Tech, OSU set for Big 12 clash

LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech opens a two-game homestand starting against Oklahoma State at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at United Supermarkets Arena after beginning Big 12 play with a 78-67 win over No. 20 Texas last Saturday in Austin.

The Red Raiders (12-2) are currently on a seven-game winning streak and own an 8-0 record on their home court coming into a week where they will also host Kansas State at 3 p.m. on Saturday at the USA. Pop Isaacs led Tech in scoring for the third straight game and sixth time this season with 21 points in the win over the Longhorns, while Warren Washington and Joe Toussaint had 15 each in the Big 12 opener. Tech quickly moves forward though, knowing the importance of every conference game on the schedule.

"You have to have elite confidence, but your confidence has to be anchored in your everyday competitiveness," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. "What are you going bring every day, how hard are you going to work. What are you investing in that will give a foundation to how you're going to work? It's how aggressive we can be every day in the way we approach getting better. That's the mentality for us right now. You can't consume yourself with how people think about you or consume yourself about what the result was yesterday. You consume yourself with getting after it and do everything you can to beat Oklahoma State. That's what it boils down to for us."

The Cowboys (8-6) took No. 14 Baylor to overtime but fell 75-70 in their opener on Saturday. Brandon Garrison led OSU with 20 points, eight rebounds, and four blocks while Javon Small had 17 points and eight rebounds for OSU against Baylor.

"They really guard the ball and get after it defensively," McCasland said of OSU. "They played a great game against Baylor and have beat us three times in a row. I feel like there's a lot of urgency with this game knowing how well they compete. They are a resilient group and even though they are young, I see them continuing to grow. We will have our hands full. It's an exciting opportunity though to play at home."

GAME INFORMATION
Matchup: Oklahoma State (8-6, 0-1) at Texas Tech (12-2, 1-0)
Location: Lubbock, Texas
Venue: United Supermarkets Arena
Tip: 7:01 p.m., Tuesday, January 9, 2024
TV: ESPN+
TV CALL: Ted Emrich (play-by-play), Bryndon Manzer (analyst)
RADIO (Texas Tech Sports Network): 97.3 Double T FM
RADIO CALL: Geoff Haxton (play-by-play), Chris Level (analyst)

SERIES HISTORY
Oklahoma State leads the all-time series by a 50-24 advantage that includes winning the past three and six of the last seven over the Red Raiders. Texas Tech is 16-12 all-time against OSU in Lubbock coming into this matchup. The series began on January 1, 1937 with the Cowboys earning a 38-19 win in Oklahoma City. OSU won the first eight games ever played in the series and has gone 6-4 against Tech in the past 10 matchups. The two teams will play again this season on Tuesday, March 5 at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater.

