16 BIG 12
TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS
Red Raiders notch first conference win
By Mike Graham Daily Toreador Thursday, Jan. 21
LUBBOCK, Texas — After starting Big 12 Conference play 0-3, Texas Tech basketball coach Pat Knight felt pressure from fans starting to mount.
He said he received hate mail and some fans wanted him fired.
However, with a 78-71 victory against Iowa State Wednesday at the United Spirit Arena — Tech's first conference win this season — the Red Raiders have taken a step in the right direction. And Knight has taken it all in stride.
("Texas coach) Rick Barnes has a great quote," Knight said after the win. "He always says, 'Proud as a peacock one day, a feather duster the next.' It gets a little out of hand, you get hate mail, people wanting you fired, people saying your players aren't any good. I just felt good for the players."
Knight also said getting the first win in conference play would be the hardest, but the Red Raiders (13-5, 1-3 in Big 12 play) may have caught the Cyclones (12-6, 1-2) at the right time.
Cyclone coach Greg McDermott said
earlier in the week his team was riding high with confidence starting Big 12 play with a narrow loss to No.1 Texas, followed by its first conference road win in two seasons prior to playing Tech.
However, less than 24 hours before Iowa State tipped off with Texas Tech, the Cyclones' shallow bench took another hit when guard Lucca Staiger suddenly quit the team Tuesday to play professional basketball in his native Germany.
Already short two players because of an injury and a dismissal, Iowa State played the game with seven scholarship athletes, a walk-on and — just in case — had two redshirts and a player serving a team suspension make the trip to Lubbock.
But the Cyclones' loss was the Red Raiders gain. They can breathe a little easier with the win, pulling Texas Tech from the basement of the Big 12 standings.
A second win against Oklahoma on Saturday in the United Spirit Arena could put the Red Raiders in the middle of the pack and right back in the hunt for a postseason berth in one of the best conferences in the nation.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Texas Tech's Mike Singleton shoots between Iowa State's Craig Brackins, left, and Justin Hamilton during the first half of their game Wednesday in Lubbock, Texas. The 78-71 victory was Texas Tech's first of conference play.
BAYLOR BEARS
Bears narrowly miss first victory in Allen
By John Marshall Associated Press Thursday, Jan. 21
Baylor walked out on Kansas' bone-rattling pregame party and nearly walked away with its first victory in the PhoG.
Sherron Collins wouldn't let the Bears do it, not after that kind of slight.
Collins had 28 points and hit his fifth 3-pointer with just more than a minute left, helping No.3 Kansas outlast No.25 Baylor 81-75 Wednesday night.
Kansas (17-1, 3-0 Big 12) figured to be in for a tight game against Baylor and its big, athletic front line. The Bears clearly weren't intimidated by Allen Fieldhouse, either, leaving the court just before tip-off to avoid the Jayhawks' crowd-juicing highlight video and player introductions.
The Jayhawks watched Baylor hit one difficult shot after another, lingering close to the lead and never backing down. Kansas
eventually wore down the Bears after getting their front line in foul trouble, eking out their 53rd straight win at Allen Fieldhouse.
Baylor (14-3, 2-2) shrugged off Kansas' aggressive defense, hitting 10 3-pointers and 25 of 48 shots overall to become the first team in 92 games to shoot more than 50 percent against the Jayhawks. LaceDarius Dunn hit five from long range — most of them well-guarded — on his way to 27 points. Tweety Carter added 17 points on equally difficult shots.
It still wasn't enough to keep the Bears from losing their eighth straight conference road game. The Big 12's best rebounding team allowed Kansas to grab 14 offensive rebounds — four by Morris — that led to 18 second-chance points. Baylor also had 20 turnovers.
"They were the better team tonight and they showed it," said Carter, who had seven assists.
OKLAHOMA SOONERS
Road woes continue after loss to Aggies
By Clark Fov
Oklahoma Daily Wednesday, Jan. 20
First-half woes continue to plague the season as the OU men's basketball team lost a heartbreaker in a game that came down to the last seconds against the Texas A&M Aggies 65-62.
Sophomore guard Willie Warren had just one point in the first half, while freshman forward Tiny Gallon added only two as he was in foul trouble for much of the first half.
The half deficit could have been much worse had it not been for the 10-point effort by freshman guard Tommy Mason Griffin. The young point guard established himself as the hot hand last night and finished the game with 21 points and five assists on 7-13 shooting.
However, the Sooners were not done. Mason-Griffin continued his hot streak in the second while receiving a 13-point boost from Warren and an 8-point, five rebound effort from Gallon.
The half ended with the Sooners down 39-29.
Oklahoma pulled ahead midway through the second half after a fast-paced 10-0 run.
They would retain that lead until just minutes remained in the game and would eventually miss their last shot to tie the game with 3.2 seconds remaining.
With the conference loss, the Sooners drop to 11-7 (2-2 Big 12) and will continue their two-game road venture on Saturday against the Texas Tech Red Raiders before returning home to Norman Wednesday to host the Iowa State Cyclones.
THE WAVE JANUARY 25, 2010
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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