LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Fresh off a full week of rest, the No. 11 Texas Tech Red Raiders (16-4, 6-1 Big 12) are now heading to Orlando, Fla. ready to pick up where they left off: with a five-game winning streak.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been a good week of rest for our team. It couldn\u2019t have come at a better time for us,\u201d said Tech head basketball coach Grant McCasland. \u201cWe needed it just for the minutes that some of these guys are playing, just needed the extra time to get better, and also to kind of start acclimating these guys that haven\u2019t played a ton.\u201d<\/p>\n
Red Raider forward JT Toppin is coming off two straight weeks of being named the \u201cBig 12 Player of the Week\u201d and has averaged 22.1 points and 10.9 rebounds per game. Point guard Christian Anderson has 19.8 points per game and has made 69 three-point shots.<\/p>\n
The UCF Knights also currently hold a 16-4 record but are 5-3 in Big 12 play. Last Saturday, they won at Colorado 95-86 and then came back to beat Arizona State 79-76 at home on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re physical. I mean, if there\u2019s one thing that jumps out on the page to me, is just how physical they are,\u201d McCasland said. \u201cThey\u2019re the number one defensive rebounding team in our league. We were No.1 until we played Houston, and I just think they\u2019re physical and they can score and they\u2019ve got a lot of guys that can put you on your heels.\u201d<\/p>\n
McCasland said his team was able to use this extra time off to not only rest but provide reps to players especially if they haven\u2019t had as much playing time.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe took a couple days off intentionally and did some individual work with guys on Monday, and then Tuesday we had a practice that was a majority of the guys that don\u2019t play a ton so that we could start to push this thing in the direction and then Wednesday we did more individual work and then today really did a lot of teamwork, but it\u2019s been a good ramp for the guys that haven\u2019t played much because we\u2019ve been able to put them in a pretty consistent amount of practice.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Red Raiders and Knights tip off 11 a.m. CT at Addition Financial Arena in Orlando. From there, they return home to prepare for an ESPN \u201cBig Monday\u201d matchup with the Kansas Jayhawks at the United Supermarkets Arena.<\/p>\n
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