Kevin Obanor's fast start propels Texas Tech men's basketball to blowout win
Hand up. Hand down. Man in his face. Wide open.
Kevin Obanor didn't much concern himself with the defense of South Carolina State in the first 10 minutes or so of their non-conference game on Tuesday night in United Supermarkets Arena. He was feeling good, and there wasn't much the Bulldogs could do about it.
Obanor sank five 3-pointers to the tune of 17 first-half points — at one point matching SC State's entire scoring output himself. That broke the game open and the Texas Tech men's basketball team coasted to a 110-71 victory to close the non-conference slate.
"I know what I can do," Obanor said of his hot start. "I know the work that I put in and it was only a matter of time before what happens in the dark comes to light. The biggest thing is just my approach in practice, just having fun, just having joy."
There was plenty of fun to be hand on Tuesday.
Aside from a parade of whistles and free throws, the victory — Tech's sixth in a row and 29th-straight at home — was everything the Red Raiders could have hoped for in their final tune up before Big 12 play begins on Saturday.
All five starters registered double-digit scoring outputs, led by Obanor's game-high 24 points to go with nine rebounds. Daniel Batcho netted 17 points and seven rebounds, Pop Isaacs and De'Vion Harmon (seven assists) had 14 points apiece and Jaylon Tyson contributed 13.
The Red Raider offense hummed throughout much of the contest, producing its third 100-point effort in a row — the first for the program since the 1965-66 season. They set a season high with 14 3-pointers, Isaacs accounting for four, Tyson three.
They had 25 fastbreak points and shot 64% from the field for the entire game. Every available body saw the floor and got into the scoring column.
Mark Adams didn't have much to complain about after the game, except the 20-of-33 effort at the free-throw line. The Tech head coach, though, attributed that to the team's holiday break.
"We had a really good performance, our entire team," Adams said. "... Came out ready to play, played with a lot of intensity and it's always fun to shoot the ball the way we did. It makes winning a lot easier. ..."
The win pushed Tech's record to 10-2 overall, both losses coming in the Maui Invitational last month. Since then, the competition hasn't been great, but the Red Raiders have already started to think about Big 12 play.
"The shift should already be changed," Obanor said. "I know for me and the players, we approached it like this was our first Big 12 game. To be honest, I can't even say how do we shift it. We just have the mentality that we're already playing right now.
"It doesn't matter who we're playing, really. It doesn't really matter whose name is on the front of the jersey. We're just here to play. It doesn't matter if you're a high-major team, low-major team, we just have that same energy, that same mentality. Once you have that, that consistency, that's when you become great."
Adams echoed Obanor's sentiments, saying the team prepared for South Carolina State (2-13) as if the Bulldogs were the first conference foe of the season.
"We emphasized that with our guys that we need to be aggressive and at the same time we've got to be physical, take charges, get on the floor and we did some of that tonight," Adams said. "But this team is still growing and still young and I think we've come a long ways from three months ago and I think this team will continue to improve into February and we're excited about what this team can be. We've got great potential."
The Red Raiders will get their first dose of Big 12 action when they hit the road to take on 18th-ranked TCU on Saturday at 11 a.m.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Kevin Obanor's fast start propels Texas Tech men's basketball to blowout win
