The United Supermarkets Arena was the place to be Wednesday evening. TBT basketball returned with the Lubbock Regional which hosted the matchup between the top seeded Air Raiders and the eighth seeded Purple Hearts.
Red Raider fans will have something to look forward to, because the Air Raiders will return to the USA Friday evening, facing off against the four seed squad the Enchantment out of Albuquerque, New Mexico at 8 p.m.
The Air Raiders wasted no time in getting buckets, opening up the game with eight straight points including two three-point bombs. They made three more in the opening period, propelling them to a near double-digit lead heading into the second quarter.
Air Raiders head coach Jason Staudt spoke on the team’s hot start and how it got the crowd involved early.
“Starts are big in this”, Staudt said. “We did get off to a good start, it’s always good playing from ahead … the crowd got in and that’s what we want. The fans are really going to help if we’re playing hard and doing the right things.”
Several members of the 2019 Final Four squad are competing in the TBT, including Kyler Edwards who had almost zero struggle in the first half of action. The Arlington native put up 11 points on 4-6 shooting in the first 18 minutes of action including three buckets from long range, propelling the Air Raiders to a 50-32 lead at halftime.
Edwards wasn’t the only one getting to eat. The squad finished with three other double-digit scorers for the contest. John Roberson and Tariq Owens both finished with 15 and 13 points, respectively.
Momentum continued to be on the Air Raiders’ side in the second half of action. Matt Mooney kicked things off with five straight points which helped the Air Raiders build a near 30 point lead.
However, the Purple Hearts gained a little bit of momentum in the closing minutes of the third quarter, putting together a 7-0 run to narrow their deficit down to 21 heading into the final quarter of play.
At the 3:57 mark of the fourth quarter, the elam effect went into play with the target score being set at 83. which was eight points away for the Air Raiders.
After being fouled pretty hard, Tariq Owens went to the free throw line, scoring points 82 and 83 which advanced the Air Raiders to the second round of the Lubbock Regional.
Owens, who set the single season program record for Texas Tech in blocks spoke on his 4 block defensive performance in the victory.
“Job well done. I mean, That’s just what I do. That’s what these guys trust me to do”, Owens said. “I just had to put my all into it. That’s what I get paid for, that’s what I’ve been known for. And that’s why I take pride in having nights like this. It just brings me joy.”
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