No. 18 TCU rallies for win over Red Raiders in Big 12 opener

FORT WORTH, Texas – Texas Tech saw an 11-point halftime lead turn into a 67-61 loss to No. 18 TCU on Saturday at the Schollmaier Arena in its Big 12 opener.

The Red Raiders (10-3, 0-1 Big 12) jumped 37-26 halftime lead but would fall to the Horned Frogs (12-1, 1-0 Big 12) who would mount the comeback with Tech finishing with 23 turnovers and missing nine free throws. TCU owned a 44-22 scoring advantage in the paint and finished with a 14-7 advantage on second-chance baskets.

“We had success in the first half pushing the ball and attacking,” Texas Tech head coach Mark Adams said. “TCU is a very good team with a lot of veterans who made some adjustments in the second half. Their defense was the biggest difference in the second half in how they got back and forced turnovers. The first four minutes of the second half is always important and sets the tone. They responded better than we did.”

The Red Raiders will now host Kansas and Oklahoma next week at the United Supermarkets Arena. Tech and KU play at 8 p.m. on Tuesday before the Sooners travel to Lubbock for a 6 p.m. game next Saturday. TTU is currently on a 29-game home winning streak, including winning 12 conference games in a row after going 9-0 at home in Big 12 play last season. TCU travels to play Baylor on Wednesday in Waco for its next contest.

Pop Isaacs led Tech with 17 points after hitting five 3-pointers, while De’Vion Harmon added 13 points, five steals and matched a career-high with seven rebounds. Jaylon Tyson scored eight points and led the team with four assists. Daniel Batcho led Tech with nine rebounds and five blocked shots in a game where he also had two assists. He scored only two points though, going 1-for-1 from the field. KJ Allen led the Red Raider reserves with nine points and five rebounds and Kevin Obanor was limited to six points and four rebounds after finding himself in early foul trouble. Isaacs matched a career-high with his five 3-pointers where he was 5-for-11 in a game where Tech went 8-of-23 from beyond the arc.

Texas Tech finished the game just 9-for-18 at the free-throw line while TCU went 15-for-20. The Horned Frogs were only 2-for-14 on 3-pointers but overcame it by going 15-for-20 at the free-throw line and converting the 23 turnovers by Tech in 22 points.

“This is a learning experience for us coming out of our first Big 12 game,” Adams said. “We did some really good things and competed really hard in the first half. I’m proud of them for that. But we have to play with more consistency in the second half.”

Mike Miles led TCU with a game-high 23 points where he was 7-for-12 from the field and 8-of-10 at the free-throw line. Emanuel Miller added 16 points and six rebounds while Damion Baugh contributed 14 points and five assists in the comeback win for the Horned Frogs.

Texas Tech owned a 37-26 halftime lead with seven players having already scored and the defense limiting TCU to only 30.8 percent shooting. Harmon led Tech with 10 points and six rebounds, while Allen had nine points and five rebounds. Tyson added eight points and had four assists, while Isaacs and Kerwin Walton had each hit one 3-pointer. Tech was 4-for-13 on 3-pointers at halftime while TCU was only 1-for-8. The Red Raiders had a 20-16 rebounding advantage in a first half where both teams had 14 points in the paint. Miles was leading TCU with eight points going into the break.

KEY MOMENTS
TCU took a 3-0 lead on its second possession with Miles hitting a jumper and then a free throw for a three-point play
Tyson hit a jumper at the free throw line off an assist from Harmon for Tech’s first points of the game, stopping a 5-0 run by TCU to start the game
Batcho followed a missed shot with a putback to give Tech a 6-5 lead three minutes into the game… It was Tech’s first lead of the game and part of a 6-0 run that ended with a pair of Miles free throws for TCU
Harmon hit Tech’s first 3-pointer of the game for an 11-7 lead four minutes in… Tech led 11-9 going into the first media timeout of the game with four players having already scored and Harmon leading with five points
Allen hit a pair of shots, a dunk and layup, to push Tech’s lead to 17-13 going into the second media timeout of the game… Allen had a team-high six points and 3-for-4 shooting through eight minutes
Isaacs gave Tech a 22-15 lead with a 3-pointer before Miller followed for TCU to make it a 4-point game again… It was the first 3 for Isaacs and made Tech 2-for-6 from beyond the arc to begin the game
Walton came off the bench for the first time and hit a 3-pointer to push the lead to 25-18 off Tech’s third 3-pointer… Tech was 9-for-17 from the field with six scorers 11 minutes into the game
Harmon hit his second 3-pointer of the game and had eight points to give Tech a 28-20 lead with 7:24 to play until halftime… Tech was 4-for-9 on 3-pointers, TCU was 1-for-6 at that point in the game
Obanor scored his first points after backing down a defender for an easy layup that gave Tech a 30-22 lead 14 minutes into the game… He had been on the sidelines after picking up two early fouls
Tyson hit a turnaround jumper to give him eight points and Tech a 34-24 lead with 3:30 to play until halftime
Harmon hit a jumper to become the first Red Raider in double figures with 10 points… It gave Tech a 37-24 lead with 1:12 to play until halftime
TCU came out of the break on a 6-0 run that grew to seven with Miles hitting three free throws after being fouled and then to 10 with him hitting a 3… Tech stopped the run with Isaacs hitting a 3-pointer for Tech … The Red Raiders led 40-36 after Isaacs’ shot that was assisted by Washington
Obanor scored his first points of the second half off an assist from Walton for a 44-40 lead with 15 minutes to play… Tech had the four-point lead after starting the second half shooting 3-for-8 from the field with one 3-pointer while TCU was 5-for-11 from the field with one 3
Washington pushed Tech’s lead to 47-42 with an and-one with 12:41 on the clock… Washington’s layup and free throw were his first points of the game and gave Tech eight scorers and a five-point lead
Isaacs hit his third 3-pointer and gave Tech a 50-44 lead with 11:24 remaining… Isaacs was 3-for-7 on 3s after the shot and Tech was 6-for-17
Harmon came up with a steal off a Baugh turnover and raced down the court for a fastbreak dunk and followed it with a free throw… Tech led 53-44 with 11 minutes to play
TCU was on a 9-0 run and tied the game at 53 before an Isaacs 3-pointer gave Tech a 56-53 lead with 6:51 to play… Isaacs had 14 points after the shot and was 4-for-8 on 3-pointers
TCU took a 59-58 lead off a fastbreak layup by Miles after a Tech turnover by Obanor with 3:37 to play… The Horned Frogs kept momentum and were on a 6-0 run to lead 61-58 going into the final media timeout with Miles hitting another jumper and set to go to the free-throw line… He made the free throw to push TCU’s lead to four points with three minutes to play
Isaacs would stop a 9-0 TCU run and cut the deficit to 64-61 with 1:22 to play… Isaacs had 17 points and was 5-for-10 on 3-pointers to match a career-high

Release provided by WES BLOOMQUIST Texas Tech Athletics