Right before the starting lineups were announced, as the Red Raiders gathered by their bench for the announcement of the starting lineups, Zach Smith headed back to the locker room.
The junior forward tweaked his ankle during warm-ups, and his absence left the Texas Tech front court three players short with Aaron Ross and Norense Odiase already on the bench with lower leg injuries.
But the Red Raiders didn’t let that adversity have any effect Wednesday night as they trounced UTSA 87-50 inside United Supermarkets Arena.
As Smith walked off the court, Niem Stevenson was quickly inserted in the starting lineup.