Every year the Big 12 releases the official 2014-15 men’s basketball media guide with a ton of information on each conference team. It is worth your while if you want to be an "educated" Big 12 basketball fan to skim through and read it... CLICK HERE FOR THE LINK. Let’s take a look at the Texas Tech section and pull out a few items to discuss.
Arena (Capacity) ... United Supermarkets Arena (15,098)
The capacity of the United Supermarkets Arena is a question that I get asked quite frequently when people are watching our games and say that our home court looks very nice, but sort of small. Something that I always throw back at them is that we have the 3rd largest Big 12 basketball arena behind Texas (16,540) and Kansas (16,300).
Basketball Communications Contact...... Trenten Hilburn
Hilburn Office Phone ...................806/742-2770 ext. 235
Hilburn Cell Phone..................................... 806/392-3543
Hilburn Email...............................trenten.hilburn@ttu.edu
This is one of the coolest features in the Big 12 media guide; each school lists their basketball communications staff member along with all their contact info including their cell phone number. Don’t tell me you cannot get a hold of somebody within the program if you need something. I’m sure our own Mr. Hilburn would be more than willing to help out.
Senior guard Robert Turner is the Red Raiders' top returning scorer after posting double figures in 14 outings last year. He started all 32 contests for Tech in 2013-14, playing 30 minutes or more 15 times.
Obviously the Big 12 knows who our go to guy is at the PG position. We will rely heavily on Turner to lead us at the 1 spot on the floor. He has the most experience of any of our returners from last year, and he should be ready to have an excellent senior season.
Texas Tech defeated three teams in the USA Today Top 25 last season, the first time it had topped three ranked foes in one year since the 2007-08 campaign. TTU also had four victories versus RPI top 50 opponents.
The last time we beat three teams in the USA Today Top 25 we had Bobby Knight as the head coach. This note was probably thrown in the media guide to remind people how lucky Texas Tech is to have a head coach like Tubby Smith running our program nowadays.
Junior guard Toddrick Gotcher scored in double figures nine times in 2013-14, including twice in his last three outings. He saw action in all 32 contests and was named Academic All-Big 12 First Team for the second straight campaign.
The only two players on the roster who were mentioned in the Team Notebook section are Robert Turner and Toddrick Gotcher. The Big 12 knows who will be our leaders, and Gotcher will have to be the "glue guy" that holds the team together. I'm sure the Big 12 wanted to share the news of Gotcher getting 2 consecutive Academic All-Big 12 First Team honors so others can recognize he is a smart guy on and off the court.
Big 12 record... 107-187 (.364)
Our conference record is something I check every year, and it is sometimes sad that I always hope for it to be at .500 one day in the future. A few seasons of great basketball could really do wonders for this Tech basketball program, and I think we may see the turnaround over the next few years with Tubby Smith.
Justin Gray, G, 6-6, 210, Fr., Tampa, Fla./Berkeley Prep
* A Florida First Team All-State Class 4A selection as a senior.
* Earned the Tampa Bay Basketball Coaches Association Player of the Year award.
* Finished with 17.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.9 blocks and 1.6 steals per game last year.
There is a Newcomers section in the media guide that is a definite must check out, it lists all our new faces on the roster. It goes on to list a few of their basketball achievements. I like to pick out the one guy that I think will be the top newcomer of the year for our Red Raiders. This year I have a feeling Justin Gray is going to impress a lot of fans.
Consecutive Points Scored / One Player For His Team
Game: 29 Mike Singletary, Texas Tech vs. Texas A&M, 3-12-09
This is in the Big 12 Game & Season Records section; I remember watching this game after work when I lived up in Kansas, it was unbelievable. Singletary was so on fire that Pat Knight literally shifted all the players to one side of the floor and let Singletary take his man one-on-one. We won the Big 12 tourney game against the Aggies in comeback fashion and I don’t think I slept that night I was so pumped full of adrenaline from cheering.
Points
Half: 90 Texas Tech vs. East Central Oklahoma, 11-20-08 (2nd)
Game: 167 Texas Tech vs. East Central Oklahoma, 11-20-08
I remember this game, but I didn't get to watch it. I had to try and watch it via gametracker and I couldn't believe the score just rocketing upward every few seconds. The 167 points in a game for a team is still a Big 12 record, and I don't think any other team is going to be breaking our record anytime soon. This is a really awesome stat to see in the record books.
TRIPLE-DOUBLES
Kasib Powell, Texas Tech, Sr., F, vs. Texas (3-14-03) 12 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists
A lot of us forget we had great team players like Kasib Powell who was one of only 13 guys in the Big 12 to ever record a triple-double. He was a true all-around talent and I miss watching him play the game. If we had more players like Kasib around we would be a top 25 team again.
There is a whole bunch more interesting and intriguing facts, information, and summaries in the media guide this year. Go check it out, and get ready for basketball season... Wreck 'em Tech!