The No. 16 Red Raiders make a Valentine's Day visit to Tucson, Arizona to play to No. 1 Wildcats Saturday night.
LUBBOCK, Texas - The Texas Tech Red Raiders won't be bringing flowers to their visit with the No. 1-ranked Arizona Wildcats on Valentine's Day night.
In one of the last season-defining games for the No. 16 Red Raiders, head coach Grant McCasland knows his squad has it cut out for them Saturday night inside McKale Memorial Center in Tucson.
"Arizona is one of the most physical teams on both sides of the ball. Maybe the most physical team," McCasland said this week.
"First and foremost, you have to match their fight at the rim. They run in transition so you have to get back and try to make it as difficult as possible. You need to get them in a half-court game where you can play possession basketball and find a way to win those possessions. Offensive and defensive rebounding and limiting them to one shot is going to be huge."
Rebounding was a big emphasis for Texas Tech in their blowout 78-44 win over Colorado last time out. All-American forward and Wooden Award watch-list honoree JT Toppin grabbed 18 boards (four offensive) en route to his nation-leading 15th double-double.
This will be the Red Raiders' fifth game against a ranked opponent, with the last ranked matchup ending in a heartbreaking home loss to Kansas as Darryn Peterson hit two massive threes to put the Jayhawks in front late.
The Wildcats' last loss has also come at the hands of Kansas, though it was without the projected No. 1 NBA Draft pick on Monday night as he was ruled out with an illness.
Arizona lost just its first game of the season, dropping to 23-1 and 10-1 atop the Big 12 standings. Texas Tech enters the game 18-6 and 8-3 in conference.
"I love our team and where we're at," McCasland said. "I think we are starting to play our best basketball. We have a healthy team that has allowed us to practice and be competitive in our practices. Anytime you're practicing in February with a full group with an ability to improve, I think we're in the right spot."
Health will be crucial with point guard Christian Anderson back in the fold after missing the Kansas game with an illness. He scored 14 points and dished eight assists against the Buffaloes on Wednesday and posting his sixth double-double (13 points, 11 assists) at West Virginia on Sunday.
With just six games remaining after the meeting with Arizona, road momentum generated from an upset win could be instrumental in the Red Raiders going on a late-season run and positioning themselves for a possible Big 12 championship.
The story will be how they play on the road. Two more ranked matchups (at No. 5 Iowa State on Feb. 28 and at No. 22 BYU on March 7) await.
It begins with a "physical" showdown in Tucson with the game broadcasting live on ESPN at 5:30 p.m. CST.