The Texas Tech basketball team defeated Arizona on Saturday, to win its third consecutive game. Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland praised the play of his team afterward. He specifically looked at one stat, to showcase his team's strength.
“Going into this game watching film, you see how physical they are in the way they dominate the paint,” McCasland said, per Sports Illustrated. “We talked about having a hit-first mentality. If you don't hit first, you're losing. On everything. On transition defense, when they're at the rim, sealing. When you're on a ball-screen, if you're not the most physical one when the shot goes up. We were 26-26 in the paint. That's the stat of the game.”
Texas Tech won in overtime, 78-75, to hand Arizona their second straight loss. The Red Raiders got a monster performance from big man JT Toppin, who had yet another double-double. He finished the game with 31 points and 13 rebounds.
Texas Tech improved to 19-6 overall this season with the victory. Arizona meanwhile has now dropped back-to-back games, to the Red Raiders and Kansas.
Texas Tech basketball is going for a Big 12 championship
The Red Raiders are now in a three-way tie for third place in the conference. Texas Tech, Kansas and Iowa State now all have 9-3 Big 12 marks.
McCasland said his team just has a ton of fight.
“I love the fight of this team,” McCasland said. “JT and Christian weren't going to let us lose. You don't come into this building and win unless you're fighting and competitive. I love being part of this team.”
The Red Raiders have put together an incredible resumé, heading into the NCAA tournament. Texas Tech now has wins this season over Arizona, Duke and Houston.
“We're not guessing — this isn't luck,” McCasland said. “These dudes practice hard and put themselves in position every day. There's no shortcuts to this. It's a grind, and you've got to love it. These dudes love it.”
Texas Tech next plays at Arizona State on Tuesday.
