Red Raider Report | Game 22 – Texas Tech Red Raiders
By: Wes Bloomquist
LUBBOCK – No. 22 Texas Tech climbed into the NCAA NET’s top 10 and the Kenpom rankings following a thrilling 82-81 overtime victory over No. 6 Houston on Saturday, extending their winning streak to six games. The Red Raiders (17-4, 8-2 Big 12) will face Baylor at home on Tuesday at 8 p.m. after securing the best 10-game start in Big 12 play in program history. The win also marked the team’s first-ever 5-0 start on the road while breaking Houston’s 33-game home winning streak. The Cougars, who had won 13 straight, were the last unbeaten team in conference play. Texas Tech now ranks No. 8 in the NCAA NET and No. 9 on Kenpom. Updated national polls will be released Monday at noon.
Chance McMillian tied his season-high with 23 points, including the game-winning free throws with 14 seconds left in overtime. Elijah Hawkins contributed 17 points, making four 3-pointers, while Kerwin Walton added 14 points on 4-for-6 shooting from deep. Darrion Williams, returning from injury after missing the TCU game, had 13 points, three assists, three steals, and matched his career-high with three blocks. Williams forced overtime with a clutch 3-pointer assisted by Hawkins with 26 seconds remaining in regulation. Texas Tech played the last 41 minutes without JT Toppin and head coach Grant McCasland, both ejected following a flagrant two foul on Toppin, who led the team in scoring, rebounds, and blocks before the game. Neither Toppin nor McCasland will face additional penalties.
Tech shot 12-for-30 from beyond the arc against Houston, marking their 12th game this season with at least 10 made 3-pointers in 21 games. The Red Raiders enter their matchup with Baylor (14-7, 6-4 Big 12) leading the conference with a 48.8% field goal percentage and ranking second in 3-point shooting at 38.2% (9.4 per game) with a 1.54 assist-to-turnover ratio. Tech ranks third in the Big 12 in scoring (81.4 points per game) and free-throw shooting (76.0%). Against Houston, they went 24-for-34 at the line, including 3-of-4 in overtime. The Red Raiders are now 1-1 in overtime games, 1-2 against ranked opponents, and have defeated an AP Top 10 team for the 11th straight season. Their six-game Big 12 winning streak is the longest since the 2019 team won nine straight to claim the regular-season title.
Three Red Raiders are averaging double figures this season: McMillian (15.4), Toppin (15.3), and Williams (14.6), while Christian Anderson (9.4), Hawkins (9.4), and Kevin Overton (9.2) are close behind. McMillian ranks sixth in the Big 12 in scoring, while Toppin is fourth in rebounds (8.4 per game) and ninth in scoring. Williams is 15th in scoring and ninth in assists. Hawkins leads the Big 12 and is 20th nationally with 6.0 assists per game and ranks third in the conference with a 2.85 assist-to-turnover ratio. Toppin (55.6%), McMillian (54.5%), and Williams (45.3%) all rank in the top 10 in field goal percentage, with Toppin second in the conference.
GAME INFORMATION
Matchup: Baylor (14-7, 6-4) at No. 22 Texas Tech (17-4, 8-2)
Location: Lubbock, Texas
Venue: United Supermarkets Arena
Tip: 8 p.m., Tuesday, February 4, 2025
TV: ESPN2
TV CALL: Rich Hollenberg (play-by-play), King McClure (analyst)
TEXAS TECH SPORTS NETWORK: Geoff Haxton (play-by-play), Chris Level (analyst)
Head coach Grant McCasland has an NCAA coaching record of 251-104 (70.7%), including a 40-15 overall mark at Texas Tech (72.7% over 55 games), 19-9 in Big 12 play, 26-4 at home, and 9-6 in true road games. McCasland previously coached at Midwestern State (56-12 in two seasons), Arkansas State (20-12 in one season), and North Texas (135-65 over six seasons). In addition to leading Texas Tech, he serves as an assistant coach for the USA Basketball Men’s Junior National Team, which won the 2024 FIBA U18 AmeriCup and will compete in the 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup in Lausanne, Switzerland, from June 28 to July 6. Last season, McCasland led Tech to six ranked wins and now has a 7-7 record against AP Top 25 teams. The current roster includes 13 players, featuring two fifth-year seniors (McMillian, Walton), two seniors (Hawkins, Federiko Federiko), three juniors (Francis, Green, Williams), three sophomores (Overton, Toppin, Yalaho), and three freshmen (Anderson, Henderson, Horner).
Toppin’s stats took a dip after his ejection against Houston, where he had only one rebound and no points. His season averages now stand at 15.3 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks per game, down from 16.3 points and 8.9 rebounds. Despite this, he remains fourth in the Big 12 in rebounding and ninth in scoring. He previously recorded his seventh double-double of the season (19th career) with 16 points and 14 rebounds in the TCU victory. Toppin, a sophomore forward, has posted 20-point games twice this season and ranks seventh in the Big 12 in offensive rebounding (2.88 per game). With a career rebounding average of 8.8, he ranks sixth among active NCAA players, and his 19 career double-doubles rank 46th nationally. He has scored in double figures in 13 of 17 games and grabbed at least seven rebounds in 11 outings.
Williams contributes 14.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.3 steals per game. In the Houston win, he had 13 points, three steals, three assists, and three blocks while making the game-tying 3-pointer. A junior in his second season at Texas Tech, Williams has reached double figures in 16 games, including a season-high 23 points against Lamar. He is averaging 12.3 points and 4.9 rebounds in Big 12 play and won Big 12 Player of the Week honors after an impressive performance before conference play. Last season, Williams earned All-Big 12 Third Team honors, averaging 11.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, and nine double-doubles.
McMillian leads Texas Tech in scoring at 15.4 points per game after a 23-point effort against Houston. He ranks seventh nationally in 3-point percentage (45.5%) and has scored in double figures in 19 of 21 games. McMillian’s season includes a 27-point career-high performance against Oklahoma last season and a five-game double-digit scoring streak. He has hit three or more 3-pointers in 10 games this season and has 1,350 career points across 145 games.
Hawkins leads the Big 12 in assists (6.0 per game) and now has 702 career assists. Against Houston, he recorded four assists and 17 points, shooting 4-for-7 from deep. A senior in his first season at Texas Tech, Hawkins has 18 career games with 10 or more assists and ranks among the top NCAA active leaders in assists per game (6.32). He has also tallied three double-doubles this season. Before transferring to Texas Tech, Hawkins played at Minnesota, where he averaged 7.5 assists per game last season.