{"id":59671,"date":"2025-11-21T19:24:40","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T19:24:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/59671\/"},"modified":"2025-11-21T19:24:40","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T19:24:40","slug":"texas-tech-toughness-shines-in-69-62-win-over-mississippi-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/59671\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas Tech Toughness Shines in 69\u201362 Win Over Mississippi State"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cBe tougher.\u201d<\/p>\n

Texas Tech senior guard Bailey Maupin said bluntly when asked what the message was between a first quarter that saw Texas Tech trailing 31\u201316 and a second quarter in which the Lady Raiders turned the game on its head, outscoring Mississippi State 15\u20132.<\/p>\n

\u201cBe tougher, get rebounds, make shots. Do all the little things.\u201d<\/p>\n

When a usually sharp shooting group struggled from deep, it was their grit that led them to a 69\u201362 win, handing the visiting Bulldogs their first loss of the season and moving Texas Tech to 6\u20130.<\/p>\n

On a night defined by toughness, it felt fitting a Dust Storm Warning blared out on everyone\u2019s phones a few hours prior. Pull aside, stay alive, it read. And then, just thirty minutes after the dust bowled through, a perfect West Texas sky emerged.<\/p>\n

It was a bit of symbolism not lost on head coach Krista Gerlich postgame.<\/p>\n

\u201cWest Texas is blue-collar people\u2026 we know how to work, we\u2019re tough,\u201d she said. \u201cDid we have a haboob today? Sort of, kind of, almost\u2026 it\u2019s common nature, like that\u2019s just what we do.\u201d<\/p>\n

A 15-point first-quarter deficit fit right in. An inconvenience. A momentary pull aside. Stay alive, regroup, get back to it.<\/p>\n

Mississippi State scored 31 points in the opening 10 minutes and then 31 total over the final 30 as Tech flipped the game with suffocating\u2014yet fundamentally sound\u2014defense, ball pressure and overall havoc.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought our kids and our staff adjusted so well\u2026 in the second and third quarters, we did it at an elite level,\u201d Gerlich said. \u201cWe took away what they wanted to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maupin said part of that shift was simply waking up to who they are.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt like we were acting like we shouldn\u2019t be here,\u201d she said of the message between players after that first quarter. \u201cWe deserve to be here. We deserve to be playing in big games like this\u2026 As soon as we got our heads with it, we were ready.\u201d<\/p>\n

A big catalyst in that was senior Snudda Collins who perhaps had an extra chip on her shoulder in this one as a Mississippi native going up against a former \u201crival\u201d after she spent her first four years of college playing at Ole Miss. Collins was everywhere in that pivotal second quarter stretch but most importantly she owned the boards, grabbing seven in that quarter alone. Six coming on the defensive end. <\/p>\n

\u201cI thought Snudda was the difference in the second quarter defensively,\u201d Gerlich said. \u201cShe was rebounding the basketball at a really high level against some bigger opponents.\u201d She added that Snudda \u201chad a different look in her eye\u201d leading into the matchup.<\/p>\n

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Also a steady contributor was Jalynn Bristow who led the team in scoring with 18. Most impressively the 6-3 junior was able to fight through an off-shooting night from outside (1-8) to find her way to 12 points inside the arc plus three at the line. Even against a Mississippi State team that came in as one of the top shot blocking teams in the country, Bristow got to her spots and took it right at the defense when needed. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe coaches always tell us the best look to score and they texted me before the game and told me exactly where those looks were going to be,\u201d explained Bristow on her approach postgame. \u201cIt\u2019s really good to hear that, practice it and then execute it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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And while Collins and Bristow shifted the momentum, Gemma N\u00fa\u00f1ez quietly showed why she is the stitch that holds it all together. The straw that stirs the drink? The wind beneath the dust? Okay, I\u2019ll stop. She\u2019s good. <\/p>\n

Her impact wasn\u2019t scoring\u2014although her four points were all big ones\u2014but more so her combination of poise and disruption. She picked up two quick fouls with 6:54 left in the first quarter and checked out with Tech down 10\u20138. By the end of the period, Mississippi State led 31\u201316. N\u00fa\u00f1ez reentered to start the second quarter and suddenly Texas Tech looked like themselves again. A fact not lost on senior captain Bailey Maupin.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt all starts with Gemma at the point\u2026 she puts us in really good spots to be successful.\u201d<\/p>\n

From there, she became a constant problem for the Bulldogs: hounding their ball handlers, grabbing timely steals and never fouling again despite her aggressive style.<\/p>\n

\u201cGemma did a fantastic job of not letting the foul trouble get in her head,\u201d said Gerlich. \u201cShe still took away what we wanted her to do on defense without fouling.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Everything Else<\/p>\n

The Lady Raiders\u2019 balanced scoring once again showed their depth: Maupin, Collins, and Bristow all reached double figures, while Jada Malone was one point shy of making it four players in double figures for all six games this season.<\/p>\n

Malone delivered another impactful performance off the bench. Gerlich noted she \u201cwanted the basketball\u201d and brought an interior presence Tech needed: \u201cJada came from the SEC, so the SEC means a little bit more to her\u2026 you could tell the way she practiced that she was very intent about helping us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Denae Fritz didn\u2019t have a big scoring night but still made winning plays throughout defensively. Gerlich highlighted her matchup: \u201cDenae had a matchup all night long against number two\u2026 and she disrupted her the whole night and didn\u2019t let her get comfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Team chemistry continues to show in big moments and in the boxscore as a hectic, physical, sometimes frantic game didn\u2019t result in too many mistakes from the Lady Raiders. As Maupin emphasized: \u201cWe\u2019re playing faster, we\u2019re playing more together\u2026 we don\u2019t have many miscues. We have really good chemistry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rebounding discipline showed up after a shaky start. Mississippi State grabbed two offensive boards on the first possession, but Tech held them to just six total offensive rebounds the game. The Bulldogs came in averaging 14 a game. Gerlich said, \u201cRebounding was the key\u2026 I think it\u2019s a huge testament to our kids just buying into that and fighting on the boards.\u201d<\/p>\n

What\u2019s Next: AT New Mexico 11\/23 at 2pm <\/p>\n

Texas Tech hits the road for the first time to renew what used to be an every year rivalry with New Mexico at \u201cThe Pit\u201d in Albuquerque, New Mexico on Sunday. Game time set for 2pm CT, stream will be on the Mountain West Network. <\/p>\n

\u201cI just told them in the locker room that we\u2019re going to celebrate tonight because this was a huge win,\u201d said Gerlich on turning the page to their upcoming game. \u201cBut we have a quick turnaround and New Mexico to me is a trap game because they are a really, really good basketball team\u2026 Playing at The Pit is difficult in itself, but I do think it\u2019s a challenge that we need. They play super fast, so we\u2019re going to have to be really mentally tough and make sure that we can play through some fatigue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Photo Gallery: Texas Tech vs. Mississippi State Basketball<\/p>\n

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