Another big night from Keenan Evans leads No. 7 Texas Tech to victory

The No. 7 Texas Tech Red Raiders defeated the No. 23 Oklahoma Sooners tonight by a score of 88-78. The crowd was rocking the United Supermarkets Arena and the team played up to par by defeating the 23rd ranked Sooners, a team that had defeated the Red Raiders earlier in the season.

Christian James led the Sooners with 23 points on 8-14 shooting including 4-8 from behind the arc. James got going really early with 5 quick points out of the gate. James McNeace also had a good game off the bench for the Sooners. McNease had 11 points and 9 rebounds on the night. Kalen McGusty went 3-3 from behind the 3-point line and chipped in 13 total points tonight.

Trae Young had 19 points in the game tonight. Young shot 11-11 from the free-throw line. He also shot 0-9 from behind the three-point line and went 4-16 overall shooting the ball tonight. For those non-math people like myself, that’s a 25% shooting percentage for the game. Young was very well guarded by Texas Tech, and I believe they played the perimeter very well as only two Sooners made 3-point baskets and as a team, they went 7-22 the entire game. The Red Raiders also forced Young to turn the ball over 6 times, a feat I believe will make Coach Beard happy.

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The Red Raiders had an astounding offensive night. Four Red Raiders were in double digits, including Norense Odiase. Odiase really stepped up on the offensive end tonight, as he went 6-11 from the floor and scored 14 points for the Red Raiders including a huge and-one that gave the Red Raiders momentum to complete the win. Niem Stevenson was the bright spot off the bench as he had 12 points on 3-6 shooting including a circus three-point shot that excited the crowd. Niem also had 7 rebounds and 3 assists. Zhaire Smith also had 13 points and 4 rebounds in the win.

Player of the Game: Keenan Evans

Keenan Evans had another All-Big 12 caliber performance tonight, as he out-dueled Trae Young tonight, totaling 26 points on 4-7 shooting from 3-point land, 4-6 shooting from the free-throw line, and 9-15 shooting total for the game. Evans led this team to a huge win, as the Red Raiders now have wins against all of the teams in the Big 12. Keenan Evans, in my opinion, has made it known to the country that he and this team can go toe to toe with anyone.

The Red Raiders next face the Baylor Bears, who have won 4 games in a row, on Saturday in Waco. This game will be a challenging one for the Red Raiders as the Bears are really clicking on both ends of the floor. What do you think of the game tonight? Please leave your thoughts in the comment section below!