Red Raiders, Longhorns to renew rivalry

LUBBOCK, Texas – A rivalry that was first played on the basketball court between Texas Tech and Texas on December 15, 1939, is set for its 157th edition but also with its continuance in limbo.

Texas Tech comes into the last scheduled game of the series with a 14-1 record at home this season and will be looking to sweep its regular-season series against Texas for the fourth time in six seasons when it hosts the Longhorns at 8 p.m. on Tuesday at United Supermarkets Arena. The Red Raiders (19-8, 8-6 Big 12) earned a 78-67 win over the Longhorns (17-10, 6-8 Big 12) in the first meeting on January 6 with Pop Isaacs going off for 21 points and Joe Toussaint adding 15 points and six assists in Austin. In Lubbock, Texas Tech has won three straight over the Longhorns and 8-of-10 games dating back to 2014.

"I'm excited about tomorrow night, really thrilled to be back in the USA," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. "Our students are camping out. What a great time to be in Lubbock and at Texas Tech. There's a different edge to playing Texas, especially with them going to the SEC and you don't know when you'll get another opportunity to play again. I do think there is a deep sense of appreciation for the rivalry and the opportunity to compete."

Tech and Texas are both looking to bounce back from weekend losses after the Red Raiders took a 75-61 defeat against UCF in Orlando, Florida, while the Longhorns are coming off an 86-67 loss at No. 9 Kansas. Darrion Williams led Tech with his eighth double-double of the season after going for 19 points and 11 rebounds in the loss to the Knights, while Kerwin Walton hit four 3-pointers and scored 18 points. The Red Raiders are 5-2 following losses this season, including the 82-81 comeback win over TCU last Tuesday for the 14th home victory of the season.

Though limited, tickets for the final two Tech home games do remain available at this link.

GAME INFORMATION
Matchup: Texas (17-10, 6-8 Big 12) at Texas Tech (19-8, 8-6 Big 12)
Location: Lubbock, Texas
Venue: United Supermarkets Arena (15,098)
Tip: 8:05 p.m., Tuesday, February 27, 2024
TV: ESPN
TV CALL: Rich Hollenberg (play-by-play), Fran Fraschilla (analyst)

Isaacs leads the Red Raiders with 15.9 points per game and 59 total 3-pointers, while Toussaint is averaging 12.2 points per game and leads Tech with 4.2 assists. Williams is second in the conference in double-doubles and is averaging 10.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game. He was named the Associated Press National Player of the Week last Tuesday after his performances against Kansas and Iowa State. Isaacs is currently sixth in the Big 12 in scoring while Williams and Warren Washington are tied for third in the Big 12 with 7.4 rebounds per game. Toussaint is fourth in the Big 12 in free-throw percentage at 86.5% (96-for-111). Chance McMillian leads the Tech reserves with 10.1 points per game and is third on the team with 50 total 3-pointers made but is a game-time decision with a sore hip that had him out last Saturday at UCF. It was the first game he missed this season. Washington returned to the starting lineup at UCF after missing the previous two games against Iowa State and TCU. He is averaging 9.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, and a team-best 1.5 blocks per game. Walton falls just shy of the NCAA minimum of 2.5 makes per game to be the national leader on 3-pointers but comes into the game above the national mark by shooting 53-for-107 (49.5%). He is fourth among all active NCAA players by shooting 42.9 percent in his career on 3-pointers where he is now 157-for-366. Toussaint is currently third among all active NCAA players with 159 games played and comes into this week with 482 total assists to go along with his team-best 1,122 points in his career.

"You can feel it with our team," McCasland said. "We are kind of getting to that point where we are competing, but we aren't at our best… I do sense that our team is trying to play through some pretty difficult times, physically. The shoulder of the season with the limited amount of guys that we are playing, you can kind of feel the toll on them. I think the fight that it takes to win is really important to me. That's the edge that we have to get back to. Where everyone feels connected to winning."

