<\/p>\n
The football team had the nation\u2019s attention. ESPN\u2019s College GameDay was in town. Holly Rowe made a surprise visit to the women\u2019s basketball practice Saturday morning. And amid it all, the Lady Raiders refused to let the weekend leave Lubbock without their own exclamation point.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat a great weekend of Red Raider sports,\u201d said Texas Tech head coach Krista Gerlich. \u201cWe wanted to put an exclamation point on the weekend with a win today and finish it off. Really proud of our kids battling through. We\u2019ve played three games in six days and it\u2019s been tough but it\u2019s given us a lot to look at and a lot of kids in the rotation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fueled by a not always perfect but relentless defense and a blistering 16\u20130 second-quarter run, Texas Tech handled business in their 83\u201350 win over Texas State on Sunday at United Supermarkets Arena. Standout play from Snudda Collins (20 pts), Jalynn Bristow (22 pts, 3 stl, 3 blk), and Sidney Love (12 pts, 3 ast on 4-for-4 FG, 3-for-3 3PT), helped the Lady Raiders moved to 3\u20130 while holding one of the nation\u2019s most dynamic scorers in check.<\/p>\n
The Spark and the Statement<\/p>\n
If there was one sequence that defined the afternoon, it came with 2:20 remaining in the second quarter.<\/p>\n
Up just 34\u201330, Texas Tech rattled off a 16\u20130 run to close the half. Turning a tight contest into a 50\u201330 margin in a span of moments that showed glimpses of what this team could be at their best.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s about energy and intensity, to be honest,\u201d said Gerlich. \u201cWe\u2019ve played with quite a bit of defensive intensity in all three games \u2013 not always as sharp as we want it to be, because you\u2019re a perfectionist and you want it perfect every time. But when we get the perfect effort from them, they\u2019re going to be really, really tough. And I think that was kind of the perfect storm because we weren\u2019t shooting the ball really well before that 60 seconds either.\u201d<\/p>\n
The stretch was sparked in particular by Snudda Collins, who scored 12 points in this run, adding a block and transition assist stirring the Texas Tech crowd into a frenzy.<\/p>\n
It was all a culmination of what has been building for the senior returning to the game after a year away.<\/p>\n
\u201cI definitely had a few jitters the first two games,\u201d Collins said. \u201cThis game, I was like, you know\u2026 after those first two games, it was time for me to step up and get it going now.\u201d<\/p>\n
She started the game as a spark off the bench and started the second half on the floor. For her though starter or spark, her mindset is the same.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re a winner, it doesn\u2019t\u2026 you don\u2019t really think about that,\u201d Collins said. \u201cAt the end of the day, you know what you bring. It doesn\u2019t really matter to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
That approach is exactly why Krista Gerlich trusts her in whatever role the game requires.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe can come in at any position\u2026 the 1, the 2, the 3, the 4, the 5 if we need her to,\u201d Gerlich said. \u201cI love that she gives us an instant spark\u2026 she just wants to win.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Other Assignment: 34 Points Wasn\u2019t Happening Again<\/p>\n
If offense opened the door, defense slammed it shut.<\/p>\n
Texas State guard Saniya Burks entered Sunday after a 34-point eruption in the Bobcats\u2019 opener. For Texas Tech, that number was circled and taken personally by a group that stands on defense.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no way anybody should come in here and score 30-some points on us,\u201d Collins said. \u201cThat means we\u2019re not doing our job.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sidney Love echoed the sentiment. \u201cIt was one of our goals to stop that player. We take pride on the defensive end.\u201d<\/p>\n
Burks however did announce herself early, drilling a corner three on her first look. The response from the Tech sideline was immediate.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt made the entire bench and coaching staff upset when she hit the opening three and that was not how that was going to go down,\u201d Gerlich said. \u201cSo I thought our kids did a pretty good job of locking in after that and really keying on her.\u201d<\/p>\n
From that point forward, Burks was held to seven more points the rest of the afternoon, finishing with 10 on 4-of-11 shooting \u2014 one point outside of the explicit goal the Lady Raiders set to keep her in single digits.<\/p>\n
A significant part of that collective success belonged to Denae Fritz, who drew primary assignments in key stretches and consistently disrupted Burks\u2019 rhythm.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought Denae had a really good game,\u201d Gerlich said. \u201cWe weren\u2019t going to face guard her\u2026 the ball screen defense had to be great. Our backside coverage had to be great so Denae wasn\u2019t left on an island deciding do I help or do I run out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fritz finished with a +31 plus\/minus and three steals, rarely allowing Burks clean airspace, advantage, or comfort in her preferred spots.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t perfect defense on every possession, Gerlich noted they allowed way too many paint points. But it was something she felt they corrected when challenged at half to close out a 33 point win.<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir activity on the glass was was too much for us and they were driving by us. We were letting them get to the paint and create open looks for their teammates early. All of that got addressed at halftime. I thought we did a better job of it in the second half.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everything ElseGemma N\u00fa\u00f1ez had eight assists in the first half alone and finished with 10 assists and only two turnovers in 25 minutes played.It marked the third game in a row, all three played this season, that the Lady Raiders had at least four players score in double figures.Sidney Love made her season debut with a perfect line going 4-4 from the field, 3-3 from three, to finish with 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in hr 23 minutes played.Jalynn Bristow continues her quietly dominant start to the season with a 22 point, 6 rebound, 3 steals and 3 blocks performance with 10 of those points coming in the first quarter to set the tone.What\u2019s Next: vs. SMU Thursday 11\/13 in Lubbock 6pm<\/p>\n
After a stretch of three games in six days to start their season they turn the page to three games against power conference opponents in a row. That starts with Southern Methodist University on Thursday night at 6 pm in Lubbock. SMU (1-1) is led by former Arizona coach Adia Barnes and is coming in off a buzzer-beater loss to Kansas State on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Photo Gallery: Texas Tech vs. Texas State Women\u2019s Basketball<\/p>\n
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