The games before and after Christmas have a tendency of giving teams fits with the hustle and bustle of the holidays throwing off the season’s rhythm. Texas Tech felt no drop-off Thursday against Sam Houston State however, dropping the Bearkats 96-60 in a largely uncontested affair. Pop Isaacs finished with a new career high of 28 points, coming out of his shooting slump to finish 10-19 from the field and 5-11 from beyond the arc.

The Red Raiders got on the board first, the product of a three-pointer from Darrion Williams and it was that shot on the other end of the floor that kept Sam Houston in the contest in the opening minutes.

A 15-4 sway through the last five minutes of the first half gave Tech a 19-point lead heading into intermission. The jump was fueled by the sharpshooting abilities of Isaacs, who seemed to get his groove back from beyond the arc against the Bearkats. The sophomore knocked down a couple of treys in the final minute to expand the margin and swing momentum completely in favor of the red and black.

Tech’s lead remained unchallenged through much of the second half, the closest the Bearkats came being 17 points with six minutes remaining in the contest. Continuing the theme of big runs and point swings, the Red Raiders launched a three-point assault to spark a 21-2 swing.

A couple of threes from Chance McMillian, another from Isaacs and a three-point play the hard way from the Las Vegas native effectively put Sam Houston to bed. The Red Raider lead grew to its biggest of the night at 38 points, following buckets from Williams and Kerwin Walton.

The Red Raiders finished with four scorers in double figures, behind 28 from Isaacs, 18 from Walton, 13 from Joe Toussaint and 11 from McMillian. The Red Raiders matched their season-low in turnovers, only giving the ball away seven times.

The win moves Tech to 10-2 on the season with one final non-conference matchup on tab against North Alabama. Tip off against NAU is set for 1:00 p.m. on New Year’s Day.