Texas Tech Athletics
No. 6 Houston
No. 22 Tech, No. 6 Houston set for Big 12 clash
January 31, 2025 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK – No. 22 Texas Tech takes a five-game winning streak and 4-0 road record into a game against one of the top teams in the nation on Saturday with a tough test against No. 6 Houston at 5 p.m. in the Fertitta Center. The matchup between two of the hottest teams in the Big 12 and country will be broadcast on ESPN2 while the Texas Tech Sports Network radio call can be heard locally on Double T 97.3, and on the Varsity app.
"What you've got to respect in this day and time when you look at their roster is that they have guys who have stayed in their program," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said of Houston which is on an 11-game winning streak. "That is the 'X Factor' in having elite teams every year. It's about retaining your roster and guys who understand winning. They've been able to get great talent and kept them and allowed them to grow within their system."
The Red Raiders (16-4, 7-2 Big 12) went 7-1 during the month of January, are on a five-game winning streak and have an unblemished road record while the Cougars (17-3, 9-0 Big 12) are the only unbeaten team remaining in Big 12 play. A win over Houston would give Texas Tech its best 10-game start to a Big 12 season in program history while also its first ranked win of the season after previous losses to Texas A&M and Iowa State in the only other games against ranked opponents. "The thing about us on the road is you get an opportunity to hang in there with each other in tough environments," McCasland said. "This will be about as tough as it gets. The timeouts. The huddles, in between plays, the belief that you've got to have in each other and the way you communicate that is so important. Our team has done that and it'll be a huge test for us in this one." The Red Raiders are coming off a 71-57 win over TCU and are currently second in the Big 12 by shooting 49.0 percent from the field, 76.6 percent at the free-throw line, 38.0 percent from 3-point range and with a 1.59 assist-to-turnover ratio. Chance McMillian and JT Toppin led Tech against TCU with 16 points each while Elijah Hawkins had 13 points and five assists. Toppin grabbed 14 rebounds in the win over the Horned Frogs for his seventh double-double of the season in a game where the Red Raiders were without Darrion Williams (lower body injury) for the first time this season. Williams is averaging 14.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game and is listed as day-to-day going into the matchup against the Cougars. Texas Tech is currently third in the conference by scoring 81.4 points per game and has won 12 of its 16 games by double-figure margins. That offensive firepower will be tested on Saturday with the Cougars leading the nation by limiting opponents to only 55.3 points per game.
"We've shown some grit with this team," McCasland said. "We've progressively gotten better defensively and the more we get our guys playing together the better we're getting offensively."
The Cougars are atop the conference standings without a loss in Big 12 play and have not seen defeat since an overtime loss to San Diego State back on November 30 in Las Vegas during the Players Era Tournament where they also dropped a game to Alabama. UH, which is 11-0 on its home court, stole one at Kansas last Saturday with a double-overtime win with former Red Raider guard Mylik Wilson drilling a 3-pointer in the final seconds of regulation to force extra time and pulled away in the second overtime for the road win. The Cougars are coming off another road win after taking a 63-49 win at West Virginia on Wednesday in Morgantown to extend the 11-game winning streak. L.J. Cryer led the Cougars with 17 points, Joseph Tugler added 12 and Milos Uzan provided 10 in the win where they were up 39-19 at halftime. Cryer leads UH this season with 13.7 points per game, while Emauel Sharp is scoring 12.9 points per game. Cryer has made 54 3-pointers and Sharp has 48 for the Cougars who are shooting 39.4 percent from deep this season. J'Wan Roberts continues showing he's one of the toughest and best players in the nation, averaging 10.9 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. Wilson helped the Red Raiders advance to the 2022 Sweet 16 before transferring to Houston where he is now in his third year and is a key reserve. Uzan transferred from Oklahoma and is providing 9.5 points and 3.4 rebounds.
Former Southwest Conference rivals, the all-time series dates back to 1961 with Texas Tech winning 69-61 in an NCAA Tournament game played in Lawerence, Kansas. The Cougars lead the series by a 31-27 margin, including winning four straight, and owning an 18-5 advantage in games played on their campus. Houston joined the Big 12 last season and earned a 77-54 win over Tech on January 17, 2024, at the Fertitta Center before also claiming an 82-59 semifinal win at the Big 12 Championship in Kansas City. This season, the teams will meet twice in the regular season with the Red Raiders hosting the Cougars on Monday, February 24 in the second regular-season matchup.
