Tech, Michigan set to clash at Battle 4 Atlantis

Friday, November 24

Paradise Island, Bahamas

5:30 p.m.

Texas Tech Athletics

Michigan

Tech, Michigan set to clash at Battle 4 Atlantis

November 23, 2023 | Men's Basketball

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By: Wes Bloomquist

PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas – Texas Tech and Michigan will square off on the final day at the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis at 5 p.m. (CST) on Friday in the fifth-sixth place game at Imperial Arena.

The Red Raiders (4-1) are coming off a 72-70 win over Northern Iowa on Thursday where they came back from a 15-point deficit, while the Wolverines (4-2) earned an 83-78 win to finish off the Thanksgiving schedule at Battle 4 Atlantis.

Joe Toussaint led Tech with 21 points against UNI and Pop Isaacs provided 18 with the final two coming with 0.8 seconds on the clock for the game-winner. Darrion Williams and Devan Cambridge had 10 each to match a season-best with four players in double-figure scoring. The 15-point comeback follows a 23-point comeback last season against Iowa State which set the program record. Tech made the comeback on Thursday by having a season-low eight turnovers, with an 18-6 scoring advantage in points off turnovers, shooting 16-for-19 at the free-throw line, and owning a 20-10 paint advantage in the second half. Against Villanova, the Red Raiders hit a season-best 14 3-pointers but couldn't overcome a rebounding and free-throw disparity owned by the Wildcats who took the 85-69 win.

Defensively, Tech had been dominant through three games where it was third nationally by limiting teams to only 50.7 points per game coming into the Battle 4 Atlantis. That average rose to 59.3 with Villanova's scoring output and is now at 61.4 following the win over UNI. They currently rank No. 32 in the defensive category.

Dug McDaniel led Michigan on Thursday with 20 points against Stanford, while Terrance Williams had 17 points and Oliver Nkamhoua scored 16. Nimari Burnett had 10 points and six rebounds in a game where five Wolverines scored in double figures. McDaniel leads Michigan with 19.5 points per game this season, while Nkambhoua is at 17.8. The Wolverines snapped a two-game losing streak that came against Long Beach and Memphis. Burnett started his collegiate career at Texas Tech where he played 12 games as a true freshman in 2020-21 before electing to enter the transfer portal. He transferred to Alabama before going to Michigan. He is currently averaging 10.8 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.

Tech owns a 3-0 all-time advantage over Michigan in the series between the programs… The Red Raiders rolled to a 63-44 win in the 2019 Sweet 16 in Anaheim, California to advance to the Elite 8 and eventually the Final Four… The first two games between Tech and Michigan were played in El Paso, first in 1978 and then again in 1983… In the 2019 Sweet 16 matchup, Tech was led by 22 points from Jarrett Culver and Davide Moretti's 15 points with three 3-pointers

Tech is playing in its first Battle 4 Atlantis in program history, but returns to Paradise Island after a 2019 Summer Tour where it played games against the Bahamas National Team and Mega Bemax from Serbia.

The Red Raiders will return to action next week for a Big 12-Big East Battle matchup against Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse on Thursday, November 30 in Indianapolis. The game will be the fourth away from home but the first true road game.

