The Red Raiders fell to UCF by a score of 88–80 last Saturday before suffering a 64–61 loss to No. 11 Kansas on Monday — the first time Tech has lost consecutive games this season.
The losses dropped Texas Tech to 16–6 overall and 6–3 in conference play.
Ahead of Monday’s matchup, Tech slipped from No. 11 to No. 13 in the AP Top 25 poll, while Kansas climbed from No. 14 to take the Red Raiders’ former spot at No. 11. Following the loss, Texas Tech is expected to fall further.
Head coach Grant McCasland said the team’s competitiveness remained strong despite the setback.
“What a competitive Big 12 game it was,” McCasland said. “One of those games where getting stops was a big part of it. We were able to get stops, I loved our competitiveness — loved the fight of our team. I told them this game is about finding ways to win, and we didn’t do that.”
The Kansas game came with an added challenge, as guard Christian Anderson was ruled out just minutes before tipoff.
Anderson has been one of the conference’s most productive playmakers, leading the Big 12 with 8.3 assists per game. Since conference play began, he has averaged nearly 40 minutes per game — the most in the league.
Without him available against Kansas, McCasland said the team struggled to adjust.
“We didn’t even have a plan,” McCasland said. “We didn’t know it. Obviously, we got a plan, but we didn’t have a plan for 40 minutes.”
Another issue in both losses was late-game execution, as Texas Tech struggled to score efficiently in the final minutes.
McCasland said closing out tight games takes experience and cohesion.
“Finding a way to win close games is really a team effort,” he said. “It takes experience and being connected. We’ll learn to finish games.”
Looking ahead, Texas Tech will look to regroup and get back on track in the heart of conference play. But the schedule offers little relief.
The Red Raiders travel to West Virginia tomorrow before returning home to host Colorado on Wednesday.
Perhaps the toughest test yet comes a week from today, when Texas Tech heads to Tucson for a Valentine’s Day matchup against undefeated, top-ranked Arizona.
But still to come are matchups against two of the league’s most efficient offensive teams — No. 7 Iowa State and No. 16 BYU — before the regular season comes to a close.
The Big 12 tournament tips off March 10, and McCasland hopes the team will find its rhythm before then.
“We’ve got the right guys,” McCasland said. “I believe in them, and I know we can win real games that are meaningful in March. We’ve just got to get tougher, get a little more fight to us, get a little more grit to the way we compete down the stretch.”“We’re just scratching the surface of what we can be.”