As a program, Texas Tech has a streak of 10 straight seasons with a win over a top 10 team going after earning a 79-50 win over No. 6 Kansas last season on February 12, 2024, in Lubbock. The Red Raiders have 14 wins over top 5 opponents in program history, including beating No. 1 Baylor on January 11, 2022. The most recent top 5 win at home was over No. 4 Texas on January 13, 2021… Tech beat a No. 9-ranked Iowa State team on January 24, 2015, in Lubbock (78-73) for its only win over the Cyclones when they were in the top 10… The streak of top 10 wins includes: 1/24/2015: 78-73 over No. 9 Iowa State; 2/17/2016: 66-63 over No. 3 Oklahoma; 1/3/2017: 77-76 (OT) over No. 7 West Virginia; 2/13/2017: 84-78 over No. 4 Baylor; 1/2/2018: 85-73 over No. 10 Kansas; 1/13/2018: 72-71 over No. 2 West Virginia; 3/30/2019: 75-69 over No. 4 Gonzaga; 4/06/2019: over No. 5 Michigan State; 3/28/2019: over No. 8 Michigan; 12/10/2019: 70-57 over No. 1 Louisville; 1/13/2021: 79-77 over No. 4 Texas; 1/8/2022: 75-67 over No. 6 Kansas; 1/11/2022: 65-62 over No. 1 Baylor; 2/16/2022: 83-73 over No. 7 Baylor; 2/13/2023: 74-67 over No. 6 Texas; 2/12/2024: 79-50 over No. 6 Kansas.
GAME INFORMATION
Matchup: No. 22 Texas Tech (16-4, 7-2) at No. 6 Houston (17-3, 9-0)
Location: Houston, Texas
Venue: Fertitta Center
Tip: 5 p.m., Saturday, February 1, 2025
TV: ESPN2
TV CALL: Rich Hollenberg (play-by-play), King McClure (analyst)
TEXAS TECH SPORTS NETWORK: Geoff Haxton (play-by-play), Chris Level (analyst)
Grant McCasland is now 250-104 (70.1%) in his NCAA career, including his Tech records of 39-15 overall (54 games – 72.2%), 18-9 in Big 12 games, 26-4 at home and 8-6 in true road games. McCasland has also been the head coach at Midwestern State (56-12 record / 2 seasons), Arkansas State (20-12 / 1 season) and North Texas (135-65 / 6 seasons). Along with coaching Texas Tech, McCasland is also an assistant coach for the USA Basketball Men's Junior National Team which won the 2024 FIBA U18 AmeriCup last summer in Buenos Aires and will compete in the 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup from June 28-July 6 this summer in Lausanne, Switzerland. Last season, McCasland led Tech to six wins over ranked opponents and is now 6-7 against AP Top 25 teams as the Red Raider head coach. McCasland's roster has 13 players on it this season, including two fifth-year seniors (McMillian, Kerwin Walton), two seniors (Hawkins, Federiko Federiko), three juniors (Jack Francis, Corbin Green, Williams), three sophomores (Overton, Toppin, Yalaho) and three freshmen (Anderson, Jazz Henderson, Leon Horner).Â
Toppin recorded his seventh double-double of the season with 16 points and 14 rebounds in the win over TCU along with matching a career-high by adding three assists. He now ranks second in the Big 12 by shooting 56.1 percent from the field, is third in the conference by averaging 8.9 rebounds and is fourth with 16.4 points per game this season. A sophomore forward, Toppin had scored 20 points in two straight games after going for 20 points in the wins over Arizona and Cincinnati before being held to eight points and one rebound in the win against Oklahoma State on Sunday. He recorded his 18th career double-double with 20 points and 16 rebounds against Arizona with six offensive rebounds. He's also currently fourth in the Big 12 with 3.06 offensive rebounds per game. Toppin is at 9.0 rebounds per game in his career which ranks sixth best nationally on the active charts and his 19 career double-doubles are the 46th most – despite him only being a sophomore. He produced 18 points and nine rebounds in the overtime loss to Iowa State before being limited to single-digit scoring for only the second time this season with six points and four rebounds at K-State. He has scored in double figures in 13 of 16 games played this season and has seven or more rebounds in 11 games. Toppin missed the final four non-conference games before returning to the court against UCF to record his fifth double-double of the season (17th career) where he finished with a season-high 26 points, 10 rebounds and matched a season-best with four blocked shots. On the Utah road trip, he went for 11 points and four rebounds in the win at Utah before being limited to single-digit scoring for the first time this season with five points at BYU. He had missed the four straight games against Lamar, ORU, Texas A&M and DePaul with a lower body injury before returning to the starting lineup to begin conference play. In his last game played against Northern Colorado before the injury, he recorded his fourth double-double of the season and 16th of his career with 15 rebounds and 11 points in the win. Toppin was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week