The Lady Red Raiders play the #1 Baylor Bears in the Kansas City, MO at 1:30pm CST at the Municipal Auditorium at the 2012 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship - Game 4. This will be the 75th meeting between these two teams. Tech leads the series 47-27. the Lady Raiders are the only team in the nation to come close to beating the Bears. The Lady Raiders are the only team in the nation to keep the final margin against Baylor under 10 points. They lost 72-64 in Lubbock and then the final outcome for the game in Waco was 56-51.
Tech enters the game after an upset win over Texas in the 1st Round Game. Tech crushed the Longhorns with great defense and different strategies that took UT out of their game. Tech started out slow but once they got going they just pounded away and beat Texas 81-58 on Wednesday, March 8th. The Lady Raiders have been up and down this season on their wins and losses. They went 14-0 to start the season and then struggled in the 2nd half of conference play. Baylor is undefeated and beat Iowa State in their final conference game. Final score was 77-53.
What's at Stake: Tech MUST win this game if they are to move forward in the Big 12 Tournament. They need to play aggressive and play cohesively. The Lady Raiders must control the boards when they can but they also must make every shot count and especially at the FT line and they have to capitalize on take-aways. I hope they take the momentum from the game last night and continue to win. The Baylor Bears will be looking to stay undefeated and to improve their record in the series with Texas Tech.
Comments: Tech has beaten this Baylor team before. They did it last year when the Bears were also ranked #1. The odds are not in Tech's favor going into this game. If you look at Baylor they have impressive stats all around, they have more height and they have more seasoned players but the Lady Raiders have heart and a "can do" attitude that cannot be measured. Tech needs to create their own impressive stats and break some records and break Baylor's winning streak. The Lady Raiders need to bounce back hard and strong with this game and set the tone for the rest of the tournament play. Tech edges Baylor in actual 3-Point's made and has made more offensive rebounds and Tech leads the conference in Steals. If the Lady Raiders can play to their strengths and improve on their FG% and especially their FT% then they will win.
More after the Jump ...
Current record: Tech's current season record is 19-12, 7-12 Big 12. Baylor's current season record is 31-0, 18-0 Big12.
Rankings: The Baylor Bears are ranked #1 in both polls.
Players to watch:
Tech: Senior Forward Kierra Mallard is averaging 11.7 pts and 8.2 rebounds/game and has 49 blocks and 34 steals; Junior Guard Casey Morris averages 9.4 points per game and 3.7 rebounds/game and has 48 steals and has a 86 FT%; Junior Christine Hyde is out for the remainder of the season due to an injury and surgery; Junior Guard Monique Smalls is averaging 8.5 points and 3.5 rebounds and has 70 steals; Sophomore Kelsi Baker averages 6.3 points and 4.3 rebounds/game and has 9 blocks and 17 steals; Sophomore Forward Shauntal Nobles is averaging 6.3 pts and 5.1 rebounds/game and has 20 blocks and 19 steals. Junior Guard Chynna Brown is averaging 8.8 pts and 4.1 rebounds/game and has 20 steals; Senior Forward Jordan Barncastle averages 5.2 pts/game and completes 78% FTs and has 10 steals and 6 blocks.
Baylor: Sophomore Point Guard Odyssey Sims is averaging 15 points and 3 rebounds/game and has 86 steals and has a 84% FT%; Junior Guard Kimetria Hayden averages 9 points and 4.3 rebounds/game and has 35 steals and has 76% FT%; Junior Guard Jordan Madden averages 4.8 points and 3.1 rebounds/game and has 15 blocks and 19 steals; Junior Forward Destiny Williams 9.8 points and 9.1 rebounds/game and has 14 blocks and 21 steals; Junior Point Brittney Griner 23.1 points and 9.6 rebounds/game and has 140 blocks and 13 steals and has a 80% FT%;
Coaches: Kristy Curry is coaching her 6th season at Tech. (107-85). Kim Mulkey is entering her 12th season with the Baylor Bears (329-79).
Last Year: The Lady Red Raiders finished the 2010-11 season 22-11, 8-8 with a tie for 6th place in the Big12. Tech returns 11 players (3 Starters) from last year's team and welcomed 2 newcomers. The Baylor Bears finished the 2010-11 season 34-3, 15-1 and finished in 1st place in the Big12. They went to the NCAA Tournament where they lost to Texas A&M 58-46 after reaching the Elite Eight. The Lady Bears returned 12 Letterwinners (4 Starters) and have 1 newcomer.
TV: FSN
Radio: Texas Tech Sports Network 97.3 FM (Lubbock) and Baylor Sports Network - IMG College ESPN Central Texas - 1660 AM, 101.3 FM
Live Stats: http://www.big12sports.com/Scoreboard.dbml?SPID=13135
Streaming videoaudio: Only streaming audio available for this game .... www.texastech.com/allaccess/ (~ $10/month)
Game Thread will go up at 12:45pm CST on Thursday, March 8, 2012
Other Notes and Quotes:
Texas Tech is now 15-13 at Big 12 Championship all-time.
Texas Tech wins first round game at Big 12 Championship for second straight year.
Texas Tech advances to the second round for the fourth time in Big 12 history.
Senior guard Monique Smalls and junior guard Casey Morris have started every game this season. Smalls total is now at 97 - every game since she came to Tech in 2009.
