LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Darrion Williams had 13 points and 13 rebounds and Kerwin Walton scored 12 points on four 3-pointers before halftime for No. 23 Texas Tech on Saturday. They never trailed until their 66-59 victory over UCF. The Red Raiders ended their losing streak with three games.
Williams hit a jumper with 1:46 remaining to give the Red Raiders (17-6, 6-4 Big 12) a 60-57 lead.
UCF (13-9, 4-6) ended up holding the ball after missing a chance to tie the game for the first time since 4-4 when C.J. Walker missed the first of two free throw attempts. became. The Red Raiders clinched the game with six free throws in the final 41 seconds, four by Joe Toussaint and two by Chance McMillian.
Toussaint also scored 11 points with a steal with 1:31 left. Warren Washington missed Tech’s last game due to illness, but had 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Darius Johnson and Jaylin Sellers each scored 14 points for the Knights. Walker had 13 points and eight rebounds.
Texas Tech never trailed, but the Red Raiders could never pull away from the UCF team that had defeated then-number one Texas Tech. A week ago, they faced No. 18 Oklahoma, looking for their third win of the season against a top-25 team.
Pop Isaacs, who was averaging 19.4 points in Tech’s Big 12 games, missed his first seven shots and made a 3-pointer to make it 41-36 with just over 14 minutes left.
McMillian didn’t score his first point until a layup with 7:14 left, but then added 3 points to take a 56-48 lead.
big picture
UCF: The Knights also beat Kansas earlier this season, but have never won three games against a top 25 team in the same season. … UCF was playing without forward Ibrahima Diallo, its leading rebounder, due to a knee injury.
Texas Tech: The Red Raiders bounced back a week after losing at home for the first time this season.
Impact of public opinion polls
Texas Tech dropped eight spots in this week’s poll after losing consecutive games for the first time this season. The Red Raiders lost their third straight game Tuesday night to No. 13 Baylor. They are likely to be excluded from Monday’s new poll.
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UCF will play fellow Big 12 newcomer No. 21 BYU on Tuesday night. The Cougars won 63-58 in Orlando on Jan. 13.
Texas Tech will play fourth-ranked Kansas on Monday night.
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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-Basketball