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LUBBOCK, Texas – To understand how Tobe Awaka can thrive when life around the basket turns especially dark and challenging, maybe it’s worth checking out how he spends his free time.

On ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s trip this week through Texas and Oklahoma, the Wildcats’ junior center brought along heavyweight 19th-century Russian novel “Crime and Punishment.â€�

He’s almost finished with it.

“It’s pretty dense, but it’s good for the mind to try to wrap around,� Awaka said after UA’s 70-54 loss at Texas Tech on Saturday. “It’s been fun.�

Awaka should have a few hours here and there to keep diving in. The Wildcats took a short plane ride to Oklahoma City on Saturday night, then practiced Sunday with tentative plans to attend the Thunder-Nets NBA game on Sunday night before heading to Stillwater on Monday. There, UA will prepare for a Tuesday night game at Oklahoma State.

Lot of plane hops, bus rides and hours spent in hotel rooms. Lot of time for Awaka to exercise his mind but not, the Wildcats may hope, his body.

Because, in a game that might have most accentuated the Wildcats’ loss of 7-2 center Motiejus Krivas, Awaka played a season-high 26 minutes on Saturday in a rugged game at Texas Tech while collecting eight points and 14 rebounds.

ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s other three post players – Henri Veesaar, Trey Townsend and Carter Bryant – had only two rebounds apiece, leading to ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s season-low rebounding deficit of 16 to the Red Raiders.

Since Krivas was shelved for good in mid-December, Lloyd has been pretty much splitting the minutes at center between Awaka and Veesaar. He has been starting Awaka but had shifted the majority of minutes to Veesaar in Big 12 play until Saturday.

Awaka “was playing better than Henri today and he was rebounding his butt off,� Lloyd said Saturday. “It wasn’t a hard decision. However the game plays out, you’re going to adapt accordingly.�

The game played out in a physical manner Lloyd said he expected against Texas Tech, which received 20 points and 16 rebounds from center JT Toppin just as he had shaken off an illness that melted 10 pounds from his 6-9 frame.

“Y’all know we’re better when he’s healthy and it’s not close,� Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. “JT is a difference maker on this team. When you play the most physical team that we’ve played up to this point in our league, and he goes for 20 and 16, it just goes to show you when he’s right, he’s a load.�

The Red Raiders added even more size late in the game, often pairing Toppin with 6-11 Finnish big man Federiko Federiko in the second half when ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ missed its final 12 field goals.

“They were pretty opportunistic,� Awaka said. “That was a great move on their part.�

Especially if UA’s other post players can’t compensate for Krivas again Tuesday, Awaka may have to produce in a similar way if the Wildcats are to get past Oklahoma State. The Cowboys (10-7, 2-4), who beat Colorado 83-73 on Saturday, rank 18th nationally in defensive rebounding percentage and 50th in offensive rebounding percentage.

“We would definitely love to have Mo right now with his presence and how he imposes his will in the game,� Awaka said. “But I think my mindset from the beginning of the season was try to help the team in any fashion that I could, whether it be starting off the bench, to bring that physicality, that toughness, to the game every single day.�

Halfway through his first season with the Wildcats, Awaka said he’s also adjusted to demands of UA’s fast-moving offense, both in making short moves off UA’s pick-and-rolls while also trying to find ways to open things up for perimeter players Caleb Love, Jaden Bradley, KJ Lewis and Anthony Dell’Orso.

“It’s understanding how guys are going to guard them, and catering the screen to their preference,� Awaka said.

On Saturday, Lewis was 1 for 7 from the field overall while the Wildcats’ perimeter players collectively made only 3 of 18 3-pointers they tried.

Inside wasn’t any easier for the Wildcats: While Bryant hit both two early layups, Awaka made 2 of 5 shots while Townsend was 2 for 9 and Veesaar missed all five shots he took, including one 3-pointer.

“We had some shots right around the basket that we’ve got to finish,� Lloyd said. “They’re probably not as easy as they look, but if you have the wherewithal to get the ball there, you’ve got to find a way to finish or get fouled.�

Lloyd said the Red Raiders made it tougher with how they defended inside – “we always had a guy underneath us,� he said – and noted that some shots simply bounced in and out.

When Lewis missed a couple of them with about eight minutes left in Saturday’s game, Awaka scooped both off the glass. Awaka drew a foul after the first one and hit two free throws that cut TTU’s lead to just 51-50.

After the Red Raiders’ Chance McMillian made a layup and Lewis missed another shot with 7:40 to go, Awaka also picked up that rebound and put it back in. ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ trailed by only one point again.

Except that was the last field goal the Wildcats hit the rest of the way.

“Tobe is a beast,� Lloyd said. “I was proud of him for the way he competed. He kept us in that game.