Texas Tech basketball's winning streak snapped by Houston, Jamal Shead: 3 takeaways

HOUSTON — Jamal Shead's career scoring night and No. 5 Houston's tight defense brought the 25th-ranked Texas Tech basketball team's nine-game winning streak to a halt Wednesday night in the Fertitta Center.

The Cougars (15-2, 2-2) ran away with the 77-54 win by dominating the paint and forcing the Red Raiders (14-3, 3-1) to settle for contested jumpers.

Shead finished with a career-high 29 points to go with 10 assists for the Cougars.

Texas Tech remains tied for first place in the Big 12 Conference standings with several teams despite the loss. Baylor, Kansas and Kansas State all sported 3-1 records through Wednesday's action.

Houston closes off the paint

The Cougars are one of the top defensive teams in the country for a reason. Houston pushed the Texas Tech offense out well beyond the 3-point line much of the game and used its length to collapse on ball handlers in pick-and-roll situations. That threw a wrench into multiple offensive possessions for the Red Raiders.

At the half, with Houston leading 38-29, the Cougars had 14 points in the paint compared to four for Tech. Both teams had six 3-pointers in the half and assisted on most of their field goals. Tech had eight helpers (three from Pop Isaacs) on 10 makes while Houston had seven on 17.

Jamal Shead wins battle of points guards

A pair of veteran point guards took the floor on Wednesday and there was a clear winner.

Shead continued his torrid pace in the second half and reached a new career-high in points (27) at the 7:59 mark. He added his seventh assist of the game to give Houston a 60-42 lead with 6:39 remaining.

Meanwhile, Toussaint struggled to find his flow. He was held to one shot attempt in the first half — a desperation 3 before the halftime break — and was unable to turn the corner on drives with Cougars cutting him off at every attempt. He hit a couple tough shots in the second half but was otherwise limited in his playmaking.

Defense can't make up for offensive woes

In Saturday's nail-biting win over Kansas State, Texas Tech dug itself into a hole and was able to lean on the defense to mount the comeback in the second half. The same could not be accomplished against the Cougars.

Once Houston embarked on a 13-0 run in the first half, going from down three to up 10, the Cougars had their way on both ends of the floor. Texas Tech was never able to recover against the more athletic team.

What's next?

Texas Tech continues its run of games against teams currently ranked in the Top 25 when it hosts No. 20 BYU at 5 p.m. Saturday in United Supermarkets Arena. The Cougars (14-3, 2-2) are coming off a victory over 24th-ranked Iowa State 87-72 on Tuesday in Provo. The Red Raiders will have a week off after that contest.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Texas Tech basketball's winning streak snapped by Houston, Jamal Shead