Monday Morning Matador: Baseball sweeps, basketball fights, track and field reaches higher

This week I am going without caffeine, so all of you are going to have one extra cup for me. Pour one out (over your mouth) for the homies! Let’s get to it.

Men’s basketball notches raucous win over Oklahoma, falls to Baylor

Last Tuesday the USA was erupting with excitement as two substantial guards in the Big 12 were pitted against each other. The Red Raiders played phenomenally by keeping the Sooners from starting any scoring runs and keeping Trae Young under 20 points. Leading the Raiders in scoring was Keenan Evans with 26 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. The game ended 88-78 in favor of Texas Tech. Last Saturday the Red Raiders traveled to Waco to take on a hot Baylor team that has been playing like mad over the past four games. Never getting out of hand, the Red Raiders and the Bears kept this game as close as possible to ensure everybody had an anxiety attack. After losing Evans (injury), Odiase (fouls) and Gray (fouls) Texas Tech relied on the remainder of its bench to hold true. The game continued in the most gritty fashion possible, forcing Texas Tech to attempt a win with the last possession. Culver missed a three point attempt and the Red Raiders fell to the Bears, 59-57 - Zhaire Smith serving 15 of those points. The story of this game isn’t a two point loss away, but that Evans didn’t even play in the second half. Speculation is an injury regarding his toe but nobody (at the point of writing this) knows the severity and how long he will be out. Evans is one of the most prolific basketball players in the NCAA and surely would put the Red Raiders at a disadvantage as they look forward to Oklahoma State and Kansas this week.

Texas Tech baseball is the only undefeated team in the Big 12, sweeping Maine 4-0

With a combined 49 runs in four games, the Red Raider baseball team sure proved that their substantially high ranking was no bluff. Maine, a good baseball team by a number of metrics, constantly fought to match Texas Tech’s home run machine but ultimately fell in four consecutive games; 4-2, 12-1, 12-5, 21-6. After the opening weekend, Texas Tech is leading the collective Big 12 teams with a 4-0 record. Up next for the Red Raiders is New Mexico State on Tuesday.

Track and field participants set even more personal bests at the last home meet

A number of Red Raiders secured valuable wins at home during Texas Tech’s last home meet of the season. The notable stand out is Drew McMichael who made an 18-foot clearance in the pole vault, which landed him at the No. 2 spot in the Texas Tech record book as well as a 10th nationally ranked position. C.J. Jones took first place in the 800-meter race with a clocked time of 1:48:98. Shot put was dominated by Duke Kicinski who recorded a 17.28m toss in the shot put and then an 18.95m in the weight throw - both first placed finishes. For the Lady Raiders, Tayler Jameson took first place in the women’s pole vault with a PR of 3.92m. Kaylee Amershek also claimed a first place medal with an impressive 10:24.17 time in the 3,000 meter run - which was a FIVE second improvement from her previous best at last week’s meet. The Red Raiders head to the Big 12 Indoor Championship in Ames, Iowa next week (February 23-24).

We’re going to keep you updated on injuries as we learn more - but for now... back to your regularly scheduled Monday.