TRENDING FOR TEXAS TECH
Turnovers | Against CSU-Bakersfield we did pull our turnovers down to having only 13, then against SE Louisiana we had 21. I just feel that with our team still having this many TO's with Big 12 play starting up we are not where we should be to be extremely competitive in the conference. We will see what happens this week with our young guys, and who knows maybe Big 12 play will help out in getting our guys more experience and cut the TO's down faster then what has happened over the course of non-conference play.
Fouls | I was really happy to see the fouls down to only 14 against CSU-Bakersfield, then against SE Louisiana we had them go back up to 28. These fouls need to stop, as we seem to get beat off the dribble quite a bit and not have the speed to regain the defensive advantage with our feet so we use our arms and hands to grab. I have hoped we are working on this and will get better as the Big 12 play is in progress. This is a trend that just like turnovers I will be following very closely the entire season.
Starting Lineup | Minnis, Willis, Lewandowski, Crockett, and Tolbert were the startes against CSU-Bakersfield. Then Petteway, Nurse, Willis, Lewandowski, and Tolbert against SE Louisiana. Maybe I'm just a fan of consistency, but I feel a team should have one starting lineup that shows who are the starters and be able to build chemistry off the same lineup each game. It's okay to make a change to the lineup 2 minutes into the game if you see a bad individual matchup on the court. But, I just feel our guys need to know with Big 12 play who has the top spots on the team at their position.
Three pointers | So against CSU-Bakersfield we go 7 for 14 from behind the arc, then against SE Louisiana we are 4 for 10. Now, I would like to see more shots from the three point line but hitting 50% and 40% from deep makes me happy when we are getting at least 10 three point shots off in the games. Maybe we could get 15 three point bombs per game in the Big 12 and keep hitting around 50% of them to keep our opponents from clogging up down low and not being worried about us as a three point shooting team. I still think we need that one guy to be the deep threat on the team, and maybe Willis will step up his game and be that guy for us.
Record | So right now entering Big 12 play we hold a record of 7-5. Last year at this time we held a record of 8-7. Billy Gillispie has put together a young team that at times show glimpses of being a really good team, but most of the time we just look talented yet still young on the floor. I personally feel good about where the team is at right now as I feel we are just going to keep getting better with years to come. I think big 12 play will help the guys grow faster and see what they are dealing with to get better as we finish up conference play. i feel we can pull 8 wins out of Big 12 play out of the 18 we have coming up. What do you guys feel will be our record after the next 18 Big 12 games we have left on the season?
BIG 12 REPORT
Top Matchups in the Big 12 This Week
#15 Kansas vs. #22 Kansas State | Wed, Jan. 4th. They are playing at KU, and this is always a big game against each other. KSU has only one loss on the season, while KU has 3 already. I still think with the home court advantage and better talent on KU they will take this game in the end.
#6 Missouri vs.#22 Kansas State | Sat, Jan. 7th. So, Missouri has no losses this season and are off to one of the best starts in school history. They are about to have to go on the road to a KSU team that I feel will be really mad about a loss they just got against KU, or could be riding high on a upset win against KU. Either way this will be a tough game for Missouri to get by, so look for maybe the first loss of the season to come in this game.
Big 12 Player of the Week
Thomas Robinson | The Kansas junior did not have that great of a game against Howard as he only scored 9 points, with 7 rebounds. Then his next game this last week, he scored 30 points and had 21 rebounds against North Dakota. That is good enough for me to make him my Big 12 player of the week. like I have said before, I think our Tolbert can be like this guy by his 3rd year on the court.