RED RAIDER REPORT

Grant McCasland's inaugural roster at Texas Tech has 13 players on it with five returners and eight 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 223-91 overall record with head coaching 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
Isaacs is leading Tech in scoring at 16.2 points per game after his 21 points against Texas and North Alabama following his career-high 28 points against Sam Houston to close out non-conference play… Warren Washington leads Tech with 8.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game, while Toussaint tops the Red Raiders with 4.1 assists per game and is second in scoring with 14.4 points per game… Isaacs leads Tech with 31 total 3-pointers while Chance McMillian has made 30 and leads the reserves with 9.4 points per game
Isaacs was named the Big 12 Player of the Week on Tuesday, January 2 for his 28-point performance against Sam Houston… McMillian was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week on December 4 after his 24-point performance at Butler where he made eight 3-pointers
Tech is currently first in the Big 12 and 13th nationally by shooting 77.7 percent from the free-throw line after going 15-for-21 at Texas… Tech is led by Toussaint who is 52-for-59 (88.1%), Isaacs (50-for-62 – 80.6%), and Darrion Williams (27-for-31 – 87.1%) … The Red Raiders have made 15 or more free throws in 10 of 14 games… As a team, Tech has shot 80% or better from the free-throw line in 7 of 14 games this season
Tech has now made nine or more 3-pointers in 7 of 14 games this season following a season-high 15 against Sam Houston after going 10-for-27 against UTA… The Red Raiders went 7-for-15 from beyond the arc at Texas… The 15 3-pointers against Sam Houston matched the second most in program history and fell just one shy of the program record of 16 3-pointers which has happened three times – most recently against Kansas in 2019… The Red Raiders are now 123-for-340 (36.2%) for the season on 3-pointers and are 4th in the Big 12 with 8.8 3-pointers per game… Three players are shooting over 40 percent on 3s with Walton (51.3), Darrion Williams (40.9), and McMillian (43.5)
Tech has been led in scoring by six different players in its 14 games… Isaacs led Tech in scoring for the sixth time this season with his 21 points at Texas after he also had a team-high 21 against North Alabama to close out non-conference play…Warren Washington was the sixth different leading scorer after he had his game-high 18 points against ORU following Walton scoring his career-high 22 points against Omaha a game after McMillian led the team for the second time this season with his 24 at Butler… Toussaint has led Tech in scoring three times – most recently with his 19 points against UTA
The Red Raiders returned Lamar Washington, Pop Isaacs, D'Maurian Williams, Kerwin Walton, and Robert Jennings who are each in their second season in the program… Tech returned only 25.4 percent of its scoring from last season with eight departures from last year's roster… 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
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
Cambridge suffered a season-ending knee injury in the win over Omaha on December 6 and will miss the remainder of the year… A starter in all eight games before the injury, Cambridge will have the option after the season to file a medical hardship through the Big 12… He averaged 10.5 points and 4.5 rebounds for the Red Raiders and is currently at 983 points and 515 rebounds in his career
Tech's starting lineup for the opening eight games was: Cambridge, Isaacs, Toussaint, Warren Washington, Darrion Williams… Kerwin Walton has started against ORU, Vanderbilt, UTA, and Sam Houston since Cambridge's injury… The starting lineup of Isaacs, Toussaint, Warren Washington, Darrion Williams, and Walton is currently 6-0 together
Toussaint scored in double figures in the first eight games of the season before finishing with nine against ORU for the longest double-figure scoring streak of the season… Jarrett Culver began the 2018-19 season with 13 straight double-figure scoring games for the previous long to start a season… Isaacs has currently scored in double-figures in five straight games for the second longest streak this season
Tech established a season-high with five players in double-figure scoring at Butler with McMillian (24), Isaacs (18), Toussaint (18), Cambridge (16), Warren Washington (10)… The Red Raiders had four score in double figures at Texas in the Big 12 opener with Isaacs (21), Toussaint (15), Warren Washington (15) and McMillian (11)
A season-high 11 players scored in the opener against Texas A&M-Commerce… Tech had nine players score against UNA with three in double-figures
Eight players have made their Tech debut this season, including most recently with Jack Francis and KyeRon Lindsay who played for their first time this season against Omaha
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
Tech is a team comprised of 5th-year seniors (3), seniors (3), sophomores (6), and freshmen (1)
Tech has players from Texas (3), California (3), Arizona (1), Minnesota (1), Nevada (1), New York (1), Oregon (1), Tennessee (1), Finland (1)
Toussaint is only seven points shy of 1,000 in his career after he went for 15 points, five assists, and five rebounds in the win over Texas… He now leads the Red Raiders with 4.1 assists and is second in scoring at 14.3 points per game… Toussaint has 993 points, 426 assists, 153 steals, and 303 rebounds through 146 games in his career… He is currently 10th in the Big 12 with a 2.07 assist-to-turnover ratio, 14th in assists, and 18th in scoring… A Bronx native, he has scored in double figures in a team-best 12 games this season… At the free-throw line, Toussaint is 52-for-59 (88.1 percent) which is third in the Big 12 after he did not shoot a free throw at Texas – it was only the second game this season (ORU also) that he didn't get to the line… Toussaint had a career-high 12 assists and scored 18 points for a double-double in the overtime loss at Butler… Toussaint scored the first four points of Tech's season in the opener against Texas A&M-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… The New Yorker 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 his first career double-double with 11 assists and 11 points against Alabama State back on Nov. 18, 2021, while playing at Iowa… His 146 games are the most experience on this year's Tech roster and the fifth most among all active players in the nation… 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 having six points and three rebounds in 36 minutes of play… Toussaint's 12 games this season in double figures leads the team and now has him with 38 double-figure scoring games in his career… His points-assist double-double at Butler was the first for Tech since John Roberson had 12 points and 12 assists against Iowa State in 2011