after the trip to Brooklyn in a three-game week where he had two double-doubles and averaged 17.0 points and 11.7 rebounds. He capped the award-winning week with 15 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots against Syracuse after recording his 15th career double-double by going for 22 points and a career-high 18 rebounds against Saint Joseph's. He was on a streak of three straight double-doubles after also going for 14 points and 11 rebounds against Arkansas-Pine Bluff in Lubbock after dropping 24 points on Wyoming to go along with 12 rebounds for his 13th career double-double. His 12 offensive rebounds against Saint Joseph's were the second most in Texas Tech program history – only behind Will Flemons who had 15 against Houston on February 14, 1990. Against UAPB, he was 10-for-15 from the field for his second straight game with 10 makes. He's currently 100-for-180 (55.6 percent) from the field this season after also having games on his resume of 10-for-11 from the field against Northwestern State after an 8-for-12 shooting performance against Bethune-Cookman. Toppin transferred to Tech after being named the Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year last season following a freshman season at New Mexico where he averaged 12.4 points and 9.1 rebounds. He also provided 68 blocked shots, 38 steals and recorded 12 double-doubles which was tied for the 38th most in the nation. A Dallas native, Toppin returned to his home state after a freshman season where he recorded 23 double-figure scoring performances in 35 games. His first career double-double came with 15 points and 10 rebounds against UT Arlington and was highlighted by him going for a career-high 27 points and 11 rebounds against Toledo. Averaging 1.9 blocks per game as a freshman, he had a career-best five blocks in games against San Diego State, San Jose State and UNLV. He also had 25 points and 13 rebounds at Air Force and 21 points at Boise State. His 12th double-double of the season came with him going off for 13 points and 11 rebounds against San Diego State in the MWC tournament. Toppin finished his first collegiate season going 193-for-310 (62.3 percent) from the field with 11 3-pointers. He was ranked No. 12 in ESPN's transfer rankings and was the third-best transfer still available when he signed on May 28. Toppin comes into the matchup at Houston with nine career games of 20-plus point scoring performances, 36 double-figure scoring games and 705 total points through 52 career games played. His 19 career double-doubles leads Tech and his seven this season are the fourth most in the conference. Â
Williams missed his first game of the season on Wednesday night against TCU with a lower body injury and is listed as day-to-day. A starter in the previous 19 games to begin this season, he is averaging 14.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game, ranking ninth in the Big 12 for assists and 15th in scoring. Williams has scored in double figures in 15 games this season but had been limited single digits the past three games after finishing with nine points, three steals, two rebounds and two assists in the win over Oklahoma State. A starter in 52 games for Tech, he had scored in double figures in 14 straight games after leading the Red Raiders with 16 points in the win at K-State following going for 15 points, six rebounds and two assists against Iowa State. Williams was 7-for-15 from the field against K-State with one 3-pointer and made his final basket with 17 seconds remaining to push the lead to four. At Utah, he had 19 points and nine assists which was his sixth game with 19 or more points this season and his fourth game with eight or more assists before scoring 18 points on 7-for-11 shooting at BYU. Through eight Big 12 games, Williams is providing 12.2 points and 5.0 rebounds in conference play. He earned Big 12 Player of the Week after going off for a season-high 23 points in the win over Lamar along with providing nine assists against ORU in the two games leading into conference play. It was his second Big 12 Player of the Week honor in his career after winning it in the final week last season. His season-best 23 points against Lamar came with him matching a career-high by making four 3-pointers. He had produced 20-plus points in three straight games after going for 20 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals in the win over DePaul along with scoring a team-high/season-high 21 points against Northern Colorado to go along with 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season and the 11th of his career. In Brooklyn, he earned Legends Classic All-Tournament honors after leading the Red Raiders with a season-high 20 