RED RAIDER ROSTER REPORT

McCasland's first roster at Texas Tech has 14 players on it with five returners and nine newcomers… McCasland was named the 19th head coach in program history on March 31, 2023, after leading North Texas to the 2023 NIT Championship… He is currently in his 10th season as an NCAA head coach and has a 215-90 overall record with experiences at Midwestern State, Arkansas State, and North Texas… He was also an assistant at Baylor from 2011-16 and won the 2007 NJCAA National Championship in his first head coaching role leading Midland College
The Red Raiders return Lamar Washington, Pop Isaacs, D'Maurian Williams, Kerwin Walton, and Robert Jennings who are each in their second season in the program… Tech returns only 25.4 percent of its scoring from last season with eight departures from last year's roster
The list of newcomers includes five players from the transfer portal in Devan Cambridge (Arizona State), Chance McMillian (Grand Canyon), Joe Toussaint (West Virginia), Darrion Williams (Nevada), and Warren Washington (Arizona State)… All five players signed out of the transfer portal played on teams that advanced to the 2023 NCAA Tournament… The transfer portal additions had a combined 492 games of experience and 3,454 points scored coming into the season
Tech's starting lineup for the first fives games has been: Cambridge, Isaacs, Toussaint, Warren Washington, Darrion Williams… The starters have accounted for 79.0 percent of Tech scoring this season
Tech has been led in scoring by four different players in its first five games after Toussaint scored his 21 points against UNI to lead the team for the first time… Isaacs is the only Red Raider to lead the team in scoring twice – first in the season-opener with 19 points against Commerce and then here in the Bahamas when he had 16 points against Villanova… McMillian led the Red Raiders with 17 points against Corpus and Cambridge had 15 against San Jose State to lead the team… Isaacs has now led Tech in scoring in eight games in his Texas Tech career
Toussaint is the only player to score in double figures in all five games and only Red Raider to score 20 or more… He is coming off three straight games with season-high scoring after his 21 against UNI, 15 against Villanova and 14 against Corpus… He had scored 10 points in each of the first two games… Toussaint scored Tech's first four points of the season
Tech matched a season-high with four players scoring in double-figures against UNI with Toussaint (21), Isaacs (18), Cambridge (10), Darrion Williams (10) after also having four against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi with McMillian (17), Toussaint (14), Warren Washington (13), Darrion Williams (10)… The previous best was three players in double-figures in the opener with Darrion Williams scoring 14 points to join Isaacs (19) and Toussaint (10) which was matched by three against Villanova: Isaacs (16), Toussaint (15), and Cambridge (11)
A season-high 11 players saw game action in the season-opener against Commerce with all 11 scoring… Tech is coming off a games with seven scorers in the games against Villanova and UNI
Six players have made their Tech debut this season, including the four from the starting lineup, McMillian, and freshman Eemeli Yalaho who had a dunk late in the season-opener against Commerce for his first collegiate points
Darrion Williams was McCasland's first signee on April 21, 2023
Cambridge and Toussaint were both officially announced on July 6, 2023, to complete the roster... Six players were signed by McCasland and staff in the off-season
The newcomer list includes Jack Francis and KyeRon Lindsay who were at Tech last season but not on the active roster… Francis, Lindsay, and freshman Drew Steffe have not played in a game this season
Tech is a team comprised of 5th-year seniors (3), seniors (3), sophomores (6), and freshmen (2)
Tech has players from Texas (4), California (3), Arizona (1), Minnesota (1), Nevada (1), New York (1), Oregon (1), Tennessee (1), Finland (1)
Isaacs hit the game-winner against UNI with 0.8 on the clock and finished with 18 points and four 3-pointers for the second straight game in the Bahamas… He is now second on the Tech roster with 13.8 points per game and leads the team with 3.0 assists per game… He led Tech with 16 points in the Battle 4 Atlantis opener against Villanova where he had a season-high four 3-pointers… He had a previous season-best with 19 points in the season opener against Commerce and has now led the team in scoring twice this season and eight times in his career… A 6-foot-2 sophomore from Las Vegas who has now played 30 career games, Isaacs has 356 points, 82 assists, and has made 74 3-pointers… He was 4-for-11 on 3-pointers on Wednesday and Thursday in the Bahamas and comes into the final game at 8-for-22 in the tournament… Isaacs is Tech's leading returning scorer after going for 11.5 points per game as a true freshman in 25 games played last season… In the preseason, Isaacs also went off for 30 points after going 6-for-10 on 3-pointers in the exhibition win over Texas A&M where he also led the team with three steals… Last season, he made 62 3-pointers (37.8%), including making five 3-pointers in games against Nicholls, TCU, and Texas… Isaacs had 16 games with double-figuring scoring performances as a freshman and scored 12.1 percent of Texas Tech's points last season… Isaacs scored a career-high 24 points in the non-conference game against Nicholls and also had 23 points at Texas after he went off by making 5-of-9 3-pointers against the Longhorns… Isaacs made 24 starts last year and earned Big 12 All-Freshman Team honors during his first season at Tech where he averaged 11.5 points, 2.7 assists, 1.1 steals and 2.0 rebounds per game… He finished third in scoring among freshmen in the Big 12 and was fourth throughout the conference by averaging 2.5 made 3-pointers per game