Isaacs led Tech with 21 points at Texas on Saturday night and surpassed the 500-point career milestone after going 7-for-15 from the field, 3-for-5 on 3-pointers, and shooting 4-for-4 at the free-throw line… He is now leading the team with 16.2 points per game for the season and is averaging 21.4 points in the past five games… Isaacs is currently 7th in the Big 12 with his 16.2 ppg. and is 9th with 2.1 3-pointers per game… He has scored over 20 points in the past three games and has reached double figures in five straight and 11 overall this season… He was named the Big 12 Player of the Week for the first time in his career after going off for a career-high 28 points in the win over Sam Houston on December 28 before also leading Tech with 21 points on New Year's Day against North Alabama… Against Sam Houston, Isaacs made five 3-pointers for the fourth time in his career – including last season at Texas when he scored 23 points as a freshman against the Longhorns… A sophomore from Las Vegas, Isaacs has now led Tech in scoring seven times this season including with 19 points and a career-high seven assists against Vandy in a game where he also only had one turnover to start the five-game streak of double-figure scoring… He goes into the game against OSU with 514 points and 93 3-pointers made through 39 career games play at Tech and is currently averaging 3.2 assists and a 1.3 assist-to-turnover ratio… In his second season at Tech, Isaacs also had 18 points and four assists at Butler, including hitting the game-tying layup as time expired in regulation to force overtime… Proving to be a clutch player for the Red Raiders, Isaacs also 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… Isaacs now has 27 double-figure scoring performances and 21 games of three or more assists in his career… 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 scored a previous 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
Darrion Williams leads Texas Tech with three double-doubles and comes into the matchup against Oklahoma State averaging 9.4 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.2 steals per game… He contributed seven points, three rebounds, two assists, and two steals in the win at Texas… A sophomore, who transferred from Nevada, Williams has 383 points, 334 rebounds, 123 assists, and 64 steals through 47 career games… Williams just missed his fourth double-double after going for 14 points, nine rebounds, and a season-high six assists against UTA… He recorded his third double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds in the win over ORU… His three double-doubles are the fourth most in the Big 12, behind Hunter Dickinson of Kansas who has nine… Williams had recorded his second double-double of the season and third of his career after going for 13 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Michigan… A Sacramento, California native, Williams approached a double-double against UNI with 10 points and nine rebounds before he fouled out with two minutes remaining in the second game in the Bahamas… Against Michigan, he had a season-high three 3-pointers which was just shy of his career-best of four 3-pointers in a game last season against Arizona State in the NCAA Tournament… He matched his season-high when he went 3-for-3 on 3-pointers against UTA and is currently 18-for-44 (40.9%) for the season from beyond the arc… 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… Williams 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… He 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… 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
Warren Washington leads Tech with 8.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game along with averaging 9.5 points after going off for 15 points and three blocks against the Longhorns… He has made his last 11 shots – dating back to a dunk against Sam Houston midway through the second half and has gone 5-for-5 from the field in the past two games… He's currently shooting 56-for-90 (62.2%) from the field after going 5-for-5 at Texas after he was also 5-for-5 in the final non-conference game against UNA where he filled the stat sheet with 10 points, six rebounds, a career-high five assists, and matched a season-high with four blocked shots… Over the past five games, Washington is averaging 10.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.8 blocks per game… A starter in all 14 games, he is currently sixth in the Big 12 with his 8.0 rebounds per game and fourth with 1.8 blocks per game… Washington transferred to Tech this season from Arizona State and now has 974 points, 681 rebounds, and 137 blocked shots in 123 games in his career… He was two points shy of his second double-double of the season after he had 10 rebounds, eight points, three blocks, and a season-high four assists in the win over UTA … He recorded his first double-double of the season and 10th of his career with a season-high 18 points and 12 rebounds in the win over Oral Robert… His 12 rebounds against ORU was the third time this season he had 12 rebounds in a game, including in the season-opener against Commerce and then against Omaha… Washington recorded a season-high four blocked shots for the first time against Villanova at Battle 4 Atlantis where he also had eight rebounds… The tallest Red Raider on the roster at 7-foot, Washington scored his previous season-high 13 points against Corpus Christi where he also had eight rebounds and three assists… Washington is in his sixth year of college and 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 49 games in double-figure scoring, 17 double-figure rebounding games, and a team-best 10 double-doubles through 123 games 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… Washington has 25 total blocks this season with at least one in every game this season besides the opener
Kerwin Walton has started the past six games and is currently shooting 20-for-39 (51.3%) from beyond the arc this season… The game at Texas was the 100th in his career… On 3-pointers, his percentage is above the national leader Koby Brea of Dayton who is at 50.7 but does not currently meet the minimum… Walton, who is currently averaging 6.8 points per game, made his first start of the season against ORU, finishing with 17 points on 4-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc after he had scored a career-high 22 points by going 6-for-7 on 3-pointers in the win over Omaha… He was held scoreless at Texas after going 0-for-2 on 3-pointers in 28:15 on the court… Last season, Walton started seven games for the Red Raiders and started 21 in his first two years at North Carolina… He has now made 124 3-pointers in his career… In the Bahamas, he hit a 3-pointer to cut UNI's lead to 62-59 at Battle 4 Atlantis and finished with those three points and then played a season-high 15:48 against Michigan… A senior with another year of eligibility remaining after this season, he is in his second season at Texas Tech after playing two years at North Carolina… A Hopkins, Minnesota native, Walton has 530 points through 99 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 previous 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