points against Syracuse in a game where he also had six rebounds and three assists. The 20-point performances in a career-best three straight games against Syracuse, Northern Colorado and DePaul gives him three this season and four in his career. His trip to Brooklyn also saw him provide 18 points, six rebounds and three assists against Saint Joseph's. He recorded a career-high 11 assists and nearly became the third Red Raider in history to have a triple-double after adding eight points and eight rebounds in the win over Northwestern State. Williams is Tech's leading returner from last year's roster with 11.4 points, 7.5 rebounds and nine double-doubles after a sophomore season where he earned All-Big 12 Third Team and All-Big 12 Newcomer Team honors. He made 33 starts last season, scoring in double-figures in 19, including a program-best performance where he went 12-for-12 from the field and scored 30 points in a 79-50 home win over No. 6 Kansas. A Sacramento, California native who played his freshman season at Nevada, he finished his first season at Tech shooting 131-for-265 (49.4 percent) from the field and 44-for-96 (45.8 percent) on 3-pointers along with providing 82 assists, 38 steals and 11 blocked shots. In Big 12 play last season, Williams averaged 13.1 points per game and was 23-for-44 on 3-pointers which is the second best in program history for percentage at a 52.3 percent. He established a career-high with 14 rebounds in a non-conference win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and had his ninth double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds in a win over Baylor in the regular-season finale. His 19th double-figure scoring performance of his sophomore season came with 10 points against NC State in the NCAA Tournament. Williams now has 45 games scoring in double figures in his career with 15 this season. In his second season at Tech, he's now at 907 points, 591 rebounds and 256 assists through 85 career games.
McMillian is tied for sixth nationally by making 46.2 percent of his 3-pointers after making three 3-pointers in the past three games. He is coming off 16 points in the win over TCU after leading the Red Raiders with 14 points in the win over Oklahoma State. McMillian is scoring 15.0 points per game this season and is currently 48-for-104 from beyond the arc. He is on a four-game streak of double-digit scoring, starting with 14 against Arizona and continuing with 17 points at Cincinnati. A fifth-year senior, he has scored in double figures in 18 of 20 games this year and ranks 10th in the Big 12 in scoring and seventh with 2.40 3-pointers made per game. He has scored 20 or more points in seven games in his career after a three-game streak which was capped by 20 points against ORU where he went 8-for-9 from the field and 3-of-4 from 3-point range. He made five 3-pointers and finished with a game-high/season-high 23 points in the loss against Texas A&M after he had led Tech with 22 points in the win over DePaul. He has scored in double figures in 66 games throughout his career, which is the second most on the team. He leads Tech by playing 32:54 minutes per game with a season-high 42:32 against Iowa State where he had 18 points and eight rebounds in the overtime loss. McMillian had scored in double figures for the sixth straight game after going for 13 points with three 3-pointers against Syracuse before he had 17 points in the loss against Saint Joseph's during the team's trip to Brooklyn. His only non-double figure scoring performance before K-State came with nine points against Northern Colorado in a game where he was 6-for-6 at the free-throw line but attempted only four shots from the field. Last season, McMillian averaged 10.8 points per game and was 65-for-168 (38.7 percent) on 3-pointers in his first season as a Red Raider where he recorded 18 double-figure scoring performances that included a career-high 27 points at Oklahoma where he went 6-for-8 on 3-pointers. A California native, he scored 17 points in the Big 12 Championship quarterfinal win over BYU and had 15 points against Houston in the semifinals. McMillian was selected as the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week twice during the season, the first time against going off for 24 points at Butler where he went 8-for-10 on 3-pointers. He finished the year 40-for-44 at the free-throw line, including going 26-for-28 in conference play. McMillian has made three or more 3s in 10 games this season and is currently 222-for-540 (41.1 percent) on 3-pointers in his career. He enters the 21st game of the year with 1,327 points, 221 assists, 94 steals, 447 rebounds and 66 double-figure scoring performances through 144 games played in his career.
