Texas Tech was flying high in the 1990s and early 2000s. The program went to the NCAA Tournament every year between 1990 and 2005, including seven semifinal appearances and four trips to the championship game. Texas Tech won it all in 1993. Led by WNBA legend Sheryl Swoopes, the Raiders took down Ohio State for the national championship.
Since 2005, Texas Tech has only been to the NCAA Tournament twice, losing in the first round in 2011 and 2013 and enduring years of not making the tournament at all. But the good news is things are looking up for Texas Tech fans.
On the December 23rd episode of No Offseason: The Athletic Women’s Basketball Show, Ben Pickman noted that Texas Tech was well set up to end its abysmal streak and return to the NCAA Tournament, citing its non-conference wins and improvements compared to last season as a reason for optimism.
Texas Tech looks much improved
This year’s Texas Tech roster has a lot of experience. Nine players are seniors and two are juniors. While some are fairly new to the program, others, like Bailey Maupin, have been around for a few seasons. Texas Tech currently has three players who average double-digit points and has already beaten some tough competition, most notably Arkansas, Mississippi State, Washington State, and Baylor.
Baylor came into the game as a top-fifteen team in the country. Texas Tech, meanwhile, was unranked. Nevertheless, Texas Tech was able to hang with Baylor and secure a one-point win. It is important to note that Baylor was without its leading scorer, Taliah Scott, for most of the game. If she is available for the rematch in February, the game might look much different.
Nevertheless, it’s difficult to miss how much Texas Tech has improved. Texas Tech currently only allows opponents to score 52.1 points per game—the seventh fewest in the nation behind only TCU, Minnesota, Alabama, Kentucky, UAlbany, and Georgia. It’s in the same area as top teams Texas, UConn, and South Carolina in that category. The team also significantly improved its defensive rebounding numbers (up from 21.6 last season to 28.3) and its tendency to foul. Last season, Texas Tech averaged 20 fouls per game. That number is currently down to 18.6.
Just 14 games into the season, the Raiders still have to prove that this is a lasting improvement and repeat their victory over ranked competition. January and February will feature games against Iowa State University, TCU, and Baylor. A trip to the NCAA Tournament may not yield much success for Texas Tech considering some of the high-end talent in college basketball this season, but it would be the first step in the right direction after years of missing out on the tournament altogether.