Cambridge got into double-figure scoring for the second time this season with 11 points against Villanova and is now averaging 8.0 points from the starting lineup… He led Tech in scoring for the first time this season with 15 points in the win over San Jose State… A 6-foot-6 fifth-year senior from Nashville, Tennessee, he was 7-for-12 from the field against the Spartans and now has 42 games in double-figure scoring in his career and is currently averaging 3.8 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game to go along with his scoring… A transfer portal addition, Cambridge has 931 points, 494 rebounds, 77 steals, and 68 blocked shots through 131 games in his career… Cambridge began his career with three seasons at Auburn before playing last season at Arizona State… He averaged a career-best 9.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game last season for the Sun Devils and helped ASU to the second round of the NCAA Tournament… Cambridge has made 116 3-pointers (29.1%) and is shooting 343-for-788 (43.5%) from the field in his career… He scored a career-high 26 points against South Carolina as a freshman on January 22, 2020, and had a career-best 11 rebounds against San Diego on December 18, 2022… Cambridge started against Texas A&M in Tech's exhibition win, scoring 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field and 2-of-3 on 3-pointers… For his career, Cambridge has five double-doubles and has 42 double-figure scoring performances after his team-best 15 against San Jose
Toussaint leads Tech with 14.0 points per game and is the only Red Raider to score in double-figures in all five games so far this season, scoring a season-high 21 points in the win over UNI after scoring 15 against Villanova after 14 against Corpus and10 against Commerce and San Jose… He is at 2.8 assists, 1.0 steals, and 2.4 rebounds per game… Toussaint had a season-high eight assists against Villanova to go with his scoring… He scored the first four points of Tech's season in the opener against Commerce and finished with 10 points to go along with three rebounds and an assists in his Tech debut… A 6-foot guard, he is in his fifth and final season of college basketball after playing his first three seasons at Iowa and then last year at West Virginia… A Bronx, New York native, Toussaint played against Texas Tech four times as an opponent in his career including three times last season while at WVU and once while at Iowa in 2019… He scored his career-high 22 points against the Red Raiders in Lubbock after making 12 free throws and has now scored 20 or more three times in his career… He had a career-high 11 assists against Alabama State back on Nov. 18, 2021, while playing at Iowa… Toussaint has 862 points, 382 assists, 145 steals, and 268 rebounds through 137 games in his career… His 137 games are the most experience on this year's Tech roster… Toussaint is coming off a season at WVU were he averaged 9.4 points and had 89 assists… He started against Texas A&M in the exhibition game, finishing with a team-high seven assists and also having six points and three rebounds in 36 minutes of play
Warren Washington leads Tech with 8.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game after going for seven points, six rebounds, and one block in the win over UNI… On the first day here in the Bahamas he had a season-high four blocked shots and also recorded a team-high eight rebounds against Villanova in the B4A opener… He is averaging 8.4 points through five games at Tech… The tallest Red Raider on the roster at 7-foot, Washington was coming off a season-high 13 points against Corpus back in Lubbock where he also had eight rebounds and three assists… He led the Red Raiders with a season-high 12 rebounds and added eight points in the season-opening win over Commerce before going for eight points and five rebounds against San Jose State… Against San Jose, he scored the first six points for the Red Raiders… Washington is a fifth-year senior who has also played at Oregon State, Nevada, and Arizona State before making Texas Tech his final destination in his collegiate career… An Escondido, California native, he has 883 points, 608 rebounds, 119 blocks, and 103 assists through 114 games in his career… He leads Tech with nine double-doubles in his career, 14 double-figure rebounding games, and 45 games in double-figure scoring in his career… He is coming off a season at Arizona State where he averaged 9.2 points and 6.9 rebounds and earned Pac-12 All-Defensive Team honors… Washington started for the Red Raiders in the exhibition win over Texas A&M, finishing with a team-high seven rebounds but not scoring… In a scrimmage against UTEP, Washington led Tech with 16 points after going 7-for-9 from the field… His career resume includes a career-high 21 points in games against Wyoming and Southern Cal and a 14-rebound performance against Texas Southern last season while at ASU
