The unsung Texas Tech basketball hero who shut down Cameron Boozer during 17-point comeback to beat Duke

As the Texas Tech basketball team came back to stun the Duke Blue Devils on Saturday, 82-81, the Red Raiders gave the No. 3-ranked team its first loss of the season. With Duke’s collapse to the Texas Tech basketball team, head coach Grant McCasland would speak about the unsung hero of the game.

Talking about Nolan Groves, who is coming into the contest, the freshman had only played 20 seconds in the win over Northern Colorado last Tuesday. However, McCasland had said to Groves that he would play meaningful minutes against a dangerous Duke team that was undefeated.

With the Red Raiders missing players due to injuries and then some getting fouled out in the contest, Groves was crucial in starting the 17-point comeback. He was important in maintaining Duke star Cameron Boozer and had a major impact on the game as McCasland looked at his intriguing stat line.

“It’s pretty cool when you got a guy like Nolan Groves, who shoots an airball and goes 0-for-2 and plays 13 minutes and only has one offensive rebound and three fouls, but he’s a plus-13,” McCasland said, via ESPN. “And that shows you what impact you can have on a college basketball game, no matter what.”

Texas Tech’s Grant McCasland on the work Nolan Groves put in

If there was one thing that Groves wasn’t doing, it was the Texas Tech freshman playing soft against a top player in the country in Boozer. McCasland would speak on the work that Groves has put in, despite the limited minutes, especially on the defensive side of the ball, where he limited Boozer, as he finished with 23 points.

“He’s showed up every day,” McCasland said. “We put him on scout team so he could play defense, and he just keeps taking steps…He could patrol the rim and still rebound and offer help at the basket, and Nolan could stand him up, which not many people in college basketball can stand Boozer up.

Groves looks to get more playing time as Texas Tech looks to build off the win over Duke against Winthrop next Saturday.

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