The Longhorns are 3-5 on the road this season following their loss at Kansas where they got down 45-25 at halftime. Tyrese Hunter and Dillon Mitchell led UT with 12 points each while Ithiel Horton had 10 as a reserve in the loss. Dillon Disu and Max Abmas lead the Longhorns with 16.5 points per game this season with Abmas also topping the team with 117 assists. Hunter has 111 total assists and is scoring 11.0 points per game. Abmas, who is third in the Big 12 in scoring, was limited to five points and had four turnovers against the Jayhawks. In the first matchup against Tech, Hunter led Texas with 20 points while Abmas had 18 points, five assists, and four turnovers. The Red Raiders forced 14 turnovers by the Longhorns in that game and saw Texas shoot just 6-for-18 on 3-pointers. Mitchell had 16 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double in the loss while Disu was just coming back from an injury and had nine points in 17 minutes as a reserve. "He's a great offensive player who's got a good feel for the game," said McCasland of Disu. "The more he's involved in the offense the more difficult it is to defend them. Disu has been tremendous in Big12 play." A transfer from Oral Roberts, Abmas is the NCAA active scoring leader with 3,007 career points and a 20.0 scoring average in his career. He played at ORU with Kevin Obanor who transferred and played two seasons at Tech. The Longhorns will host Oklahoma State on Saturday before finishing off the regular season with a road game at Baylor next Monday and then hosting Oklahoma on Saturday, March 9 at Moody Center.

Tech fell out of the national rankings on Monday after being No. 23 in the Associated Press Top 25 and USA TODAY Coaches Poll last week. Texas is also unranked. The Red Raiders follow their matchup against the Longhorns with a trip to play at West Virginia on Saturday before playing at Oklahoma State on Tuesday, March 5 and hosting Baylor on Saturday, March 9 in the regular-season finale in Lubbock. With two weeks and only four regular-season games remaining, Tech is currently tied for fourth in the Big 12 standings with its 8-6 conference record along with TCU and Baylor. Houston leads the Big 12 with an 11-3 record after its overtime win over Baylor and is followed by Iowa State at 9-4 and Kansas which improved to 9-5 with its win over the Longhorns.

In the Texas Tech-Texas series, the Red Raiders have won 7 of the last 10 and 13-of-20 after going on the road and knocking off the Longhorns in this season's Big 12 opener. The Red Raiders have won three straight over the Longhorns in Lubbock (37-29 all-time), including a 74-67 win over Texas last season on Feb. 13, 2023 when the Longhorns were ranked No. 6 nationally. The first-ever matchups in the series came in December 1939 with Texas winning the first three games in the series that is led 89-67 by the Longhorns coming into Tuesday's game.

"The thing I love about being here at Texas Tech, we haven't court stormed one game since we've been here and we've beaten some pretty good teams," McCasland said. "I go into the student section because I want them to be a part of this. Then we let the team exit the court along with their staff. I think our people do an awesome job with that. They keep everybody from getting on the court and our students are respectful. When it ends, we have the students come join the team and then sing the fight song. It's awesome."

