Nobody would have blamed Texas Tech for taking a wave-the-white-flag approach Saturday night in a showdown against Duke on one of the biggest stages in college basketball.
Three injured players, two others who fouled out early in the second half and Red Raider star J.T. Toppin straddled with foul trouble could have been used as excuses.
Instead, No. 19 Texas Tech didn’t blink and rallied to stun the No. 3 Blue Devils 82-81 at Madison Square Garden.
Christian Anderson hit the first of two free throws with 3.4 seconds left to complete an unlikely rally that erased a 17-point second-half deficit and handed Duke its first loss of the season.
Anderson scored 23 of his 27 points in the second half and Toppin weathered his foul woes to score 19, including key baskets during Texas Tech’s late burst. The Red Raiders shot 55.2% from the field, compared to 51.9% for the Blue Devils.
Cameron Boozer led the Blue Devils (11-1) with 23 points, eight rebounds and seven assists and his brother Cayden added 13 points. But Cameron Boozer was 3 of 7 from the free-throw line in the second half and Duke was 6 of 13 as a team from the stripe. The Blue Devils also missed 10 of 13 attempts from 3-point range after halftime.
Despite those struggles, Duke held a 63-55 advantage with 11 1/2 minutes left. LeJuan Watts (20 points) and Leon Horner had just fouled out for Texas Tech (9-3) and Toppin had been tagged with his fourth infraction minutes earlier.
The Red Raiders didn’t wobble, though, rallying to jump in front 78-77 when Toppin hit a turnaround jumper with 1:35 left.
The lead grew to four before Boozer buried a 3 and the second of two free throws to even the score at 81-all with 18.3 seconds to go.
Anderson worked the clock down before Caleb Foster fouled him 35 feet away from the rim with 3.4 seconds on the clock. Anderson made the first foul shot but missed the second, then Duke’s Isaiah Evans snatched a long defensive rebound and hastily called a timeout.
After a review to see how much time was left, three-tenths of a second was taken off, leaving the Blue Devils with 1.6.
Duke got the ball into Boozer’s hands, but the talented freshman’s 3-pointer from the left wing was off the mark to help preserve Texas Tech’s first win against a ranked team since January 2024.
With Anderson leading the way, the Red Raiders turned the game around from outside the arc. After missing 10 of their first 11 attempts, they knocked down 6 of 11 to peck away and finally pass Duke.
–Field Level Media