Hawkins leads the Big 12 with 6.1 assists per game and now has 698 career assists after leading Tech with five assists against TCU in a game where he also scored 13 points. A senior point guard in his first season at Texas Tech, Hawkins is currently averaging 8.9 points, 6.1 assists and 1.8 steals through 18 overall games played this season after missing the first two games with a lower body injury. He dished out nine assists in the win over Arizona following his third double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 assists at Kansas State. Hawkins now has 18 career games with 10 or more assists and with 61 assists and only 14 turnovers in Big 12 games this season. Hawkins now ranks third amongst all NCAA active leaders with 6.35 assists per game in his career and is fourth with his 698 total career assists. His 10 assists at K-State included the final possession where he found Williams who made a layup to extend the lead to four with 17 seconds remaining after he had put Tech up two with a layup of his own. Hawkins, who went 5-of-6 at the free-throw line against TCU, is now shooting 40-for-45 (88.9 percent) from the charity stripe and is 23-for-76 on 3-pointers this season. He had recorded his 17th career game with double-digit assists after contributing 10 assists with zero turnovers against the Cyclones in an overtime game where he also had seven points. Among active NCAA career leaders, he also ranks 23rd with 1.83 steals per game, 26th with 201 career steals and 29th with a 1.91 assist-to-turnover ratio through 110 career games. He scored a season-high 22 points with a career-best six 3-pointers at BYU after recording the 12th double-double of his career with 12 points and 10 assists in the win against Utah. Hawkins has scored in double figures in 7-of-18 games played this season and was on a three-game streak after having 11 points and five assists against UCF before scoring seven against Iowa State. For his career, Hawkins is 157-for-433 (36.3 percent) on 3-pointers with a previous career-high five 3-pointers made last season against Coppin State. He had recorded his 11th career double-double and first of this season against UAPB after providing 11 assists, 10 points and five steals in his first start as a Red Raider. He made his Texas Tech debut by going for a team-high five assists and adding seven points in just under 13 minutes of play against Wyoming and has recorded three or more assists in every game he's played this season. A Washington, D.C. native, Hawkins was second nationally last season with 7.5 assists per game at Minnesota where he also averaged 9.5 points and had six double-doubles as an All-Big 10 honorable mention selection before transferring to Texas Tech to play his final season. Hawkins scored a career-high 24 points against Ohio State last season and had a 17-assist performance against IU Indy in a non-conference win for his career-best. He began his collegiate career with two seasons at Howard before playing one at Minnesota. Last season, he had eight games with double-figure assists, including dishing out 15 assists and scoring 11 points in a win over Butler in the NIT and also having double-doubles against Nebraska (12p/11a), Maine (12p/10a), Northwestern (13p/10a) at home, Illinois (12a/10p) and at Northwestern (14p/10a). He has a team-high 69 games with double-figure scoring performances in his career. Hawkins is on the Bob Cousy Award Watch List and currently has 1,238 points, 698 assists and 201 steals through 110 games played in his career. At BYU in his season-high scoring performance, Hawkins was 7-for-12 from the field and 6-for-9 on 3-pointers to give him 22 points. He scored 13 of those 22 points in the second half where he was 3-for-3 from 3-point range. Hawkins comes into the game against Houston with 305 made free throws in his career.
Walton is 13th nationally in active 3-point percentage at 42.3 percent (193-for-456) in his career, including going 24-for-61 (40.0 percent) from beyond the arc after making two against TCU and OSU. Through 20 games, all as a starter, he is averaging 4.4 points per game. Walton opened this season with a career-high seven 3-pointers and led the Red Raiders with 21 points in the season-opening win over Bethune-Cookman. He's made three or more 3-pointers in three games this season and two or more in seven. His 21 points in the opener marked his second career game with 20 or more points in his career only being surpassed by his career-best 22-point performance last season against Omaha. The seven 3-pointers were the most for a Red Raider since McMillian made eight last season at Butler and two off from Alan Voskuil's program record of nine against Kansas back on March 4, 2009. A Minnesota native, Walton averaged 8.5 points per game last season and finished 65-for-136 (47.8 percent) from beyond the arc. His percentage was second nationally and second in program history. He scored a career-high 22 points in a non-conference win over Omaha where he was 6-for-7 on 3-pointers and 8-for-9 from the field. In Big 12 play, Walton started all 18 games last season with a pair of 18-point scoring performances in road games at Houston and UCF. He finished the season with 11 double-figure scoring performances with 12 points against BYU in the Big 12 Championship quarterfinal win in Kansas City. He had eight games with three or more 3s, with a 3-for-4 outing against NC State in the NCAA Tournament First Round being the final one. Starting his career with two seasons at North Carolina, Walton has now played 80 games with 53 starts at Texas Tech where he is 112-for-253 (44.3 percent) from 3-point range as a Red Raider. He comes into the matchup at Houston with 808 points through 140 career games played.