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 for six season, culminating in winning the 2023 NIT Championship… He is currently in his 10th season as an NCAA head coach and has a 230-97 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… McCasland matched Bob Knight for the best 20-game start (16-4) for a Tech head coach… Knight finished that 2001-02 season with a 23-9 overall record… With one more win, McCasland would join Mark Adams and Knight as the only two coaches in program history with 20-plus wins in their first seasons
Texas Tech leads the Big 12 and is now 12th nationally with a 77.5 percentage at the free-throw line after going 13-for-20 (65.0%) at UCF, 24-for-28 (85.7%) against TCU, 18-for-22 (81.8%) at Iowa State in the past three games… Tech has shot over 80 percent at the line in 13-of-27 games this season… Tech has made 10 or more free throws in 25 of 27 games… The 24 makes against TCU matched a season-high the team also had in the opener against Texas A&M-Commerce… The program record is 75.6 percent for a season – coming in 2004-05
Texas Tech is currently 14-1 at home, 3-1 in neutral-court games, and 2-6 in true road games with road wins at No. 11 Oklahoma and No. 20 Texas on January 6 to begin Big 12 play… For the program, the 2022-23 team went 18-0 at home to establish the best home record in program history
Tech has made 9 or more 3-pointers in 13 of 27 games this season after going 8-for-28 (28.6%) at UCF… The Red Raiders were 14-for-28 at TCU in the first matchup against the Horned Frogs for their best 3-point shooting in Big 12 play so far… Tech made 10 3-pointers in its win over Kansas but has made 8 or less in the last three games… The Red Raiders had a season-high 15 against Sam Houston in non-conference play… 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 232-for-638 (36.4%) for the season on 3-pointers which ranks third in the Big 12… Tech is third in the Big 12 by making 8.6 3-pointers per game this season
Tech is third in the Big 12 with only 10.9 turnovers per game after having nine against TCU but then 14 at UCF… The fewest turnovers this season was only four in the win over Oklahoma State… Tech has had less than 10 turnovers in 12 games this season, including only six in the win over BYU and then eight against KU… The most turnovers came at Iowa State with 16
Tech has held three Big 12 opponents below 60 points this season with its 60-59 win over Kansas State, 66-59 home win over UCF, and the 79-50 victory over Kansas… Tech is 14-0 when holding opponents under 70 points this season
Tech is now 2-3 record against first-year Big 12 opponents with wins over UCF and BYU along with losses to Houston, Cincinnati, and at UCF
Historically, the 20-game start with a 16-4 record was the best for the program since starting the 2003-04 season with the same record… The 1995-96 team was 19-1 for the best start and went 30-2 overall… The James Dickey team was 30-1 before falling to Georgetown in the 1996 Sweet 16 in Atlanta
Comebacks: Texas Tech has now won four games when trailing by double digits in the second half of games… The biggest comeback came after it trailed by as many as 17 points against BYU and was down 48-32 at halftime before storming back for the win… The comeback followed the team fighting back from an 11-point halftime deficit against Kansas State for a win and a nine-point hole in the second half at Oklahoma to give them three second-half comebacks in Big 12 play where they were down at least nine points… In non-conference play in the Bahamas, Tech trailed by 15 against Northern Iowa before coming back for a win… The 16-point halftime comeback against BYU was the largest for the program since coming back from a 17-point halftime deficit (and as many as 23 points) against Iowa State last season… This season, Tech trailed UNI by as much as 15, Kansas State by 12, BYU by 17, and were down 10 against TCU at home in games the Red Raiders have fought back and won
Tech is 3-0 in one-point decisions with the 82-81 win over TCU, earning an 85-84 win at Oklahoma, and the 60-59 win over K-State on Jan. 13 which was its first one-point win of the season… The Red Raiders are 4-1 in games decided by five points or less with the only loss coming in a 75-72 loss to Cincinnati at home
In Big 12 weekly awards, McMillian was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for the second time this season after his 27 points at Oklahoma… He earned the honor for the first time on December 4 after his 24-point performance at Butler where he made eight 3-pointers… Isaacs was named the Big 12 Player of the Week on January 2 for his 28-point performance against Sam Houston
Tech has now been led in scoring by seven different players in its 27 games after Williams had 13 points and led the team for the first time against UCF before his 30-point performance against Kansas… Williams led Tech for the third time this season with 19 points at UCF last Saturday… Toussaint led Tech at Iowa State with 16 – the sixth time he's been the team's best scorer… Isaacs led the team for the 11th time this season with his 19 points in the home win over TCU… Isaacs had a streak of four straight game-high scoring games before Toussaint's team-high 12 points against K-State… McMillian has led Tech in scoring in three games after his career-high 27 points at Oklahoma… He also led Tech with 24 points at Butler and 17 points in the win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi… Warren Washington was the sixth different leading scorer after he had his game-high 18 points against Oral Roberts in non-conference play following Walton scoring his career-high 22 points against Omaha a game
