Toppin has 25 points and 11 rebounds as No. 9 Texas Tech beats Arizona State 85-57
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — JT Toppin had 25 points and 11 rebounds, and No. 9 Texas Tech pulled away from Arizona State for an 85-57 victory in the regular-season finale for both teams Saturday.
Freshman guard Christian Anderson tied a season high with 21 points and made four 3-pointers off the bench for the Red Raiders (24-7, 15-5 Big 12), who set a school record for conference wins.
Toppin, a top contender for Big 12 Player of the Year, had his 14th double-double of the season. Kerwin Walton added 11 points and three 3-pointers for the Red Raiders.
Texas Tech had clinched the No. 2 seed in the Big 12 Tournament when Kansas beat Arizona earlier Saturday.
Basheer Jihad equaled a career high with 22 points and Joson Sanon had 16 for the Sun Devils (13-18, 4-16), who have lost 10 of 11.
Anderson’s 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer gave the Red Raiders a 36-32 lead, and they outscored Arizona State 49-25 in the second half.
Toppin had 41 points in the first meeting Feb. 12, when the Red Raiders set a program record for points in a conference game in a 111-106 overtime victory in Lubbock.
Takeaways
Texas Tech: Set a school record with its 15th conference victory in the expanded Big 12. The Red Raiders were 14-4 in league play in 2019.
Arizona State: Played without leading scorer BJ Freeman and Adam Miller, who combined for 43 points in the overtime loss at Lubbock.
Key moment
Toppin had a rebound, a three-point play, an assist, a blocked shot and a tip-in in a 96-second span midway through the second half for a 10-point lead, kick-starting the Red Raiders’ second-half run.
Key stat
Texas Tech made 12 3-pointers and has hit at least 10 in 19 games this season, another record. The team averages 10.1 per game, second in the Big 12.
Up next
Texas Tech has time to rest before its Big 12 Tournament opener Thursday against an opponent to be determined.
Arizona State, the 15th seed, will meet Kansas State in the first round Tuesday.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