Darrion Williams approached a double-double on Thursday against UNI with 10 points and nine rebounds before he fouled out with two minutes remaining… Before he exited, Darrion had already established a career-high three blocked shots to go along with his scoring and rebounding… He recorded the first double-double of the season for Texas Tech and the second in his career by going for a career-high 14 rebounds and adding 10 points in the win over Corpus Christi… A Sacramento, California native, he's averaging 7.3 rebounds per game this season to go along with 9.6 points, 1.6 steals, and 1.0 assists per game… He began his Tech career by going for 14 points and seven rebounds in the win over Commerce before scoring nine points and having six rebounds against San Jose… A sophomore in his first year at Texas Tech, Williams earned Mountain West Freshman of the Year last season while playing at the University of Nevada after earning Nevada Gatorade Player of the Year following his senior year of high school at Bishop Gorman… He transferred to Tech during the summer after averaging 7.6 points and 7.3 rebounds per game as a freshman… He also had 90 assists, 47 steals, and 11 blocks in his first collegiate season… Darrion scored a career-high 16 points in a game against Fresno State and had a previous-best of 13 rebounds in his first-ever double-double against New Mexico last season… His freshman-year report saw him record 11 games with double-figure rebounds, 11 games with double-figure scoring, and one double-double… Darrion Williams started against Texas A&M in Tech's exhibition game and finished with six points and two rebounds in 17 minutes… In the scrimmage against UTEP, Darrion had 14 points… Last season, Williams was 91-for-220 (41.4%) from the field and 35-of-98 (35.7%) on 3-pointers... The Athletic had Williams as the 14th best available transfer while ESPN put him at No. 43 on its 2023-24 transfer list
McMillian led the Red Raiders in scoring with 17 points in the win over Corpus Christi in 25 minutes as a reserve before having nine points with three 3-pointers against Villanova on Wednesday… He's coming off being limited to three points and two rebounds against UNI… McMillian has scored in double figures in 31 in his career after doing it for the first time at Tech in his third game with the program… Against Villanova, he was 3-for-6 on 3-pointers for his second straight game with three 3s… He's now 7-for-22 on 3s for the season against shooting 1-for-3 against UNI from beyond the arc… McMillian secured six rebounds in both games against Commerce and San Jose State to begin his career at Tech… In his first year at Tech, he is a senior with two years of eligibility remaining after he played the last three years at Grand Canyon in Phoenix, Arizona where he advanced to the 2021 and 2023 NCAA Tournaments… Against Texas A&M in Tech's exhibition, McMillian scored 17 points with four 3-pointers as a reserve in 23 minutes… His resume now includes 707 points, 152 assists, 58 steals, 116 made 3-pointers, and a shooting percentage of 45.0 through 96 games in his career… A Vallejo, California native, McMillian is 116-for-290 (40.0%) on 3-pointers in his career including a game last season against SFA in February where he made six 3-pointers for GCU… He scored a career-high 24 points in that game on Feb. 24, 2023… McMillian is coming off a season at Grand Canyon where he averaged 10.9 points per game and had 78 assists
Lamar Washington matched a season-high with seven points and added three assists against Villanova after he had scored a season-high seven points in just under 30 minutes of play as a reserve against Corpus Christi in the last game played… He was held scoreless for the first time this season against UNI… In the season opener, he led Tech with four assists and also added five points and four rebounds in the win over Commerce and then had four points and four rebounds against San Jose State… Washington is in his second season at Tech after averaging 3.4 points and 1.8 rebounds per game as a freshman… He finished with 13 points and two steals in the exhibition win over Texas A&M where he played 24 minutes as a reserve… Washington had a career-high 13 points and five steals last season in a win over Kansas State at home… He played in 32 games and made three starts during the 2022-23 season… A 6-foot-4, 200-pound guard, Washington is a Portland, Oregon native who was named the 2021 Oregon Gatorade Player of the Year before finishing prep school in Arizona… Washington has 131 points, 66 assists, and 31 steals through 36 games in his career
Robert Jennings has played limited minutes in the first five games of the season where he is averaging 1.0 rebounds and 0.5 points… Jennings finished with three rebounds and two points in the opener to begin his sophomore season against Commerce after playing in 30 games with four starts as a true freshman last season at Tech… A Desoto, Texas native who is listed at 6-foot-7, 230-pounds, Jennings had a career-high eight points in games against Houston Christian, Oklahoma, and Louisville last season… He also had strong performances with six rebounds against South Carolina State and West Virginia last year… Jennings played seven minutes as a reserve in the exhibition against Texas A&M and finished with one steal… He averaged 2.7 points and 1.9 rebounds per game last season
