense runs through the 6-foot-11 big man Aly “The Egyptian Magician” Khalifa, one of four Cougars to average four assists per game.
BYU’s scoring is sourced from five double-digit average scorers, the leader of which being Jaxson Robinson. Despite coming off the bench for 15 games this season, Robinson made his first appearance in BYU’s starting lineup against Iowa State, eventually putting up 15 points on the Cyclones to bring his season average to 14.1 a game.
Spencer Johnson is a do-it-all guard on the wing. The 6-foot-5 senior erupted for 28 points against Iowa State, while also adding in nine boards. Johnson averages 11.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists on the season, near the top of each for the team.
Where the Red Raiders can take advantage of BYU is in the paint, whether that be from Warren Washington, Darrion Williams or a slew of slashing guards. In both of the Cougars’ conference losses, to Cincinnati and Baylor, they allowed the opposition to take 20-plus trips to the foul line, a spot where Tech has found success this season. The Red Raiders remain the best free throw shooting team in the conference, where they shoot 76.5 percent.
Against Baylor, BYU led in nearly every statistical category, but the charity stripe shooting from the Bears led to a BU win.
With the volume of three-point shooting expected, tenacity on the boards from the Red Raiders will be key in snagging long rebounds from long shots. An area that Tech has struggled with all season, keeping the Cougars off the offensive boards will likely be a point of emphasis– BYU has several guards who rebound at an above-average tally.
