Texas Tech @ Oklahoma preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 8, 2019 ) Oklahoma 59, Texas Tech 66

Oklahoma will face its second ranked opponent this week on Saturday, when it hosts No. 18 Texas Tech. The effort was there for the Sooners on Monday, but the outcome was not what coach Lon Kruger hoped for as his team fell 75-74 to 16th-ranked Iowa State.

“It’s very disappointing to not win it,” Kruger told reporters following Oklahoma’s third straight setback. “But I think we took some steps in understanding that, number one, we got to get better, and number two, we can.” The Sooners need more from Christian James, who continues to lead the team in scoring (15.8 points) despite a shooting slump during which the senior has gone 9-for-36 overall and 1-for-17 from 3-point range over his last four conference games. Following a 79-63 loss to 14th-ranked Kansas last Saturday, Texas Tech got back on track in an emphatic way on Monday as it recorded its largest margin of victory in conference history with an 81-50 triumph over West Virginia. “I think you have to give our players credit for responding when our backs were against the wall,” coach Chris Beard told reporters. “I was not pleased in the way we played against Kansas. All you can do is respond. (On Monday), I thought we played much better.”

TV: 4 p.m. ET, ESPNU

ABOUT TEXAS TECH (18-5, 6-4 Big 12): The Red Raiders entered Friday with the lowest field-goal percentage defense in the nation after holding the Mountaineers to 23.1 percent shooting. West Virginia registered a total of nine field goals while Texas Tech saw nine different players score – including senior Brandone Francis, who recorded a season-high 16 points. Leading scorer Jarrett Culver (17.9 points) finished with 12 points on Monday and hit a 3-pointer late in the first half that snapped an 0-for-13 skid from beyond the arc for the Big 12’s third-leading scorer.

ABOUT OKLAHOMA (15-8, 3-7): Kristian Doolittle led the way with a team-high 19 points on Monday as the Sooners made their highest amount of field goals (28) and second-most 3-pointers (eight) during conference play. Multiple defensive lapses limited Brady Manek to 25 minutes against the Cyclones, even though the sophomore has been on fire offensively - going 8-for-13 from 3-point range over his last two games. Aaron Calixte was coming off a 17-point performance against West Virginia last weekend - his highest-scoring effort since Nov. 12 – but couldn’t get it going on Monday, finishing 1-for-10 from the floor.

TIP-INS

1. Texas Tech is looking for its first season sweep of Oklahoma since 2010.

2. The Sooners’ 29.4 defensive rebounds per game are tops in the Big 12 (12th nationally) while the Red Raiders grab a conference-worst 8.7 offensive boards per contest.

3. Texas Tech G Matt Mooney recorded four of the team’s season-high 13 steals against West Virginia on Monday.

PREDICTION: Texas Tech 77, Oklahoma 72