Texas Tech's 81-58 win on Wednesday night was the largest margin of victory against the Longhorns in the Big 12 Championship. It was only the second win over Texas in the tournament, winning 71-58 in 2001.
Texas Tech trailed Texas 9-4 early on before breaking open the game with a 41-14 run into the second half to take a 45-23 lead with 17:30 left. It was the second time in two games that the Lady Raiders had a
Texas Tech vs. Baylor Series Breakdown:
Series: Texas Tech leads, 47-27
In Waco: Texas Tech leads, 20-12
In Lubbock: Texas Tech leads, 25-8
Neutral: Baylor leads, 8-2
Q. Kristy, can you address that too? You guys, some of the schemes you've used have been effective. I know it's sort of a constant battle against them to come up with new stuff. But you guys have been very good in both the matchups against Baylor.
KRISTY CURRY: "There are definitely a few adjustments we need to make in the game plan that we feel like we can bottle those two up and do some things better. The most important thing that you have to do against those guys is you can't go get a stop and not go down and score. You've got to make sure that you find ways to score and make plays.You've got to shoot 50 percent to give yourself a chance. You've got to shoot 80 percent from the line. It's just about finding offense tomorrow, and we believe in what we're doing and how we're trying to do it. We've missed some shots that just one here or there that would have made a difference. So I think these kids have a lot of confidence, and at this point, it doesn't really matter to us who we play because we're just thankful for another day. We're playing to stay alive at this point."
TEXAS TECH LADY RAIDERS
| TEXAS TECH LADY RAIDERS (19-12, 7-12) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NAME | NO. | HT | P | YR | STATS |
| Monique Smalls | 23 | 5-6 | G | JR | 8.3 pts/game |
| Casey Morris | 15 | 5-9 | G | JR | 9.7 pts/game |
| Chynna Brown | 00 | 5-8 | G | JR | 8.8 pts/game |
| Kelsi Baker | 41 | 6-0 | F | SO | 7.6 pts/game |
| Kierra Mallard | 20 | 6-3 | F | SR | 13.1 pts/game |
BAYLOR BEARS
| Baylor Bears (31-0, 18-0) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NAME | NO. | HT | P | YR | STATS |
| Odyssey Sims | 0 | 5-8 | PG | So. | 15 pts/game |
| Kimetria Hayden | 1 | 6-0 | G | Jr | 9 pts/game |
| Jordan Madden | 3 | 6-0 | G | Jr. | 4.8 pts/game |
| Destiny Williams | 10 | 6-1 | F/P | R- | 9.8 pts/game |
| Brittney Griner | 42 | 6-8 | P | Jr. | 23.1 pts/game |
Four Factors to Winning
| The Four Factors to Winning | Baylor | Texas Tech |
|---|---|---|
| Shooting eFG% | 0.435 | 0.365 |
| Ball Handling TO% | 0.288 | 0.389 |
| Off rebounding OR% | 0.426 | 0.391 |
| Shooting FTs FT Rate | 0.709 | 0.672 |
TEAM STATISTICS
| Scoring Offense | W-L | Pts | Avg/G |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas Tech | 19-12, 7-12 | 2093 | 67.5 |
| Baylor | 26-0, 13-0 | 2449 | 79 |
| Scoring Defense | W-L | Pts | Avg/G |
| Texas Tech | 19-12, 7-12 | 1830 | 59 |
| Baylor | 26-0, 13-0 | 1590 | 51.3 |
| Scoring Margin | Off | Def | Margin |
| Texas Tech | 67.5 | 59 | +8.5 |
| Baylor | 79 | 51.3 | +27.7 |
| Free Throw % | FT Made | FT Attempts | Pct. |
| Texas Tech | 457 | 680 | 0.672 |
| Baylor | 523 | 738 | 0.709 |
| Field Goal % | FG | FG A | Pct. |
| Texas Tech | 739 | 1894 | 0.39 |
| Baylor | 907 | 1863 | 0.487 |
| Field Goal % Defense | FG | FGA | Pct. |
| Texas Tech | 658 | 1720 | 0.383 |
| Baylor | 588 | 1914 | 0.307 |
| 3-Point FG % | FG | FGA | Pct. |
| Texas Tech | 158 | 498 | 0.317 |
| Baylor | 112 | 346 | 0.324 |
| 3-Point FG % Defense | FG | FGA | Pct. |
| Texas Tech | 131 | 466 | 0.281 |
| Baylor | 160 | 609 | 0.263 |
| Rebounding Offense | Reb | Avg/G | |
| Texas Tech | 1292 | 41.7 | |
| Baylor | 1440 | 46.5 | |
| Rebounding Defense | Reb | Avg/G | |
| Texas Tech | 1122 | 36.2 | |
| Baylor | 1030 | 33.2 | |
| Blocked Shots | Blocks | Avg/G | |
| Texas Tech | 124 | 4 | |
| Baylor | 243 | 7.84 | |
| Assists | No. | Avg/G | |
| Texas Tech | 396 | 12.77 | |
| Baylor | 582 | 18.77 | |
| Steals | No. | Avg/G | |
| Texas Tech | 330 | 10.65 | |
| Baylor | 274 | 8.84 |