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 has had only three different starting lineups this season… The starting lineup for the opening eight games was: Cambridge, Isaacs, Toussaint, Warren Washington, Darrion Williams… Kerwin Walton has started since Cambridge's injury, making his first start this season against Vanderbilt… The starting lineup of Isaacs, Toussaint, Warren Washington, Darrion Williams, and Walton is currently 12-4 together with their only losses coming in Big 12 road games at Houston and TCU before the home defeat to Cincinnati… Robert Jennings started in place of Warren Washington at Baylor due to illness and the two games against Iowa State and TCU with his foot injury
Toussaint scored in double figures in the first eight games of the season before finishing with nine points against ORU for his 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
Showing team balance, Tech matched a season-best with five players in double-figures against Oklahoma State with Isaacs (24), Washington (16), Walton (16), Williams (14), Toussaint (13) - it was the first time all five starters scored in double figures… Tech established a season-high with five players in double-figure scoring for the first time at Butler with McMillian (24), Isaacs (18), Toussaint (18), Cambridge (16), Warren Washington (10)… The Red Raiders had four score in double figures at Oklahoma, at Texas, against K-State, at Baylor, UCF, and at home against TCU with Isaacs (19), Toussaint (14), Williams (14), Walton (14)
A season-high 11 players scored in the opener against Texas A&M-Commerce… Tech had eight players score against K-State
Eight players have made their Texas 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, followed by Chance McMillian (April 25, 2023), Warren Washington (May 15, 2023), Eemeli Yalaho (May 23, 2023), Devan Cambridge (July 6, 2023), Joe Toussaint (July 6, 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)
Darrion Williams was named the Associated Press National Player of the Week on February 20 for his historic performance against Kansas where he was 12-for-12 from the field, 4-for-4 on 3-pointers and added 11 rebounds in the 79-50 win on February 12… He is now coming off his eighth double-double of the season and his sixth straight game in double-figure scoring after leading Tech with 19 points and 11 rebounds at UCF where he played all 40 minutes for the first time this season… Williams is averaging 10.8 points and 7.4 rebounds per game… He is third in the Big 12 with 200 total rebounds and tied with Washington for third with his season rebounding average… A sophomore from Sacramento, California who transferred from Nevada, Williams also contributed 14 points and seven rebounds in the win over TCU last Tuesday to continue the double-figure scoring streak that started with 17 points at Baylor… He recorded his third straight double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds at Iowa State… The double-double at Iowa State was his seventh of the season and eighth of his career… He currently ranks second in the Big 12 with his eight double-doubles… Williams has started all 27 games this season and 57 of the 60 in his career after playing his freshman season at Nevada before becoming McCasland's first signee… He has now scored in double figures in 14 games this season and has led the Red Raiders in scoring in three games after not leading the team in scoring production in the first 22 games… His 12-for-12 shooting performance is the best in Texas Tech program history and tied the Big 12 record with Oklahoma State's Marshall Moses who was 12-for-12 in a game at Tulsa in 2010… He was only three makes away from the NCAA record from Clifford Rozier who was 15-for-15 for Louisville in 1983… He opened the game at Iowa State with two makes, pushing his streak to 15 straight makes after he also made his last shot attempt in the win against UCF before the 12-for-12 game against KU… For the Tech program, Greg Lowery had the previous best with an 11-for-11 performance against Rice in 1970… Jarrett Culver was 12-for-13 against ACU in 2018 for the most recent 12-make game… Williams is shooting 100-for-210 (47.6%) from the field… His four 3-pointers against KU matched a career-high that he had last season while playing for Nevada in the NCAA Tournament against Arizona State… Williams had his fifth double-double of the season when he led Tech in scoring with 13 points and 13 rebounds in the first matchup against UCF… His 13 points against UCF at home were the first time he's led the Red Raiders in scoring this season … He had scored in single digits in five straight games before his 17 points at Baylor… At Baylor, he went 6-for-9 from the field, 2-for-3 on 3-pointers, and 3-of-4 at the free-throw line… At 6-foot-6, he had a career-high 14 rebounds against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in non-conference play and also had 11 rebounds at OU and 10 in the home win over Oklahoma State… Going into his 61st career game, Williams has 544 points, 440 rebounds, 157 assists, and 75 steals… He recorded his fourth double-double of the season after going for 14 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists in the win over Oklahoma State after his third double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds in the win over ORU… 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… 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 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 season-opening win over Commerce… 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… McCasland's first signee, 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 last season while playing for Nevada and had a previous-best of 13 rebounds in his first-ever double-double against New Mexico… 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… In home games this season, Williams is averaging 12.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per game… His eight double-doubles are the most in a single-season for Tech since Zach Smith also had eight in the 2016-17 season… The single-season record is 20 which was set by Tony Battie in 1996-97
