The 2OT: Can Texas Tech basketball live up to expectations?

The Thought.

The Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball team is off to a fantastic start in their season. With Wednesday night’s victory over the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff, the Red Raiders are now 8-0 in the season. Arkansas Pine Bluff may not seem like a big name in the college basketball world, but they have one of the most prolific scorers in NCAA basketball. Still, the Red Raiders defeated the Golden Lions 65-47 on Wednesday night. In fact, the Red Raiders have a real possibility of going undefeated at least until they face Duke on December 20th. Some fans hope the team extends the winning streak a lot longer.

The Take.

I hate to break it to you, Red Raiders, but the basketball team will lose at some point this season. In history, only seven teams have won the NCAA tournament without a single defeat in their record. The last time this happened was in 1976. Of course, as a fan, I’m convinced the Red Raiders will win the NCAA tournament this year without a single loss in the record. They are certainly off to a good start. Only one team has shot better than 35.4 percent against Texas Tech. This is partially thanks to Tariq Owens. If you missed the Memphis game, you missed the six shots he blocked in the last nine minutes of the game. Even when all seems lost, the Red Raiders have used halftime to regroup and come back stronger. Both USC and Memphis had a strong lead against Texas Tech in the first half, but Chris Beard was able to make the necessary adjustments in the locker room allowing Texas Tech to come out victorious in both cases. Of course the real challenge will come on December 20 in New York where Texas Tech will face Zion Williamson and the Duke Blue Devils. The outcome of that game might give us a better insight into the rest of the season. Most fans are hopeful for a (near) perfect season. How do you think Texas Tech basketball will do this season?