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Texas Tech forward JT Toppin, left, shoots the ball against Utah guard Don McHenry (3) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Lubbock, Texas. | Justin Rex
Utah stayed winless in Big 12 action after falling on the road against No. 15 Texas Tech 88-74 at the United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas.
Here are three takeaways from a loss that drops Utah under .500 on the season (8-9) and to 0-4 in Big 12 play.
Defense, defense, defense
The Utes have the second-worst scoring defense in the Big 12, and Texas Tech took advantage of Utah’s biggest weakness this year, especially in the first half.
At halftime, the Red Raiders were shooting 57.1% — they finished the game at 51.4%.
Texas Tech also had 13 first-half assists on 20 made field goals. By game’s end, the Red Raiders had 22 assists on 36 buckets.
Texas Tech stars JT Toppin and Christian Anderson led that offensive attack, as they both went for 18 points in the first half.
Toppin scored a game-high 31 points on 14 of 23 shooting, adding 13 rebounds, seven assists, five blocks and a steal, and Anderson had 26 points — including six 3-pointers — to go with 10 assists, three rebounds and two steals.
The Red Raiders’ defense, meanwhile, did enough to keep Utah from seriously challenging in the second half and helped fuel an 18-1 Texas Tech run in the first half to break the game open.
The Red Raiders also forced Utah into 13 turnovers and blocked eight shots while holding Utah to 43.1% shooting.
Simply put, unless the Utes improve dramatically on defense, they’re unlikely to win more than a couple games in league play.
A lot of the same issues plagued Utah
In addition to a poor defensive night, the Utes’ woes against Texas Tech were the same ones they’ve dealt with earlier this season.
Utah got off to a slow start for the third time in four Big 12 games, as Texas Tech got out to a quick 15-6 lead while making its first five shots.
The Red Raiders dominated the paint, out-rebounding Utah 41-28 and 13-6 on the offensive glass.
As a result, Texas Tech outscored the Utes 14-6 in second-half points.
It was raining 3s for both teams
One aspect offensively that worked well for both schools was 3-point shooting.
The Utes made 12 of 25, tying their season high for number of makes — though it was the first time Utah hit double-digit 3s and lost this year.
Texas Tech, meanwhile, hit 13 of 31 from long range.
In addition to Anderson’s six, Donovan Atwell made four and Toppin three for the Red Raiders. Outside of those three, the rest of the Red Raiders team was 0 of 7 from 3-point range.
Keanu Dawes made a career-high four 3-pointers for the Utes, as he finished with 18 points, nine rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Don McHenry added three 3-point makes of his own, helping him end the night with 18 points, two rebounds and an assist.
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