Pop Isaacs scored 21 points with three 3-pointers in the first win over Texas this season and is coming off eight points at UCF after he led Tech with 19 points against TCU last Tuesday where he was 11-for-12 at the free-throw line for the 11th game this season he's led the team in scoring… He is currently fifth in the Big 12 with 16.0 points per conference game and sixth at 15.9 ppg. overall for the season… Along with his scoring, Isaacs is averaging 3.6 assists per game with 15 games this season of four or more following four against TCU… Isaacs had been limited to single-digit scoring in the previous three games before his 19 against TCU at home following a streak of 13 straight games in double-figures… The 13-game scoring streak started with 19 points against Vanderbilt on December 16, 2023, in Fort Worth and had seven games of 20-plus point performances in it and was capped with 11 points at Baylor – before 7 against UCF and Kansas… In the first matchup against TCU, he scored 25 points and had a career-high nine assists in a game in Fort Worth where he was on the court for all but 31 seconds… At the free-throw line, he's currently 107-for-128 (83.6%) which ranks 10th in the Big 12… His career percentage is at 85.2% with him going 150-for-176 at the line in his two seasons… He also has a 1.42 assist-to-turnover ratio which is 20th in the Big 12… The 13-game streak of double-figure scoring is his career best after having a streak of seven last season as a freshman… For the program, Jarrett Culver had two streaks in his sophomore season – one of 13 games before finishing the year with 24 straight double-figure scoring performances…Isaacs currently has scored in double figures in 20 games this season and in 36 of his 52 career games played… Isaacs went off for 24 points with four 3-pointers in the win over Oklahoma State for his fourth straight game with 20 points or more points before scoring 10 points in the win over K-State to break that 20+ streak… A starter in all 27 games, he has 19 games with three assists or more with three at Iowa State before his four against TCU… He also led Tech with 21 points at Texas in its Big 12 opener where he 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… A sophomore from Las Vegas, Isaacs was named the Big 12 Player of the Week for the first time in his career after going off for his previous 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 to conclude non-conference play… 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… 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… 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… Isaacs has led the Red Raiders in scoring 11 times this season and goes into the game against the Longhorns with 717 points and 121 3-pointers made
Joe Toussaint led Tech with 16 points and four assists at Iowa State after going 3-for-4 on 3-pointers before adding 14 points and a team-high seven assists in the win over TCU… He was limited to three points and three assists at UCF and is now averaging 12.2 points, 4.2 assists, and 1.2 steals per game this season… A fifth-year senior from the Bronx, he has 1,122 points, 482 assists, and 172 steals in his career and is fourth among all active NCAA players with 159 games played… Toussaint has led Tech in scoring six times this season with 18 points and six assists at Baylor for his previous high-scoring game before ISU… A starter in all 27 games, he has 19 double-figure scoring performances this season and 45 in his career… He is currently 8th in the Big 12 with a 2.07 assist-to-turnover ratio with only one turnover against UCF, TCU, Iowa State and KU in the past four games… Against TCU on Jan. 30, Toussaint had a Big 12-high nine assists… A clutch player for the Red Raiders, Toussaint made a tough inside shot and added a free throw with 30 seconds remaining for the game-winning points against K-State in a game where he led the Red Raiders in scoring with 12 points… Toussaint reached the 1,000-point milestone against Oklahoma State where he finished with 13 points… Tech's team leader with 33.3 minutes per game, Toussaint is 96-for-111 (86.5%) at the free-throw line which is fourth in the Big 12 after he went 5-for-5 against TCU and 1-for-2 at UCF last week… He is also 10th in the Big 12 with 114 total assists after his 18th game with three or more this season and 78th in his career coming in Orlando… Toussaint has scored in double figures in 19 of 27 games this season, including the first eight of the season and then the first three Big 12 games… Toussaint had a career-high 12 assists and scored 18 points for his first double-double of the season in the overtime loss at Butler in the Big 12-Big East Battle… To begin the season, he 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 a career-high 12 free throws and has now scored 20 or more four times in his career (two times this season)… 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… Toussaint played at WVU last season where he averaged 9.4 points and had 89 assists… In the preseason, 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 19 games this season in double figures is only behind Isaacs and now has him with 45 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… In the first meeting against Texas, Toussaint had 15 points, six assists, one steal, and five rebounds
