Talk about a dirty dozen.

The Texas Tech men’s basketball team heads to Stephen F. Austin today for its first road game of the season. While in Nacogdoches, the Red Raiders hope to break a season-and-a-half-long road losing streak that stretches back 12 games.

Texas Tech's David Tairu (13) looks for an opening under the defense of Oregon's Joe Burton (11) during their game Sunday at United Spirit Arena. (Merissa Ferguson/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)

“We’ve got to get our first road win; we haven’t gotten one in a long time,” junior forward D’wayln Roberts said. “We’ve got to be real focused, play like we do at home, and we’ll win.”

If Tech can take this game, it will be the first game time they’ve won on an opponent’s home court since Feb. 20, 2008. On that night the Red Raiders defeated Colorado 87-69 in Boulder.

That game was Pat Knight’s fifth as head coach. It remains his only road win.
During last season’s nonconference run, Tech lost road games at Lamar, UTEP and Stanford. A year earlier it lost at Sam Houston State, Centenary and New Mexico.

Knight said the problem in the past, like many of Tech basketball’s issues the past several seasons, stemmed from a lack of talent and athleticism across the lineup. These days he’s more comfortable with his team’s ability to play like Big 12 squad should, but says Tech has one more hurdle to clear.

“It’s a mindset,” Knight said. “It shouldn’t be any different playing on the road than playing at home.”

Junior guard John Roberson said this year’s squad will be better at battling the psych-out factor, not allowing unfamiliar surroundings or hostile fans affect their on-court performance.

“We’ve got to take everything we do at home and bring it over to a road game,” Roberson said. “The past couple years we go on the road and lose our heads, but I think we’ve got a more experienced team this year and we know what to expect. That will help us a lot.”

Tech needs the help now and throughout the upcoming season. Today marks just the first of four non-conference road games and 12 throughout the regular season.
Many Big 12 teams only travel once or twice during nonconference play. Tech travels more frequently for two reasons: first, it helps the team maintain a stronger schedule (which is useful in prepping to face Big 12 opponents) and RPI. Second, it’s less expensive.

Knight said many of the top mid-major basketball teams expect six-figure paychecks for playing a road game, and the Raiders cannot afford that the way more lucrative
basketball programs can. So instead they arrange home-and-home matchups or 3-game series in which a team plays in Lubbock two seasons, then Tech returns the favor.

“We’re trying to be more creative, doing home-and-homes with teams you usually wouldn’t do home-and-homes with, or two-for ones,” Knight said. “We have to get a little creative from a budget standpoint.”

College basketball
Who: Texas Tech at Stephen F. Austin
When: 7 p.m. tonight
Where: Nacogdoches
Records: SAF 1-1, Tech 5-0
Last game: SAF 62, Jackson State 61. Tech 75, Lamar 54.
Last meeting: Tech 69, SAF 55 last year in Lubbock.
TV: none.
Radio: Double T 104.3
Notes: Texas Tech is currently in first place in the Big 12 . While nine conference schools are undefeated, Tech has played the most, with five games this season, so it’s 5-0 record is the best in the league.

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