INSTANT REACTION: Victory at last

With Isaacs and Aimaq out, and a desperate LSU team trying to defend their home court, this could have gotten ugly. And while this win was not pretty, with both squads hunting for an answer to their respective losing streaks, Tech found a way to get the long-awaited W.

Kevin Obanor paced the scoring for Tech scoring 22, but the real hero of this game was Kerwin Walton.

Walton would score 17 in his first game as a starter, on 6/7 shooting (5/6 from 3) including key shots every time it felt like LSU had Tech’s number. Obanor and Walton provided the scoring surge this team needed down the best shooter on the roster, with Harmon chipping in 14 points of his own to the effort.

Another guy to highlight is Elijah Fisher. Fisher would play 22 minutes, and while offensively he struggled a bit, he showed off some real potential that is starting to turn into reality. Fisher had 2 steals, a block, and 9 rebounds. That is the kind of every man grinding work this team needed, and his length boosts the defense in a big way.

One thing is abundantly clear, this team is better with Walton and Fisher getting more minutes. Unfortunately, those minutes will likely come at Jaylon Tyson’s expense who had a forgettable game. But even when Pop returns, Harmon and Pop are nearly on the court the entire game. Giving up even five minutes each to feed Fisher and Walton would improve end of game finishes and help this team learn how to actually close out victories.

A win streak starts with a win. Maybe this can be the start of a change in Lubbock.