Davide Moretti and Jahmi'us Ramsey each scored 17 points Monday night as No. 24 Texas Tech returned to the Top 25 with authority, walloping TCU 88-42 in a Big 12 Conference mismatch at Lubbock, Texas.
Kyler Edwards added 14 for the Red Raiders (16-8, 7-4 Big 12) while Kevin McCullar and TJ Holyfield chipped in 10 points apiece. Texas Tech never trailed, established a season high with 13 3-pointers and connected on a season-best 60.4 percent of its field-goal attempts.
Reserve Jaire Grayer tallied 10 points for the Horned Frogs (13-11, 4-7), who endured their largest margin of defeat in coach Jamie Dixon's four seasons. Desmond Bane managed just seven points on 3-of-9 shooting.
Bane entered the game as the conference's second-leading scorer, but he was held down by a Red Raiders defense that executed at a high level. Not only did Texas Tech contest shots, limiting TCU to 26.7 percent accuracy from the field, but it also forced 20 turnovers that it converted into 33 points.
Texas Tech wasted no time putting its stamp on this one. The Red Raiders scored on their first five possessions, forcing Dixon to burn a timeout just 2:26 into the game after a Terrence Shannon Jr. layup made it 11-2.
But Dixon didn't have enough timeouts to keep his team remotely competitive. The margin reached 10 on a Moretti free throw at the 12:41 mark and stayed in double figures for the game's remainder. It grew to 20 when Moretti stroked a 3-pointer with 8:37 left in the half to make it 31-11.
The lead grew to 27 on a McCullar jumper with 4:10 remaining before the break, and the Red Raiders headed for halftime with a 45-20 cushion. They sank 61.5 percent of their first-half field-goal tries while going 9 of 13 from the 3-point arc.
Any thoughts of a miracle comeback vanished when Ramsey's transition layup gave Texas Tech its first 30-point lead less than four minutes into the second half at 56-26.
--Field Level Media
Texas Christian | Texas Tech | |
Jaire Grayer 10 | Scoring | Davide Moretti 17 |
RJ Nembhard 2 | Assists | Chris Clarke 5 |
Kevin Samuel 7 | Rebounds | Chris Clarke 4 |
PJ Fuller 4 | Free Throws Made | Kevin McCullar 4 |
Desmond Bane 1 | Steals | Chris Clarke 2 |
Kevin Samuel 2 | Blocks | TJ Holyfield 3 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Texas Christian | 42 | 26.7 | 3-19 | 15-22 | 4 | 28 | 3 | 2 | 20 |
Texas Tech | 88 | 60.4 | 13-22 | 11-22 | 20 | 27 | 7 | 13 | 6 |