Kevin McCullar scored 19 points and Kevin Obanor added 17 as No. 14 Texas Tech rode its early momentum to defeat No. 23 Texas 77-64 on Tuesday in a raucous Big 12 Conference game in Lubbock, Texas.
The game marked the return of Texas coach Chris Beard, who left Texas Tech for his alma mater in April. Red Raiders fans turned out in droves and were even more vocal and hyped up than normal against the Longhorns, making for a rowdy, emotional game that Texas Tech dominated except for brief stretches of each half.
Texas Tech (17-5, 6-3 Big 12) led by 14 at the half and weathered a Longhorns’ rally that cut their margin to 55-49 with 8:44 to play. But the Red Raiders quickly regained control and coasted to the win.
Bryson Williams added 16 points for the Red Raiders, and Davion Warren had 10. Texas Tech has defeated five ranked teams this season, tied for the most in the nation.
Marcus Carr led Texas with 18 points, 13 in the second half. Courtney Ramey scored all 12 of his points in the first half, and Christian Bishop had 11 for the Longhorns (16-6, 5-4), who had their three-game winning streak snapped.
Texas. which entered the game leading the nation in scoring defense at 54.5 points per game, allowed the Red Raiders to surpass that output when Obanor hit a 3-pointer with 10:49 left in the game.
The Red Raiders rode their emotion to an early 19-7 lead, capped by Marcus Santos-Silva’s putback layup 7:50 into the game. Texas used a 12-3 burst to come within three points with 7:45 to play in the half, but Texas Tech found another gear, pushing its advantage to 41-26 on McCullar’s 3-pointer with 1:37 remaining.
Obanor paced the Red Raiders with 11 points and McCullar had 10 in the first half, after which Tech led 43-29. Texas Tech outshot the Longhorns 55.6 percent to 42.9 percent in the half, build a 17-12 edge in rebounding and had 14 points off eight Texas turnovers.
Ramey led all scorers with 12 points before halftime. Texas did not shoot a free throw in the first half.
–Field Level Media