Warren Washington provided 15 points, three blocks, and three rebounds in the win over the Longhorns in Austin after going 5-for-5 from the field and making 5-of-8 at the free-throw line… He returned to the starting lineup last Saturday in Orlando after he had missed the previous two games against TCU and at Iowa State with a foot injury… Washington was limited to 12:34 of playing time and finished with two rebounds and did not score… Before the injury, he went for 11 points, six rebounds, and had one blocked shot in the win over Kansas to take his season… He is now averaging 9.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game… Washington missed his first game of the season at Baylor due to illness but returned with force, going for 11 rebounds, 10 points, and two blocked shots in the home win over UCF… Washington has started 24 of 27 games for Tech this season… He currently is third in the Big 12 with 1.5 blocks per conference game and is tied for third with Williams in rebounding within the conference… A 7-foot senior from California, Washington produced a season-high 19 points and added nine rebounds in the win over BYU… He has led Tech in rebounding 11 times… Washington went for 11 points and eight rebounds in the win over K-State, reaching the 1,000-point career milestone and boosting his season average to 10.0 ppg. for the first time this season… He had scored in double-figures for a season-best four straight games before falling four short in Houston but has now had 12 double-figures scoring performances this season and 56 in his career… Washington now has 1,078 points, 747 rebounds, and 149 blocked shots in 133 games played… The tallest Red Raider on the roster, he had made 11 straight shots – dating back to a dunk against Sam Houston midway through the second half before going 5-for-5 from the field in the games against North Alabama and Texas – before shooting 7-for-10 against Oklahoma State and going 5-for-8 against K-State… He's currently shooting 101-for-163 (62.0%) from the field for the season and 418-for-711 (58.8%) for his career… McCasland's third signee, 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 Roberts… His 12 rebounds against ORU were 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… In his sixth year of college, he 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 18 double-figure rebounding games, and a team-best 11 double-doubles through those 133 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 149 career blocks with at least one in every game this season except against Commerce, K-State, TCU, Cincinnati, and at UCF – he had a career-high five blocks last season against San Diego and had a season-best four blocks against North Alabama and Villanova
Kerwin Walton leads the nation by shooting 49.5 percent on 3-pointers and is seventh in the conference with 53 total 3s coming into the matchup against Texas… He scored 18 points at UCF after going 4-for-9 on 3-pointers for his eighth game this season with three or more 3-pointers and his sixth game with four or more… A senior who is in his second season at Tech after playing two at North Carolina, Walton is averaging 8.8 points per game this season after he also went for 14 points with three 3-pointers against TCU last Tuesday in Lubbock… He is now averaging 2.4 3-pointers per Big 12 game which ranks sixth best in the conference… He had 12 points against UCF in the first matchup in Lubbock after going 4-for-5 on 3-pointers before making two 3s against Kansas and finishing with eight points in the win… He is now 53-for-107 (49.5%) on 3-pointers for the season and 157-for-366 (42.9%) for his career… A starter in the past 19 games, he went 6-for-9 on 3-pointers and led Tech with 18 points at Houston for his top Big 12 performance this season… In the win over Oklahoma State, he was 7-for-8 from the field and is shooting 53.0 percent overall this season… A senior from Hopkins, Minnesota, he has played in 113 career games where he has scored 670 points for his career… Walton 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 as a reserve by going 6-for-7 on 3-pointers in the win over Omaha… Last season, Walton started seven games for the Red Raiders after he had started 21 in his first two years at North Carolina… 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… 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 at UNC 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… Walton has made at least one 3-pointer in 13 straight games and in 21 games this season… That streak started after he was 0-for-2 against the Longhorns in the first matchup
Chance McMillian missed his first game of the season with a sore hip at UCF last Saturday… He is listed as a game-time decision for Tuesday's game against Texas… McMillian scored 11 points with two 3-pointers in the first game against the Longhorns this season… He is only 67 points away from 1,000 in his career after he had nine points against TCU and 10 at Iowa State in the past two games… He is currently averaging 10.1 points per game this season and is 50-for-129 (38.8%) on 3-pointers… In his fourth season of college basketball, but first at Tech, he is now averaging 10.9 points per game in Big 12 play where he is currently 22-for-64 (34.4%) on 3-pointers… A Vallejo, California native, he is currently 9th in the Big 12 with his 50 total 3-pointers and is averaging 1.7 3s per game… McMillian was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for the second time this season after went off for a career-high 27 points at Oklahoma where he was 6-for-8 on 3-pointers and also added eight rebounds to earn the award… It was the fourth game in his career with 20-plus points and the third time this season he's led Tech in scoring… A 6-foot-3, senior