McMillian has scored in double-figures in five straight games and is currently averaging 9.4 points to lead the Tech reserves after contributing 11 points with two 3-pointers at Texas in his first Big 12 game… His 30 total 3-pointers put him 10th in the Big 12 and he's 11th in the conference with 2.14 3-pointers per game this season… Over the past five games, McMillian is averaging 13.0 points per game and is 13-for-26 (50%) on 3-pointers… He was coming off a game against UNA where he had 16 points on 6-for-10 shooting from the field with three 3-pointers for his sixth double-figure scoring performance of the season and the 36th of his career… McMillian transferred to Tech during the summer after playing three seasons at Grand Canyon and currently has 802 points, 139 3-pointers made, and 161 assists through 105 career games played… McMillian matched a career-high with 24 points at Butler where he established a new career-best with eight 3-pointers and also led the team with seven rebounds in 36 minutes as a reserve… A Vallejo, California native, he earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for the performance at Butler where his eight 3-pointers were just one back of the program record set by Alan Voskuil against Kansas back in 2009… It was the first time a Tech player has made six or more 3-pointers since Toddrick Gotcher made six in 2015 against UT Martin… He also led the Red Raiders in scoring with 17 points in the win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in 25 minutes as a reserve before having nine points with three 3-pointers against Villanova in the first game in the Bahamas… McMillian now has 37 games in double-figure scoring in his career and three games with 20 or more… McMillian secured six rebounds in both games against Commerce and San Jose State to begin his career at Tech for his previous season-high in rebounding before his seven against Butler… In his first year at Tech, he is a senior with another year of eligibility after this year following playing 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… McMillian is 139-for-337 (41.2%) 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 for the first time in his career in that game against SFA 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 scored a season-high eight points against Omaha and has played all 14 games this season as a reserve where he is averaging 3.6 points and 2.1 rebounds per game… At Texas, Washington had four points and one rebound in 7:35… He had matched a previous 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… A sophomore with 46 games of experience, has three games this season with three or more assists and 12 in his career… 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 159 points, 73 assists, and 35 steals through those 46 games in his career
Robert Jennings contributed five points and a rebound in the win at Texas in the Big 12 opener after having six points and seven rebounds in the win over UNA to close out non-conference play… A sophomore forward, Jennings had a career-high eight rebounds and season-best six points in the win over ORU and provided four points and four rebounds against Vandy… In his second season at Tech, Jennings has played in 41 games in his career and is currently at 113 points and 87 rebounds… Against ORU, he secured seven offensive rebounds in the game in just under 10 minutes on the court… A Desoto, Texas native who is listed at 6-foot-7, 230-pounds, Jennings has appeared in 10 games this season and in 40 during his Texas Tech career with four starts last season… He had a career-high eight points in games against Houston Christian, Oklahoma, and Louisville last season… Jennings played in 30 games with those four starts last season as a true freshman where he averaged 2.7 points and 1.9 rebounds per game
Cambridge suffered his season-ending injury with 983 points and 515 rebounds in his career… He was averaging a career-high 10.5 points this season after he scored a season-high 17 points in the win over Michigan in a game where he was 6-for-10 from the field before going for 16 points at Butler on 6-for-11 shooting… He scored in double figures in five of eight games this season and in 45 games through 135 games in his career… Cambridge got into double figure scoring for the second time this season with 11 points against Villanova and was shooting 52.7 percent which was second on the team… He led Tech in scoring for the first time this season with 15 points in the win over San Jose State before his 17 against Michigan… A 6-foot-6 fifth-year senior from Nashville, Tennessee, he averaged 4.5 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 0.9 blocks per game to go along with his scoring… Cambridge began his career with three seasons at Auburn before playing last season at Arizona State… He averaged 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 and is 360-for-821 (43.8%) 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 recorded five double-doubles and has scored 20 or more points in two games
D'Maurian Williams has 816 points and a team-high 146 3-pointers made through 89 games played in his career… He scored two points in four minutes of play against Commerce in the opener but has not scored in another game this season… A senior with another year of eligibility remaining after this season, 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-380 (38.4%) 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 one true freshman on it with Eemeli Yalaho who 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… 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
Two of the newcomers made their debut in the win over Omaha after they were with the Red Raiders last season but not on the active roster… 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… He was 2-for-2 at the free-throw line against Omaha for his first points as a Red Raider and scored four points against UNA by going 2-for-2 from the field in the final three minutes of the game… A Denton, Texas native, Lindsay averaged 6.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game at Georgia 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… Francis scored for the first time in his career by going 2-for-2 on free throws against Sam Houston… Lindsay and Francis both practiced with the Red Raiders throughout the 2023 Spring semester
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