Kerwin Walton hit a 3-pointer to cut UNI's lead to 62-59 on Thursday and finished with those three points in a season-high 15 minutes… He also made one 3-pointer for his only basket of the game against Commerce to begin his second season in the program but has not scored in the past three games… He did not play against San Jose State and had played limited minutes in the past two games against Corpus and Villanova… A senior with two years of eligibility remaining, he is in his second season at Texas Tech after playing two years at North Carolina… A Hopkins, Minnesota native, Walton has made 106 3-pointers and scored 447 points through 91 games played in his career… He averaged 3.6 points with 23 3-pointers made in 27 games played last year for the Red Raiders with seven starts… As a freshman at North Carolina, Walton made 58 3-pointers, averaged 8.2 points, started 20 games, and set the UNC freshman percentage record at 42.0 percent… Walton had a career-high 19 points against Louisville as a freshman where he made a career-high five 3-pointers… He was a sophomore on the 2022 North Carolina team that advanced to the NCAA National Championship game
D'Maurian Williams has 816 points and a team-best 146 3-pointers made through 86 games played in his career… He scored two points in four minutes of play against Commerce in the opener but did not play against San Jose State or Corpus Christi… He played for 1:22 on Wednesday against Villanova… A senior with two years of eligibility remaining, D'Maurian is in his second season at Tech after playing his first two years at Gardner Webb where he averaged 14.5 points per game as a sophomore after 10.8 as a freshman… He played 27 games with one start last season for the Red Raiders, averaging 3.1 points per game and with 14 3-pointers… For his career, Williams is 146-for-379 (38.5%) from beyond the arc… He had a career-high 27 points against Columbia International while playing at Gardner Webb and also had a 10-rebound performance against UNLV… Last season, Williams scored a season-high 17 points against Jackson State after going 5-for-7 on 3-pointers… He's scored in double-figures 40 times in his career and has one double-double
Tech's roster has two true freshman on it with Eemeli Yalaho and Drew Steffe… Yalaho scored two points in six minutes of play in the opener against Commerce to make his collegiate debut and played just under five minutes against San Jose State… He's played in all five games this season but has not scored in the past four… An international player from Jyväskylä, Finland, he completed high school with his senior season at Western Reserve Academy (Hudson, Ohio) where he averaged 15.2 points, 7.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game… Yalaho is listed as a 6-foot-8, 240-pound forward… Steffe is a four-star recruit who was signed last November out of Frisco Memorial High School… A 6-foot-5, 200-pound forward, he was a Class 5A All-state selection… Steffe has not played this season
Two of the newcomers were with the Red Raiders last season but will be in uniform for the first time this season… KyeRon Lindsay transferred to Tech at midterm last December after starting his career at the University of Georgia where he started eight games and played in 10 as a true freshman… A Denton, Texas native, Lindsay averaged 6.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game as a Bulldog including recording a double-double with a career-high 14 points and 10 rebounds against Miami (Ohio) on November 14, 2022… Jack Francis is a sophomore from Austin who was on the practice squad last season and earned his spot on this season's roster… Francis is the team's only walk-on and is an accomplished player who scored over 1,000 points at Anderson High School… Lindsay and Francis both practiced with the Red Raiders throughout the 2023 Spring semester… Neither played in a game this season
McCasland was announced as the 19th head coach in program history on March 31, 2023, after six seasons at North Texas where he was 135-65 and led the program to the 2023 NIT Championship title. Along with winning the NIT, McCasland's teams at UNT have led the nation in scoring defense the past two seasons after holding opponents to just 55.8 points per game last season and 55.7 per game the previous year. McCasland played and graduated from Baylor before beginning his coaching career and earning his master's at Texas Tech. He was the director of operations for Tech coach James Dickey from 1999-2001. A winner everywhere he's coached, McCasland earned a NJCAA National Championship in 2007 at Midland College in his first head coaching position and has also led Midwestern State, Arkansas State, and UNT to unprecedented heights.
Now in his 10th season as a NCAA head coach, McCasland has a 215-90 overall record during that time.
McCasland's staff includes assistant coaches Dave Smart, Matt Braeuer, Achoki Moikobu, and Luke Barnwell along with Kellen Buffington (general manager), Andrew Wright (strength & conditioning), Clay Wilson (player development), Jardon Powell (director of administration and operations), Cooper Anderson (operations), Chris Nottingham (video coordinator), and Christian Hosley (assistant strength & conditioning). Braeuer, Moikobu, Wright, Wilson, and Hosley worked with McCasland at UNT.

