Texas Tech staves off Syracuse at Legends Classic
BROOKLYN, New York – Darrion Williams went for 20 points, JT Toppin added 15 points, six rebounds and three blocks and Elijah Hawkins scored 11 and dished out six assists to help lead Texas Tech to a 79-74 win over Syracuse to secure third place at the UKG Legends Classic on Friday at Barclays Center.
The Red Raiders (5-1) responded from a loss to Saint Joseph’s on Thursday by having 17 assists, only three turnovers and knocking down eight 3-pointers to knock off the Orange (3-2). Chance McMillian scored in double figures for the sixth straight game to start the season with 13 points, leading Tech with three 3-pointers and also having four rebounds while Kevin Overton led the reserves with eight points, six rebounds and a team-high three steals. Tied at 31-all at halftime, Tech forced 12 turnovers, owned an 18-7 advantage in scoring off turnovers and built out a lead that grew to as much as 12 midway through the second half.
“To start this tournament, we felt like we wanted to get better and tonight we did,” McCasland said. “We had a slow start on Thursday night but tonight we moved the ball better and our attention to detail was better. It’s always great to get a close game that you win where you scrap and find a way. You have to make free throws and get stops. We weren’t perfect by any stretch and can get significantly better. I thought Syracuse’s attack was great and had us on our heels. They cause us problems with two great guards, but in the end, we got stops and our 17 assists to three turnovers was the difference. We didn’t make a lot of shots, but didn’t turn it over.”
Tech was coming off a game against Saint Joseph’s where it was limited to 4-for-20 from beyond the arc, but used deep range to stave off the Orange each time it got close. Hawkins, who was 2-for-4 on 3s, hit his second of the game for a 38-35 lead two minutes into the second half and McMillian drilled back-to-back 3-pointers for a 44-38 lead four minutes in. Williams sprinted down the court and threw down a dunk off an Overton pass for a 48-42 lead before an assist to Toppin on a highlight-reel dunk to get to 50 on Toppin dunk. Williams would follow with a 3-pointer and layup to give Tech a 55-44 lead with 11 minutes to play – part of a 7-0 run that gave the Red Raiders command. His night ended with him shooting 9-for-14 from the field with one 3-pointer and him reaching 20-plus points for the second time in his career – only behind his 30-point performance against Kansas last season.
“I’m happy about our team pulling it out after yesterday’s game,” said Williams, who is averaging 16.0 points, 5.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists this season. “We wanted to win it all, but coming out after the loss and playing good as a team was good. We found resilience and stepped up on defense.”
Toppin had a streak of three straight double-doubles end in the game but is still leading Tech with 19.8 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game through six games. Hawkins, who is the NCAA active leader in assists per game, finished the night with his team-high six assists and also only one turnover. Through four games played as a Red Raider, he’s now averaging 8.0 points, 6.3 assists and 2.3 steals.
“I thought he was tremendous today,” McCasland said of Hawkins. “He made the right play and got to the right action. I think his composure was a difference in the game.”
Texas Tech and Syracuse went into halftime tied at 31-all after the Red Raiders had led for most of the half with a step-back 3-pointer from JJ Starling with 49 seconds remaining on the clock to tie the game. Williams led the Red Raiders with seven points at the break after going 3-for-3 from the field despite playing only seven minutes after getting two early fouls, while Anderson had six points off the bench with two 3-pointers. McMillian added one three and five points and Overton contributed four points, three rebounds and two steals in 16 minutes as a reserve.
Toppin, who went into the break with four points and three rebounds, scored the game’s first points after winning the tip and taking a pass from Hawkins for a 2-0 lead just 10 seconds into the game. McMillian hit Tech’s first 3-pointer and Anderson knocked down his first for a 12-9 early lead a night after Tech had struggled from deep. Williams fought for an and-one that made it 19-16 early and Anderson’s second 3-pointer gave the Red Raiders their largest lead of the second half at 29-22 with five minutes to play. The Red Raiders finished the first half 4-for-11 from 3-point range and were 13-for-32 (40.6 percent) from the field while the Orange were shooting 5-for-12 on 3s and 44.4 percent from the field. Syracuse had a 20-14 rebounding advantage, but Tech had limited itself to only three turnovers while forcing eight. Tech led for 14:47 through the opening 20 minutes.
UP NEXT: November 29, 2024: Northern Colorado at Texas Tech
Northern Colorado is currently 4-2 on its season with games against Prairie View A&M on Saturday and Northern New Mexico on Tuesday before coming to Lubbock the day after Thanksgiving. Tech is 4-0 all-time against Northern Colorado, including earning a 93-62 win on November 24, 2019, in the most recent matchup. The Red Raiders have hosted every game played between the two programs with the first game back in 1971. The Golden Bears went 19-14 overall last season, including a 12-6 record in Big Sky play. Steve Smiley is 68-63 as the program’s head coach since taking over for Jeff Linder over the past four seasons. Texas Tech will bring in a 34-game non-conference home winning streak to the game.
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Release Provided By Wes Bloomquist Texas Tech Athletics