guard, McMillian leads the Tech reserves with 10.1 points per game for the season after also contributing 14 points against BYU… Averaging 26.8 minutes per game as the team's sixth man, McMillian scored a previous season-high 24 points with eight 3-pointers in the road game at Butler… A prolific scorer, he currently has 12 games in double-figures scoring this season and in 42 during his career… His six 3-pointers at OU, five at TCU, and three at Baylor gives him nine games this season with three or more 3-pointers… McMillian transferred to Tech during the summer after playing three seasons at Grand Canyon and currently has 159 3-pointers made and 174 assists through 117 career games played… McMillian matched a previous 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… In non-conference play, he earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for the first time with a 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… 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 158-for-393 (40.2%) 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 24 points for the first time in his career in that game against SFA on Feb. 24, 2023… McMillian joins former Texas Tech players Bryson Williams (2021-22), Jahmi'us Ramsey (2019-20), John Roberson (2007-08), and Rayford Young (1996-97) who have been named Big 12 Newcomer of the Week two times in a season… No Red Raider has been three times… McMillian is coming off a season at Grand Canyon where he averaged 10.9 points per game and had 78 assists… His 159 career 3-pointers are the most on the Tech roster and he is currently at 933 points
Robert Jennings provided five points and four rebounds at UCF in a game where he got into early foul trouble and fouled out for the first time this season… A Desoto, Texas native, Jennings contributed five points and a rebound in 11:34 of playing time as a reserve in the first matchup against the Longhorns in Austin… He had scored in double figures for the second time this season with 13 points at Iowa State after going 4-for-7 from the field and 5-for-7 at the free-throw line… He started the game against the Cyclones in place of Washington and also started last Tuesday against TCU… Jennings, who was a back in a reserve role at UCF, has played in 24 games this season with three starts… A sophomore forward, he went for eight points and four rebounds in the win over Kansas after providing six points and three rebounds in the win over UCF… He scored a career-high 14 points on 7-for-10 shooting against Cincinnati along with adding six rebounds… Jennings had two points and four rebounds in his first start of the season at Baylor and is coming off a start against TCU where he had five rebounds and two points… He is now averaging 3.8 points and 2.3 rebounds per game in those 24 games played… A 6-foot-7 sophomore forward, Jennings produced a career-high eight rebounds and previous season-best six points in the win over ORU… Against ORU, he secured seven offensive rebounds in the game in just under 10 minutes on the court… Listed at 6-foot-7, 230-pounds, Jennings started four games last season as a true freshman… He had a previous 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… He comes into the home game against the Longhorns with 171 points and 123 rebounds through 54 games played in his Texas Tech career
Lamar Washington scored a season-high eight points against Omaha and has played 24 games this season where he is averaging 2.4 points, 0.7 assists, and 1.5 rebounds per game… At Texas, Washington had four points and one rebound in 7:35 and contributed two points in the one-point win over K-State and two against BYU… 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 56 games of experience, he 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 165 points, 91 rebounds, 74 assists, and 37 steals through his 56 career games
Devan 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
Tech's roster has one true freshman on it with Eemeli Yalaho who is coming off a career-high eight points at UCF where he went 3-for-3 from the field with two 3-pointers… He came into the game against UCF having scored three points total… Yalaho, who has now played in 11 games this season, scored two points in six minutes of play in the opener against Commerce to make his collegiate debut and played in his first Big 12 game against Cincinnati and scored his first conference point with a free throw at Baylor… 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 and has currently played in nine games… Yalaho did not play in the first matchup against the Longhorns this season
KyeRon Lindsay recorded a season-high eight points against TCU after going 4-for-9 from the field after he scored six points at Iowa State… In Orlando, he played only 31 seconds and did not score… A transfer at midterm in December 2022, Lindsay began his career at the University of Georgia where he started eight games and played in 10 as a true freshman… This season, Lindsay has played in eight games, including seeing playing time against Kansas where he had two points… 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… Lindsay played in his first Big 12 game at Baylor, scoring two points and having one rebound in 11:38 on the court… He is currently averaging 3.0 points per game and did not play in the first matchup against the Longhorns this season
D'Maurian Williams has 816 points and 146 3-pointers made through 91 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
Jack Francis is a sophomore walk-on 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 and had two rebounds and an assist against Kansas… Francis has played in four games this season
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

