McClung helps No. 18 Texas Tech rout Iowa State
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Mac McClung scored 20 points and No. 18 Texas Tech beat Iowa State 81-54 on Thursday night for its third consecutive victory following a three-game losing streak.
Marcus Santos-Silva had 14 points and seven rebounds to help Texas Tech (17-8, 9-7 Big 12) wrap up its home schedule with a fifth consecutive victory over the Cyclones, the longest winning streak for either team in the series. Terrence Shannon Jr. and Micah Peavy scored 12 points apiece, and Kyler Edwards had 11.
Now the Red Raiders, who lost to Virginia in overtime of the championship game in the most recent NCAA Tournament in 2019, get another crack at No. 3 Baylor in the regular-season finale Saturday.
Texas Tech still has a chance to climb out of seventh place and avoid a first-round game in the Big 12 tournament. If Texas Tech has to play one, it will be a quick rematch with 10th-seeded Iowa State.
With their 16th consecutive loss, the Cyclones (2-20, 0-17) clinched the most Big 12 losses in a season since TCU went 0-18 in 2013-14. Iowa State will try to avoid matching that dubious record in the regular-season finale against Kansas State.
Jalen Coleman-Lands and Tyler Harris each scored 15 points for Iowa State, which already had the most conference losses in school history and now has a second consecutive 20-loss season overall.
After trimming an early 16-point deficit to 31-27 late in the first half, Iowa State was still within nine with 13 minutes remaining when McClung, the No. 5 scorer in the Big 12, scored seven points and Santos-Silva had six on a 15-2 run for a 67-45 lead.
BIG PICTURE
Iowa State: The Cyclones were NCAA Tournament regulars when coach Chris Beard took over at Texas Tech in 2016. Now the Red Raiders hold that role, gearing up for a third straight NCAA trip having beating Iowa State by at least 20 points four consecutive times.
Texas Tech: The Red Raiders shot a season-best 62%, while Edwards was 3 of 4 from beyond the arc to put him at 7 of 9 over the past two games. McClung was 7 of 12 from the field while Peavy and Santos-Silva each went 6 of 8.
UP NEXT
Iowa State: The originally scheduled trip to Kansas State Jan. 13 was the first of four consecutive Iowa State games postponed because of COVID-19 issues. One of three Big 12 victories for the Wildcats was 74-65 at Iowa State in the conference opener for both teams in December.
Texas Tech: The Red Raiders were also on a three-game winning streak that included a victory at No. 15 Texas the last time they faced Baylor. Texas Tech scored just 18 points in the first half to fall behind by eight and lost by that margin (68-60).
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