Texas Tech split their games last week by picking up a win against TCU and lost (yet another) a heartbreaker to West Virginia. The Red Raiders get rewarded for their tough efforts against West Virginia by getting a matchup against the #1 team in the nation Oklahoma. This will be the second time this year that Texas Tech has faced a #1 team.
Check out the game on ESPN 2 at 6:00 PM!
OU Key Players
| Category | Stat | Name |
| Points/Game | 25.7 | G Buddy Hield |
| Rebounds/Game | 9.9 | F Ryan Spangler |
| Assist/Game | 4.6 | G Isaiah Cousins |
| 3pt Made/3pt % | 74/143, 51.7% | G Buddy Hield |
| Free Throw % | 86/95, 90.5% | G Buddy Hield |
Well, Buddy Hield is an absolute beast. He's averaging almost 26 points a game while knocking down 52% of his shots. Held is also deadly from 3-point range, he's hitting almost 52% from 3 as well. While Hield is the lead man at OU, the Sooners have some other studs as well. Jordan Woodard is a sharpshooter from behind the arc, he's knocking down 54% of his 3-point attempts. Forward Ryan Spangler is almost averaging a double-double a game with an average of 10.6 points and 9.9 rebounds. The Red Raiders will have to find a way to slow down the Sooners' stars if they want to have any shot in this game.
Last 5 Games
| 1/9 Kansas St | W 86-76 |
| 1/13 Oklahoma St | W 74-72 |
| 1/16 #11 West Virginia | W 70-68 |
| 1/18 #19 Iowa State | L 82-77 |
| 1/23 #13 Baylor | W 82-72 |
The Sooners have only have 2 losses on the year to Kansas and Iowa St. The Kansas game was the triple OT thriller when KU was #1 and OU was #2. That game really showed that Oklahoma was for real and could play with the big boys, it also put the national spotlight on Buddy Hield. The second loss came last week to Iowa St. At the time Iowa St was #19 and pulled off the upset, but is there really a such thing as an upset in the Big 12? Just last night Iowa St pulled off a win against a #4 ranked Kansas team. The Sooners have also played some close games but in the end they pull off the W.
Prediction
Texas Tech 67 - Oklahoma 79
The Red Raiders opened as 14 point underdogs and the line has now moved to 12.5. Oklahoma is the real deal and have a ton of talent on their team. I believe the Sooners have too many weapons and the Red Raiders will be outmatched. I don't see the Sooners running away with it until the closing minutes of the second half though. Texas Tech likes to hang around throughout their games against the big dogs of the Big 12.
