No. 17 Texas Tech pulls away for 8140 win over Grambling St

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Kyler Edwards played in a national championship game as a freshman for No. 17 Texas Tech, started every game last season and now wants to be one of the best junior guards in the country.

“I’m right there with him. I want him to be in that category. I believe he can be, I believe he will be,” coach Chris Beard said. “He has the work ethic and talent to do it, but the stat sheet has to show iton a consistent basis.”

Edwards had his first double-double at Texas Tech with 13 points and 11 rebounds, and the Red Raiders overcame a sluggish start to pull away for an 81-40 win over Grambling State on Sunday.

The 6-foot-4 guard was 4-of-8 shooting, including two 3-pointers. He also had five assists, two blocked shots and two steals in his 26 minutes.

“I’ve been working hard all summer ... and it’s finally paying off,” said Edwards, who was coming off a season-high 14 points with four 3s two nights earlier against Troy.

The Red Raiders (4-1) never trailed after Edwards made a 3-pointer only 17 seconds into the game, but they then missed 12 of their next 13 shots. They also had a nearly five-minute stretch later in the first half when they missed five shots in a row and had four turnovers.

Mac Mcclung, Terrence Shannon Jr. and freshman Nimari Burnett all had 12 points for Texas Tech, while Jamarius Burton had 10. Burnett also had six steals in his 15 minutes of action.

Cameron Christon had 11 points, and was the only player in double figures for Grambling State (1-3).

Mcclung, the transfer guard from Georgetown who led the Red Raiders in scoring the first four games, was 0-for-5 shooting until his 3-pointer midway through the second half that made it 62-28. That was the last of seven points in a row he scored to wrap up a 16-0 run for Tech.