Texas Tech is heading back to Baton Rouge, Louisiana where it will play LSU at 1 p.m. on Saturday in the 2023 Big 12-SEC Men's Basketball Challenge at the Maravich Center.

The Red Raiders (10-10) are venturing outside Big 12 play for the final time this season and will look to snap an eight-game losing streak, while the Tigers (12-8) are on a seven-game losing streak of their own. Tech, which will host No. 12 Iowa State (15-4, 6-2 Big 12) on Monday night, is currently 10-2 in non-conference play but has opened conference play with eight straight losses after falling, 76-61, against West Virginia on Wednesday in Lubbock. LSU took a 60-40 loss at Arkansas on Tuesday in Fayetteville, Arkansas – dropping to 1-7 in SEC play.

Texas Tech is 6-3 all-time in the Big 12-SEC Challenge after earning a 75-50 home win over Mississippi State last season. Tech has won five of the last six matchups in the annual series against SEC opponents, including going on the road in 2021 and taking a 76-71 win over LSU in the most recent matchup. The Red Raiders own a 5-3 advantage in the all-time series over LSU and are 3-1 in Baton Rouge.

Kevin Obanor leads the Red Raiders with 15.0 points per game this season and is coming off a game against WVU where he went for 20 points and eight rebounds. He has 1,976 points and 1,016 rebounds in his career coming into the game and is looking to join Virginia's Jayden Gardner and LSU's KJ Williams as the only active players currently with over 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. Pop Isaacs, who leads Tech with 13.9 points in Big 12 games, is listed as day-to-day with an ankle injury that he suffered with 15:24 remaining against WVU. He had two points in the game, breaking a streak of seven straight games scoring in double figures. De'Vion Harmon had 14 points against WVU and is now averaging 12.2 points per game and leads Tech with 3.4 assists and 2.0 steals, while Daniel Batcho leads Tech with 6.6 rebounds and 1.9 blocks after having three blocks and three rebounds against WVU. Jaylon Tyson is adding 9.7 points and 5.7 rebounds, while Fardaws Aimaq is at 10.0 points and 6.7 rebounds through three games played. He returned against Texas after missing the opening 16 games of the season with a foot injury. A transfer from Utah Valley who earned the past two WAC Defensive Player of the Year honors, Aimaq played against the Longhorns, Baylor, and Kansas State, but again was sidelined for Wednesday's game against WVU and will be a game-time decision at LSU.

Williams leads LSU with 17.4 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. He is a fifth-year senior who played the last four seasons at Murry State under new LSU head coach Matt McMahon. Williams also leads the team with 18 blocked shots and 28 steals. He comes into this weekend with 2,014 points and 1,034 rebounds. Adam Miller is adding 11.7 points per game, while Cam Hayes is at 7.6 and Derek Fountain at 7.0. The Tigers are currently 9-3 on their home court, including a 60-57 win over Arkansas on December 28 for their lone SEC win of the season so far. LSU is scoring 66.5 points per game this season but is coming off a season-low 40 at Arkansas in the rematch where the Razorbacks held them to 25.9 percent shooting.

Texas Tech and LSU will be meeting for the ninth time, dating back to the first matchup in 1957. The Red Raiders also earned a 77-64 victory in Lubbock on Jan. 28, 2017, in a Big 12/SEC Challenge matchup. The all-time series began with Tech taking a 79-72 victory on Dec. 16, 1957 in Baton Rouge in the first matchup between the two programs. Big 12 teams are 48-41 (.539) in the Big 12-SEC Challenge coming into Saturday's slate of games. 

Texas Tech – Big 12-SEC Challenge History
Date, Matchup; Location
01/29/2022: Texas Tech 75, Mississippi State 50; Lubbock, Texas
01/30/2021: Texas Tech 76, LSU 71; Baton Rouge, Louisiana
01/25/2020: Kentucky 76, Texas Tech 74 (OT); Lubbock, Texas
01/26/2019: Texas Tech 67, Arkansas 64; Lubbock, Texas
01/27/2018: Texas Tech 70, South Carolina 63; Columbia, South Carolina
01/28/2017: Texas Tech 77, LSU 64; Lubbock, Texas
01/30/2016: Arkansas 75, Texas Tech 68 (OT); Fayetteville, Arkansas
12/03/2014: Texas Tech 46, Auburn 44; Lubbock, Texas
11/14/2013: Alabama 76, Texas Tech 64; Tuscaloosa, Alabama