Overton is averaging 9.2 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game after producing 14 points and five rebounds in the win over Cincinnati where he was 3-for-5 on 3-pointers before scoring seven in the wins over TCU and Oklahoma State. A lead reserve, in his sophomore season, he contributed nine points against UCF in the Big 12 opener, eight points and five rebounds in the win at Utah and then finished with five points and four rebounds against BYU. He provided 17 points against Lamar and Texas A&M and is the top scorer off the bench for the Red Raiders. He also scored a season-high 20 points against Northern Colorado and has six double-figure scoring performances going into the 21st game of the season. In his first season at Texas Tech, his 20-point production was the fourth time in his young career with 20 or more points. He also had six rebounds against Lamar to match a season-high and had six straight games with five or more rebounds going before having two against UCF. Overton also scored 19 points in a game against Northwestern State where he was 8-for-9 from the free-throw line after 10 points in his only appearance from the starting lineup in his Red Raider debut against Bethune-Cookman. Overton joined the Texas Tech program this season after a freshman year at Drake where he provided 11.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists as a starter in 35 games (29.9 minutes per game). An Oklahoma City native, he scored in double figures in 19 games with a career-high 23 points coming against Murray State in his freshman season. Overton finished his first collegiate season shooting 62-for-179 on 3-pointers and contributed 21 steals. He scored 20 or more points in three games with 22 against Oakland and 21 against Saint Louis before his 23-point performance against Murray State where he was 8-for-11 from the field with five 3-pointers. Overton played one prep season at Sunrise Christian in Kansas before beginning his collegiate career. He has 578 points, 194 rebounds and 26 double-figure scoring performances through 55 games in his collegiate career. He now has five or more rebounds in 10 games after grabbing five against the Horned Frogs and has made three or more 3s in four games this season. For his career, Overton has made 87 3-pointers and is 199-for-445 from the field coming into Saturday's game.
Anderson led the Tech reserves for the fourth straight game in scoring after providing eight points in the win over TCU and scoring nine against Oklahoma State in the pair of games this week. He had scored in double figures for the seventh time this season after going off for 18 points and matching a career-high with four 3-pointers at Cincinnati along with producing 10 points against Arizona where he was 2-for-4 on 3-pointers and 2-of-2 at the free-throw line. A true freshman, he's now averaging 9.4 points, 2.2 assists and 2.6 rebounds overall this season while in Big 12 play he's averaging 9.8 points and is shooting 17-for-38 (44.7 percent) from 3-point range. Anderson has 10 games with two or more 3s this season. He also scored 18 points on 4-for-4 shooting from 3-point range against Iowa State and followed it by contributing eight points and a career-high six rebounds in the road win at K-State. He played a career-high 37:48 in his reserve role against Iowa State and also finished with two assists and two steals. Anderson scored a career-high 20 points against Lamar after going 8-for-10 from the field and 2-of-4 from 3-point range in the non-conference finale before leading Tech with five assists against UCF. He is now shooting 57-for-123 (46.3 percent) overall and 22-of-29 (75.9 percent) at the free-throw line after making 4-of-6 against Oklahoma State and 4-of-5 at Cincinnati. His 20 points against Lamar marked the third double-figure scoring performance of his season after he also recorded 11 points against ORU and a previous career-high 12 points against Northern Colorado where he was 4-for-6 on 3-pointers. Through 18 games played (after missing the first two of the season with a lower body injury), he already has five games with four assists and seven with three or more. He made his collegiate debut against Wyoming where he scored nine points and contributed four assists and three steals in over 25 minutes of play as a reserve. Anderson missed the first two games of the season with a lower body injury but made his presence felt early with a 3-pointer for his first points and finished the night against Wyoming shooting 4-for-7 from the field. He signed with Texas Tech on May 21, 2024, as a four-star recruit following one season at Oak Hill Academy where he averaged 19.1 points and 4.6 assists per game. Originally a Michigan signee, Anderson opened his recruitment and joined the Red Raiders who he practiced with in June before going overseas in July to lead Germany to the 2024 FIBA U18 Eurobasket Championship this season. He averaged 20.3 points and 5.0 assists per game in the tournament, including going off for 31 points and five assists in the finals against Serbia. An Atlanta, Georgia native, Anderson played at The Lovett School where he averaged 23.7 points in his high school career with 2,038 points. As a junior at The Lovett School, before Oak Hill, Anderson averaged 26.1 points and 4.1 assists with three games of 40 or more points. Anderson has made four 4-pointers in three games this season and comes into the matchup at Houston with 169 total points, 40 total assists, 46 rebounds and 25 steals this season.
