In spite of losing Wednesday’s first game of the Battle 4 Atlantis against Villanova, the Texas Tech basketball team had a good week on the road, going 2-1 and finishing in fifth place. On Friday, capping out the three-game run in three days, they cruised to a 73-57 win over Michigan.
For about three-quarters of the game, the Red Raiders were in the lead. For the first time in the tournament, Tech got off to a good start, jumping out to a 35-21 halftime lead.
The Tech offense was well-balanced thanks to Devan Cambridge and Joe Toussaint. Both players produced 17 points apiece, making them two of four Red Raider starters to reach double digits. Darrion Williams and Pop Isaacs each scored 13 points.
Coming off Thursday’s 72-70 victory over Northern Iowa, in which the Red Raiders rallied from a 15-point deficit in the last 11:31 of the game, this was Tech’s most comprehensive victory of the season. Here are a few key points from this thrashing of the Wolverines based on the statistics.
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Toussaint is the heart and soul of this Texas Tech basketball team
De’Vion Harmon, an undersized point guard who transferred to Texas Tech from Oklahoma for one season, was the team’s rock last season. Joe Toussaint, a diminutive transfer from West Virginia who will likewise play for the Red Raiders for just one season, is now their main weapon.
His stats in the Bahamas were 17.6 ppg, 4.6 assit, and 2.6 rpg. Naturally, those were Tech’s three best opponents so far.
His scoring this season has been over ten points in every game, and he is showing that he can be more than just a reserve player as he was for the Mountaineers. Indeed, the Red Raiders look to Toussaint as a leader. This New York City native is unmatched in his toughness, and his teammates see a glimpse of his infectious determination.
Right now, he’s setting new personal bests in terms of points scored, field goal %, 3-pointers made, and free throws attempted each game. That is to say, he has figured out what the offense wants from him and is giving it to them in spades.
Toussaint is also doing an excellent job with the ball. He only committed four turnovers in 107 minutes of play in the Bahamas.
It seems like McCasland has faith in his point guard too. Toussaint may even be his head coach’s rock.
Toussaint participated in 89.1 percent of his eligible minutes across all three games played at Atlantis. What this means is that he spent nearly all of his time on the court.
It is possible that this roster contains more talented players, some of whom may have greater potential. After this week’s performance, though, it’s impossible to argue that Toussaint isn’t the most valuable player on this squad.
NCAA Basketball: Michigan, Stanford, Texas Tech and Northern Iowa takeaways from Battle 4 Atlantis
There is a plethora of well-known faces competing in this year’s Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament. In addition to the heavy hitters like Villanova and UNC, there were a few teams that were hoping to make a comeback season after failing to make the NCAA Tournament the previous year. Some of these schools were Northern Iowa, Michigan, Texas Tech, and Stanford.
Regrettably, all four programs were eliminated in the first round, placing them in the field’s loser’s bracket. In their match against Stanford, Michigan required a miraculous comeback to secure the win. In the other game, too, Pop Isaacs’s last-second shot was the difference between Texas Tech and Northern Iowa. In the seventh-place game, the Panthers exacted revenge on Stanford and salvaged the week with a victory, while the Red Raiders dominated the Wolverines and took fifth place.
This article will review all four shows, summarizing what viewers may expect from each show during the past week.
7th place – Northern Iowa Panthers
Positive takeaway: Nate Hiese is healthy and effective
The Panthers greatly missed the 6’4″ guard last season when he was limited to only two games owing to an injury.Heise averaged almost 16 points per game and was named the team’s most valuable player in all three games. In the game versus Stanford, he had 15 points and six rebounds. With the return of last year’s leading scorer, Bowen Born, and his current performance, this squad may have the offensive firepower to contend in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Negative takeaway: Need better second-half defensive efforts
With a lead in the second half of all three games, Northern Iowa showed that they belonged in this field, despite being a mid-major. However, they lost two of those games by scores of ten points or more. The Panthers’ defense had a rough go of it in those games, and although it’s tough to hold powers like Texas Tech basketball and UNC at bay, the squad will nonetheless walk away from the experience thinking “what if” they hadn’t given up those large runs.
