Texas Tech men's basketball set for second showdown with No. 15 Iowa State
Just 13 days after facing Iowa State on the road, the Texas Tech men's basketball team will get another crack at the Cyclones.
This time, though, the 18th-ranked Red Raiders will have the benefit of a mostly full roster when they take on No. 15 in the United Supermarkets Arena on Tuesday night at 8 p.m.
In the first meeting, Texas Tech (13-4 overall, 3-2 in Big 12 play) had just seven players available.
Despite that, Tech battled the Cyclones (14-3, 2-3) until the bitter end. That loss helped propel the shorthanded Red Raiders to consecutive wins over top-10 teams — Kansas and Baylor, respectively — in their next two games.
How to watch Texas Tech basketball: : Red Raiders men's basketball vs. Iowa State Cyclones
The other big news was Terrence Shannon, Jr. made his return to the lineup Saturday. The standout junior wing had missed seven straight games before getting back on the floor at Kansas State. Shannon's return didn't go as planned with the Wildcats snapping Tech's three-game winning streak.
Shannon, who produced just two points in 18 minutes of action against Kansas State, tweeted after the game, "This on me (hand raise emoji) (100 emjoi) always gone bounce back but keep that same energy."
This on me 🙋🏽♂️💯always gone bounce back but keep that same energy
— Terrence Shannon Jr (@Sn1per_T) January 16, 2022
Head coach Mark Adams downplayed Shannon's game against Kansas State, saying it was beneficial to have another body at the team's disposal. While Saturday's game didn't go as the Red Raiders had hoped, Shannon's return is more significant than just one game.
"Any time you add another player to your top eight or nine, there's going to be some adjustments and we haven't worked through that yet," Adams said. "We've got such loyal players, guys that want to win and don't care about who gets the credit. I don't think it's much of an adjustment. What it will do is help keep guys fresh coming in and out of the game."
Keeping guys fresh was not something Texas Tech was able to do in the first meeting with Iowa State. Four of the five starters in that game played 32 minutes or more — with Adonis Arms playing all 40.
More: Williams nets 20, but No. 19 Texas Tech unable to make key plays in loss to Kansas State
The two teams went in opposite directions after that contest. Texas Tech knocked off then No. 6 Kansas, then top-ranked Baylor and Oklahoma State before the Kansas State loss while Iowa State suffered losses to Oklahoma and Kansas before knocking off Texas on Saturday.
Playing an opponent twice in a short amount of time also has its benefits, according to Adams.
"The good thing about that is we don't have to worry about trying to prepare as much because they're already on our minds," the Texas Tech head coach noted. "We know their players, know what they do and same with them. They're very familiar with us. That makes it a little easier to prepare without spending as much time scouting."
As the team starts to get closer to full strength, the Red Raiders had another reprieve come on Sunday: a day off. The first meeting with Iowa State was the start of a five-games-in-10-days stretch that finished Saturday.
Adams said that was one of the reasons for the loss to Kansas State, but not the only reason.
"... at the same time, we played against a very hungry and desperate K-State," Adams said. "Their back was to the wall and they came out and just played harder than we did."
As tough as the Red Raiders played last time against the Cyclones, they also know they could've won. In the 51-47 loss, Tech went just 6-of-15 from the free-throw line, an area that's plagued the team all season. Over the last four games, the team is 42-of-60 from the line, a 70% success rate.
Texas Tech basketball: Kevin Obanor, Adonis Arms finish in double figures as Texas Tech defeats Oklahoma State
No. 15 Iowa State at No. 18 Texas Tech
When: 8 p.m. Tuesday
Where: United Supermarkets Arena
Records: Texas Tech 13-4, 3-2; Iowa State 14-3, 2-3
Radio: 97.3
TV: ESPNU
Game updates: Follow @cmsilvajr on Twitter for live updates, with postgame recap and interviews to follow on www.lubbockonline.com.
Big 12 Standings
Conference, Overall
Kansas 3-1, 14-2
TCU 2-1, 12-2
Baylor 3-2, 15-2
Texas 3-2, 13-4
Texas Tech 3-2, 13-4
West Virginia 2-2, 13-3
Iowa State 2-3, 14-3
Oklahoma 2-3, 12-5
Oklahoma State 2-3, 9-7
Kansas State 1-4, 9-7
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Texas Tech basketball: Red Raiders set for second game with Iowa State