A BRIEF LOOK AT TECH PROGRAM HISTORY
The Red Raiders are a proud program that has experienced great success with 19 overall NCAA Tournament appearances and advancement to the 2018 Elite 8, 2019 National Championship Final, and 2022 Sweet 16. This is the 99th season in program history and includes recent appearances in the NCAA Tournament in 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021, and 2022, a 2019 Big 12 regular-season championship, 25 NBA Draft selections, and over 1,500 wins. Recently in the NBA Draft, selections of Zhaire Smith (R1-P16), Jarrett Culver (R1-P6), and Jahmi'us Ramsey (R2-P43) were made. Mac McClung represented the program by winning the 2023 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. 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.

RANKINGS

Texas Tech came into the 2023-24 season unranked AP Preseason Poll and has remained unranked in the Nov. 13, Nov. 20, Nov. 27, Dec. 4, Dec. 11, Dec. 18, Dec. 25, Jan. 1, and Jan. 8 polls…
Tech is 1-0 against ranked opponents this season
The Red Raiders were at No. 25 to begin the 2022-23 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
Tech was 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

FEATURE LINKS
Devan Cambridge - Bounce(back)Man
Joe Toussaint - On Point
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

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Players Mentioned

Devan Cambridge

Jack Francis

Pop Isaacs

Robert Jennings

Chance McMillian

Joe Toussaint

Kerwin Walton

Lamar Washington

Warren Washington

D'Maurian Williams

Darrion Williams

Eemeli Yalaho