Colorado University Athletics
Wednesday, February 11
Lubbock, Texas
6 p.m.
Colorado
14-11,4-8Big 12
44
at
78
Texas Tech
18-6,8-3Big 12
1
2
F
Colorado
22
22
44
Texas Tech
39
39
78
Photo by: Tyler Davis
Buffs Fall At No. 16 Texas Tech
February 11, 2026 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK, Texas – Colorado couldn't overcome poor shooting, falling to No. 16 Texas Tech 78-44 Wednesday night at the United Supermarkets Arena.
Tad Boyle's Buffs fall to 14-11 overall and 4-8 in the Big 12. The Red Raiders improved to 18-6 overall and 8-3 in the Big 12.
"Texas Tech has a motto with their program, that the toughest team wins," Boyle said. "There wasn't any question who the tougher team was tonight, and that was that was Texas Tech, and we weren't."
The Buffs trailed by as much as 16Â early in the first half before narrowing the deficit to eight after Ian Inman exploded for 12 points. But the Red Raiders pushed their lead over 20 points early in the second half, and Colorado never had another answer, as CU struggled to rebound the basketball.
Freshman Isaiah Johnson led Colorado in scoring with 13 points. Fellow freshman Inman set a new career-high with 12 points, all in the first half. He scored all his points on four 3-pointers, also a new career-high.
Donovan Atwell led the Red Raiders with 20 points and made six 3-pointers. JT Toppin scored 16 points and recorded 18 rebounds.
CU shot 29 percent from the floor (16-for-55), including 6-for-25 from 3-point range. The Red Raiders shot 45 percent (28-for-62) and outrebounded the Buffs, 47-30, including a 21-0 edge in second-chance points.Â
"It was 13 to zero at halftime on second-chance points, 13 to zero," Boyle commented. "When you can't make a shot, maybe you can go get an offensive rebound and get a put back. But we're not tough enough to do that and Texas Tech is."
Texas Tech also had a 24-14 edge in points in the paint, and the Buffs were blocked nine times.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The game began at a furious pace with both teams committing three turnovers in the first five minutes. Texas Tech was able to convert five second-chance points along with two 3-pointers to give the Red Raiders an early 10-4 lead.
After five missed shots by the Buffs, Jalin Holland came in and scored a tough layup to stop the scoring drought. Texas Tech responded with a layup from Christian Anderson to go back up 14-6 with 11:32 left in the first half.
Offensively, the Buffs struggled, going down by as much as 16 points after another stretch of five straight missed shots. That changed after Inman checked into the game and knocked down two straight 3-pointers, followed by a Johnson layup to cut the Red Raider lead to 27-16 with 3:56 left in the first half.
Inman kept his hot shooting going, hitting on two more 3-pointers, but Texas Tech kept pace and extended the lead to 39-22 at halftime.
Texas Tech controlled the first half, turning nine offensive rebounds into 13 points compared to seven offensive rebounds for the Buffs that did not amount to any points. The Red Raiders blocked six shots and made eight 3-pointers in the first half.
Colorado stayed in the game early thanks to the four 3-pointers from Inman, who scored 12 of the 22 points for the Buffs. Turnovers were how the Buffs stopped the Red Raiders, as they forced eight turnovers and converted them into 10 points.
The second half began with Texas Tech going on an 11-1 run to push the lead to 27 with 16 minutes remaining.
The Buffs found some success on offense, making four straight shots at the rim to cut the lead to 20 points, but Texas Tech responded, taking advantage of second-chance points to go up 58-34 with 11 minutes remaining.
Texas Tech extended its lead to 30 points with 4:44 left in the game, and the Buffs never threatened again as the final score finished 78-44.
UP NEXT
Colorado continues on the road against No. 22 BYU on Saturday, Feb. 14, in Provo, Utah, at 2 p.m. on FS1.
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Tad Boyle's Buffs fall to 14-11 overall and 4-8 in the Big 12. The Red Raiders improved to 18-6 overall and 8-3 in the Big 12.
"Texas Tech has a motto with their program, that the toughest team wins," Boyle said. "There wasn't any question who the tougher team was tonight, and that was that was Texas Tech, and we weren't."
The Buffs trailed by as much as 16Â early in the first half before narrowing the deficit to eight after Ian Inman exploded for 12 points. But the Red Raiders pushed their lead over 20 points early in the second half, and Colorado never had another answer, as CU struggled to rebound the basketball.
Freshman Isaiah Johnson led Colorado in scoring with 13 points. Fellow freshman Inman set a new career-high with 12 points, all in the first half. He scored all his points on four 3-pointers, also a new career-high.
Donovan Atwell led the Red Raiders with 20 points and made six 3-pointers. JT Toppin scored 16 points and recorded 18 rebounds.
CU shot 29 percent from the floor (16-for-55), including 6-for-25 from 3-point range. The Red Raiders shot 45 percent (28-for-62) and outrebounded the Buffs, 47-30, including a 21-0 edge in second-chance points.Â
"It was 13 to zero at halftime on second-chance points, 13 to zero," Boyle commented. "When you can't make a shot, maybe you can go get an offensive rebound and get a put back. But we're not tough enough to do that and Texas Tech is."
Texas Tech also had a 24-14 edge in points in the paint, and the Buffs were blocked nine times.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The game began at a furious pace with both teams committing three turnovers in the first five minutes. Texas Tech was able to convert five second-chance points along with two 3-pointers to give the Red Raiders an early 10-4 lead.
After five missed shots by the Buffs, Jalin Holland came in and scored a tough layup to stop the scoring drought. Texas Tech responded with a layup from Christian Anderson to go back up 14-6 with 11:32 left in the first half.
Offensively, the Buffs struggled, going down by as much as 16 points after another stretch of five straight missed shots. That changed after Inman checked into the game and knocked down two straight 3-pointers, followed by a Johnson layup to cut the Red Raider lead to 27-16 with 3:56 left in the first half.
Inman kept his hot shooting going, hitting on two more 3-pointers, but Texas Tech kept pace and extended the lead to 39-22 at halftime.
Texas Tech controlled the first half, turning nine offensive rebounds into 13 points compared to seven offensive rebounds for the Buffs that did not amount to any points. The Red Raiders blocked six shots and made eight 3-pointers in the first half.
Colorado stayed in the game early thanks to the four 3-pointers from Inman, who scored 12 of the 22 points for the Buffs. Turnovers were how the Buffs stopped the Red Raiders, as they forced eight turnovers and converted them into 10 points.
The second half began with Texas Tech going on an 11-1 run to push the lead to 27 with 16 minutes remaining.
The Buffs found some success on offense, making four straight shots at the rim to cut the lead to 20 points, but Texas Tech responded, taking advantage of second-chance points to go up 58-34 with 11 minutes remaining.
Texas Tech extended its lead to 30 points with 4:44 left in the game, and the Buffs never threatened again as the final score finished 78-44.
UP NEXT
Colorado continues on the road against No. 22 BYU on Saturday, Feb. 14, in Provo, Utah, at 2 p.m. on FS1.
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Team Stats
CU
TTU
FG%
.291
.452
3FG%
.240
.400
FT%
.600
.714
RB
30
47
TO
16
13
STL
6
10
Game Leaders
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
4
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
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