TECH PROGRAM HISTORY
The Red Raiders are a proud program that has experienced great success in the past decade with five trips to the NCAA Tournament and advancement to the 2018 Elite 8, 2019 National Championship Final, and 2022 Sweet 16. Tech went 18-0 at home during the 2021-22 season for the best record nationally two years ago. Last season, the program ranked No. 21 in average attendance with 13,222 per game. The program is in its 99th season.

FEATURE LINKS
Players explain what toughness is to them
McCasland story – Rising through the ranks
Four Journeys to Big 12 Media Day
Our coaching staff's path to coaching
Define Yourself – player video series

RANKINGS

Texas Tech came into the 2023-24 season unranked AP Preseason Poll and has remained unranked in the Nov. 13 and Nov. 20 polls… The Red Raiders were at No. 25 to begin last season following advancing to the 2022 NCAA Sweet 16
Tech was in the first three polls last season and rose as high as No. 21 before falling out and not returning
Texas Tech is picked 8th in the Big 12 Preseason Poll
Kansas was picked first in the Big 12 Preseason Poll followed by Houston, Texas, Baylor, and TCU to round out the Top-5
Texas Tech did not have a player selected in the preseason awards
Tech's highest AP ranking in program history came at No. 6 in February of 2018 (16th Week Poll)… The 2018-19 team was No. 8 in the final week of the regular season and No. 7 throughout the postseason that led to the 2019 National Championship Final

Faced adversity ?
Fought back ?
Won ?

Game 5: Cinematic Recap ??#TTW | @PlainsCapital pic.twitter.com/X8L4ORIOoB
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) November 24, 2023