:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/25168455/20131205_kkt_bs8_263.0.jpg)
THE INFORMATION
| Game Details | |
|---|---|
| TEAMS |
 Central Arkansas Bears (2-4, 0-0)  Texas Tech Red Raiders (6-3, 0-0) |
| WHERE | United Spirit Arena | Lubbock, Texas |
| WHEN | 1:00 pm Sunday December 15th |
| CONSUME | Radio - TTSN | TV - FSSW+: Suddenlink (81), AT&T U-Verse (754), Direct TV (677) |
THE CHARACTERS
| Starters | ||
|---|---|---|
| Texas Tech | Central Arkansas | |
| Robert Turner (6-3/180) | PG | DeShone McClure (6-3/175) |
| Dusty Hannahs (6-4/210) | SG | Ryan Williams (6-3/185) |
| Jaye Crockett (6-7/210) | SF | Daouda Berete (6-4/175) |
| Jordan Tolbert (6-7/225) | PF | Jalen Jackson (6-6/205) |
| Dejan Kravic (7-0/235) | C | Phabian Glasco (6-7/215) |
THE ANALYSIS
Key Matchup | Jackson vs. Tolbert: Jackson is the Bears' best player, or at least he's the team's most versatile. Jackson averages 14 points, almost 5 rebounds and 2.5 assists a game. All of that while shooting 52%. I could envision this really being a match-up for Crockett to take over eventually as I could see Tolbert sliding to the center spot, with Crockett playing the other forward and Kravic not getting a lot of time this game. Central Arkansas is pretty small overall and they don't play a lot of players.
Take Aim: According to KenPom, Central Arkansas is not a good team, they sit 334th in AdjO and 308th in AdjD, which means that this should be a pretty easy game for Texas Tech as Texas Tech sits at 115th and 174th in those respective categories. That's a pretty big disparity. The Bears other significant player is McClure, who averages 13 a game with almost 3 rebounds and almost 2 assists a game. That's really about it. There are no other players that score in double-figures. This should be a decent measuring stick sort of game as Kansas St. hammered the Bears by 30 points before the holiday break. If anything, Texas Tech is going to have a pretty significant shooting advantage over UCA as they only average 41% and Texas Tech averages 48% from the floor.
Game Day Links:
The official site has your game preview.
The LAJ has your game preview story and HC Tubby Smith said that the team has focused on shooting and fundamentals:
"We’ve been shooting a lot, trying to work on just their mechanics and fundamentals," Smith said. "I think when you start missing shots, it usually goes back to a breakdown in mechanics and fundamentals. We’ve talked about trying to get the shot off quickly, not dipping the ball, shot preparation and being ready to shoot the ball when you catch it."
Action: