Texas Tech University Athletics
Red Raiders to begin official practice
September 27, 2023 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK, Texas – Another first in the Grant McCasland era is here. First official practice.
A lot has happened since McCasland took over the Texas Tech basketball program on March 31 with him hiring a staff, building a roster, and completing a schedule. Â Everything came into place at the pace it was supposed to while the team was practicing throughout the summer and fall semester. Now it's official though. The Red Raiders will take the court together on Thursday morning building towards their season opener on November 8 against Texas A&M-Commerce. Â
"There's been a great build up to this point," McCasland said. "We've built a great foundation for where we want to go with our work throughout the summer and the beginning of the semester. Now it's time to put together full practices and grow our endurance. I'm looking forward to being on the court longer with our guys and spending time in the film room dissecting what we need to improve on. You don't get those opportunities in the offseason. It's a great time to do a deep-dive into details that will make our program great and give our guys the opportunity to become the best player they can be to win."
The roster that will practice on Thursday has five returners and nine newcomers. The returners are led by Pop Isaacs who averaged 11.5 points in 24 starts as a freshman. He's joined by Lamar Washington, Robert Jennings, D'Maurian Williams and Kerwin Walton who all played roles last season. McCasland went to the transfer portal to build a team with winning experience, bringing in Chance McMillian (Grand Canyon), Darrion Williams (Nevada), Joe Toussaint (West Virginia), Warren Washington (Arizona State), and Devan Cambridge (Arizona State). All transfers played on teams that were in the NCAA Tournament last season. The roster also includes KyeRon Lindsay who played eight games at Georgia last season before transferring to Tech at mid-term, freshmen Eemeli Yahalo and Drew Steffe and sophomore walk-on Jack Francis.
"Winning is our only expectation," Toussaint said. "That's all we care about. We are here to win. We practice to win. That's everything for everyone in our program."
Texas Tech will have 41 days from the first official practice to game day. That time includes playing Texas A&M in an exhibition game on Sunday, October 29 in Denton, but most of it will be spent in the Womble Practice Facility and in the United Supermarkets Arena working hard to build toward the year continue building on what has been in motion since the welcoming ceremony back on March 31.
"We've had a remarkable summer with our team together," McCasland said. "My favorite part of this journey so far is when we got the full staff and roster complete and we were all together on the court. There's a real energy with people believing and having high expectations for Red Raider basketball. You want to be a part of it. It's been a joy to continue to grow and the start to the season."
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A lot has happened since McCasland took over the Texas Tech basketball program on March 31 with him hiring a staff, building a roster, and completing a schedule. Â Everything came into place at the pace it was supposed to while the team was practicing throughout the summer and fall semester. Now it's official though. The Red Raiders will take the court together on Thursday morning building towards their season opener on November 8 against Texas A&M-Commerce. Â
"There's been a great build up to this point," McCasland said. "We've built a great foundation for where we want to go with our work throughout the summer and the beginning of the semester. Now it's time to put together full practices and grow our endurance. I'm looking forward to being on the court longer with our guys and spending time in the film room dissecting what we need to improve on. You don't get those opportunities in the offseason. It's a great time to do a deep-dive into details that will make our program great and give our guys the opportunity to become the best player they can be to win."
The roster that will practice on Thursday has five returners and nine newcomers. The returners are led by Pop Isaacs who averaged 11.5 points in 24 starts as a freshman. He's joined by Lamar Washington, Robert Jennings, D'Maurian Williams and Kerwin Walton who all played roles last season. McCasland went to the transfer portal to build a team with winning experience, bringing in Chance McMillian (Grand Canyon), Darrion Williams (Nevada), Joe Toussaint (West Virginia), Warren Washington (Arizona State), and Devan Cambridge (Arizona State). All transfers played on teams that were in the NCAA Tournament last season. The roster also includes KyeRon Lindsay who played eight games at Georgia last season before transferring to Tech at mid-term, freshmen Eemeli Yahalo and Drew Steffe and sophomore walk-on Jack Francis.
"Winning is our only expectation," Toussaint said. "That's all we care about. We are here to win. We practice to win. That's everything for everyone in our program."
Texas Tech will have 41 days from the first official practice to game day. That time includes playing Texas A&M in an exhibition game on Sunday, October 29 in Denton, but most of it will be spent in the Womble Practice Facility and in the United Supermarkets Arena working hard to build toward the year continue building on what has been in motion since the welcoming ceremony back on March 31.
"We've had a remarkable summer with our team together," McCasland said. "My favorite part of this journey so far is when we got the full staff and roster complete and we were all together on the court. There's a real energy with people believing and having high expectations for Red Raider basketball. You want to be a part of it. It's been a joy to continue to grow and the start to the season."
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