RECENT PROGRAM NOTES
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 and 2024 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 dropped out of the national rankings on Monday after being at No. 23 last week and split with a win over TCU and a loss at UCF
Tech had spent the previous week unranked
At No. 23 nationally (Feb. 5 polls), Texas Tech was ranked for the fourth straight week after entering in the Week 11 poll at No. 25 in the AP Top 25 and USA TODAY Coaches Poll (January 15, 2024)… Tech was at No. 15 (Jan. 29) for its highest ranking of the season
Tech came into the 2023-24 season unranked AP Preseason Poll and had 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 received votes for the first time this season with 62 in the January 8 poll after the Texas win
Tech is now 4-4 against ranked opponents this season with wins over No. 6 Kansas, No. 11 Oklahoma, No. 20 BYU and (No. 20) Texas (*ranking at the time of game)… The losses came at No. 5 Houston, No. 13 Baylor, No. 25 TCU, and No. 10 Iowa State
The No. 15 national ranking was the highest since the program was No. 12 in the AP Top 25 at the end of the 2022 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 2024 Big 12 Preseason Poll
Kansas was picked first in the 2024 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 2024 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
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

RED RAIDER 20-WIN SEASONS (16 in 98 seasons)
1939-40: 21-7 - Berl Huffman
1948-49: 21-9 - Polk Robison
1953-54: 21-5 - Polk Robison
1975-76: 25-6 - Gerald Meyers
1976-77: 20-9 - Gerald Meyers
1984-85: 23-8 - Gerald Meyers
1994-95: 20-10 - James Dickey
1995-96: 30-2 - James Dickey
2001-02: 23-9 - Bob Knight
2002-03: 22-13 - Bob Knight
2003-04: 23-11 - Bob Knight
2004-05: 22-11 - Bob Knight
2006-07: 21-13 - Bob Knight
2017-18: 27-10 - Chris Beard
2018-19: 31-7 - Chris Beard (most wins in a season)
2021-22: 27-10 - Mark Adams

Red Raiders, Longhorns to renew rivalry

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Devan Cambridge

Jack Francis

Pop Isaacs

Robert Jennings

Chance McMillian

Kevin Obanor

Joe Toussaint

Kerwin Walton

Lamar Washington

Warren Washington

D'Maurian Williams

Darrion Williams

Eemeli Yalaho

Texas Tech University Athletics

Red Raiders, Longhorns to renew rivalry

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Devan Cambridge

Jack Francis

Pop Isaacs

Robert Jennings

Chance McMillian

Kevin Obanor

Joe Toussaint

Kerwin Walton

Lamar Washington

Warren Washington

D'Maurian Williams

Darrion Williams

Eemeli Yalaho

Related Videos