Climbing out a funk took a different approach for No. 23 Texas Tech, which snapped a season-long three-game losing streak with a 66-59 victory over visiting UCF on Saturday in Lubbock.
The Red Raiders (17-6, 6-4 Big 12 Conference) never trailed and leaned heavily on defense to prevail against one of the stingiest teams in the league.
Joe Toussaint’s two free throws with 41 seconds to go gave the Red Raiders some breathing room with a five-point advantage after the Knights (13-10, 4-6) edged within 58-57 with 2:07 to go.
Darrion Williams (13 points, 13 rebounds) extended the Texas Tech lead to 60-57 when he stepped into a mid-range jump shot from the free-throw line at the 1:52 juncture.
UCF had two possessions with a chance to get closer, but the Red Raiders defense came up big by forcing a turnover and when Warren Washington blocked a shot in the lane.
The Knights struggled to find any consistency on offense most of the day. They shot just 36.5 percent (23 of 63) from the floor and were abysmal from beyond the 3-point arc, missing 19 of 24 attempts. Texas Tech also controlled the boards with a 44-37 advantage.