McClung leads Texas Tech to steal a major road win in Austin

Man, you love to see it. Not much feels better than beating the Horns in Austin, especially for 3 years in a row! No matter what the outcome was though, it was an incredibly fun game to watch for us viewers. Big shot after big shot was made, scoring was back and forth and it all came down to the very last possession for Tech to seal the deal. With about 12 seconds to go, guard Mac McClung patiently took the ball down the floor, knowing he was going to be the one to take the last shot. As collected as ever, that’s exactly what he did, making the biggest shot of the season thus far. It sent the entire Tech bench into a frenzy, while you could tell that UT was completely deflated.

On top of the game winner, McClung made play after play last evening in what was arguably his best game as a Red Raider so far. He led the team in scoring at 22 points, with 2-3 from behind the arc. He had help from McCullar and Silva, who both played extremely efficient games in their own right. McCullar was 6-7 from the floor, 2-2 from 3, and finished with an impressive 16/8/1 stat line. Silva was 4-5 from the floor, with a big block on Ramey down the stretch. Even with fouling out with 3 minutes left, he still played a good game. Shannon fought poor shooting all night (some were just bad decisions), but still managed to finish with 14 off of the bench for Tech.

This was a huge win for the Red Raiders, coming as their first road win against an AP top 5 team in program history and it could not have come at a better time. After last night, Tech is now tied for 3rd in the conference at 4-2, with another tough match up on Saturday when #2 Baylor visits Lubbock. What upsets me the most about that 4-2 record is knowing that taking away a handful of possessions against both Kansas and Oklahoma State would provide us with a perfect conference record, but it is what it is. In what should be another game that comes down to the wire, Baylor scares me just a little bit more than UT. They are very similar to the Longhorns in terms of being guard heavy, but they are just a better version of what we saw last night.

I expect Beard to make sure the guys enjoy the win, but also prepare them for what’s coming on Saturday. Baylor will be wanting to come out and add another statement win to their resume, while Tech looks to build off a 3 game winning streak. This is a big step forward for the team and I am hoping now that they realize they are capable of winning the conference, if they can find a way to take down the Bears this weekend. I have a feeling it will be an entertaining and crazy one to watch, so buckle up.