Top Spot in Big 12 on the line as the Red Raiders head into Lawrence

Matchup: Texas Tech Red Raiders 15-4 (5-2) at Kansas Jayhawks 16-2 (5-1)

Where to Watch: ESPN 8PM Central Time

Money line: Kansas -6.5 O/U -139.5

Following a solid double-digit win against the Mountaineers of West Virginia, Texas Tech is looking to do something they’ve only done once in 20 attempts, win a road game in Lawrence. The Red Raiders won the first matchup at home in a game that saw Tech play a great defensive game and do just enough on offense.

Kansas has been on a four game winning streak since losing to Tech, besides blowing out West Virginia they beat Iowa State, Oklahoma and Kansas State by a combined seven points. Ochai Agbaji has been playing like one of the best players in the country and is the reason why this team is as great as they are. Christian Braun has also been solid for the Jayhawks, as those two are the only real scoring threats the Jayhawks have.

After a slow start to the season, Jalen Wilson put up 20 points in the first matchup against Tech and has proceeded to put up solid stat lines as of recent including his first double-double of the season in his last game against Kansas State.

If Tech is going to win this game in Lawrence, they are going to need a mixture of what they did on defense last game and how they were on offense against West Virginia. One thing that they did well against the Mountaineers was taking out one of their top guys while accepting that the other will probably go off. Taz Sherman scored 21 but they held Sean McNeil to just seven points and didn’t allow him to get hot from the three-point line. Agbaji might score 20+ but if we don’t allow Braun to get hot and we keep Wilson off the boards then we can say that we had a solid defensive day.

On the offensive side of things we will need another great game from TJ Shannon. He stepped up for us against West Virginia and took over late like the star should. Bryson Williams will also need to hit the shots he’s been hitting for us. If Kevin Obanor can get out of his shooting slump and continue to get rebounds on both ends of the floor then that will be key for us as well. I would also like to see our guards continue to play smart and not turn the ball over on the road, especially in a place like Lawrence that can get intense very fast.

My prediction for this final score will be a very close 72-70 win for the Red Raiders. It’ll be a fast start for both teams with both of them getting into the 30’s at the half. The team that can get a stop late and take advantage of it will be the winner and I believe in our guys to go into Lawrence and play their best game.