Star forward JT Toppin and No. 11 Texas Tech will look to get back on track in Big 12 play Monday when they host No. 14 Kansas in Lubbock, Tex.
The Red Raiders (16-5, 6-2 Big 12) will need a much better performance all around after losing Saturday’s high-noon affair at UCF, which led almost the entire contest and stood strong at the end to record its second win over a ranked team.
Toppin, who averages a double-double, did his part with 27 points and 10 rebounds in the 88-80 setback that snapped the Red Raiders’ five-game winning streak.
“We were not ready to play, and that’s 100% on me,” said Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland, whose crew did not have a midweek matchup before the UCF game. “We had a week to get prepared for this. … We did not overlook this game. We lost in here the last time we played. They beat us to start conference play last year.”
Texas Tech was outrebounded 35-23 and committed 13 turnovers while forcing six. UCF held an 18-2 advantage in points off turnovers.
“What we communicated and how we practiced was not how we did in the game,” added McCasland. “I thought UCF was just more physical, more aggressive, and tougher than we were for 40 minutes.”
The 6-foot-9 Toppin produces 22.4 points per game and 10.9 rebounds. His scoring ranks him third in the Big 12 behind Kansas State’s P.J. Haggerty (23.0 per game) and BYU’s AJ Dybantsa (23.3).
Red Raiders guard Christian Anderson totals 19.6 points and 7.5 assists per game.
The loss, combined with Kansas’ 90-82 win over No. 13 BYU, left the Jayhawks (16-5, 6-2) effectively tied with Texas Tech and Iowa State for third place in the Big 12 standings.
Kansas played two completely different halves Saturday at home as it hosted College GameDay for the 13th time in school history.
The matchup featured two of the nation’s most sensational freshmen — the Jayhawks’ Darryn Peterson and Dybantsa.
The 6-foot-6 Peterson only played 20 minutes, but the guard was unstoppable in the first half.
He scored 18 points and made 6 of 7 from the floor plus chipped in three steals as Kansas led 53-33 at the break.
“We played great, you know, for 20 minutes,” Kansas coach Bill Self said after the team’s fifth straight win. “That’s the best we’ve played all year long. And then we just kind of had to piece it together to end it.”
However, Peterson’s cramps, an issue that sidelined him early during the nonconference part of the campaign, resurfaced by halftime and forced the explosive guard to miss 17 minutes of the second half.
“It’s disappointing that he couldn’t go because of cramps,” said Self, whose squad had to fend off BYU after once leading by 21. “And he didn’t cramp last game, but he did today. I certainly hope we can still figure that out.”
Bryson Tiller, a 6-foot-11 freshman forward, stepped up in Peterson’s absence and helped preserve the victory with a career-high 21 points and a team-best seven boards.
“I thought he was aggressive,” said Self of Tiller, who averages nine points and 5.8 rebounds. “When you play a big guy the way we’re playing him… I think sometimes he can get a little bit lost and float. Tonight, I didn’t see that at all. I thought he was aggressive the whole game.”
–Field Level Media