Federiko provided six rebounds and four points in the win over TCU after going for a season-high three blocked shots and leading Tech with eight rebounds (four offensive) in the win over Oklahoma State. He also had eight points in the game against the Cowboys earlier this week and is now averaging 7.1 points and 5.4 rebounds per game this season. He ranks 12th in the Big 12 with 2.67 offensive rebounds per game with a season-high six offensive rebounds against ORU in non-conference play and five against Arizona. He provided nine points and led Tech with seven rebounds in the road win at K-State where he shot 4-for-5 from the field before going for eight rebounds and eight points (4-for-4 on free throws) against Arizona. A senior in his first season at Tech, Federiko is now averaging 6.9 points and 5.9 rebounds in Big 12 games and for the season is shooting 56-for-75 (74.7 percent) from the field. He also led the Tech reserves with 14 points and added three rebounds in the road win at Utah where he shot 7-for-9 from the field. Federiko had a career night against Oral Roberts in non-conference play, going for a career-best 23 points and adding 12 rebounds for his first double-double of the season and the third in his career. He missed the Lamar game with an upper body injury before returning for Big 12 play. He was 11-for-13 (84.6 percent) from the field against ORU and also finished the game with a career-high five assists and six offensive rebounds. It was his first game in double-figure scoring as a Red Raider and came in his third start of the season. Federiko provided seven points, six rebounds and a career-high four steals against Texas A&M. He began this season going 9-for-9 after making his only shot against Saint Joseph's before going 1-for-3 against Syracuse and 2-for-3 against Northern Colorado where he finished with five points and three assists. Against Texas A&M, Federiko was 3-for-3 from the field. He had previously scored a season-high eight points for the first time in the win over Wyoming where he was 4-for-4 from the field. The tallest Red Raider on the roster at 6-foot-11, he is a senior in his first and final season at Texas Tech following two years at Pitt. A Finland native, Federiko is coming off a season where he averaged 4.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and had 43 blocked shots as a starter in 26 games. He had a career-high 22 points against North Florida last season and finished with eight games in double-figure scoring as a sophomore and two last season. In 2022-23, he went for 13 points and eight points at Florida State and produced his only double-double of the season with 17 points and 14 rebounds against Sacred Heart. Last season, he had a double-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks against North Carolina A&T. As a sophomore, Federiko recorded 18 games with two or more blocks, including having four blocks in games against Miami, Vanderbilt and North Carolina before having six games with three or more blocks last season. Federiko was a NJCAA All-America as a freshman at Northern Oklahoma. He now has 516 points, 454 rebounds, 115 blocks and 13 double-figure scoring performances through 86 games at the NCAA level.
Yalaho made his first career start and scored a career-high 13 points in the win over Lamar after going 5-for-8 from the field, including 2-of-2 on 3-pointers. He had two rebounds in two minutes of play against Utah and has not played since limited time against Arizona – coach's decision. Yalaho also had five rebounds against Lamar in his fifth game of the season. He was coming off a game where he provided three rebounds and two points in the win over ORU in 13 minutes of playing time. He made his season debut against Northern Colorado where he had two points, one rebound and a block in four minutes of play and also had two points and three rebounds against Texas A&M. Yalaho had missed the previous six games to start his sophomore season with a lower body injury. He entered this season after playing in 17 games last season as a freshman, including scoring a previous career-high 10 points against Houston in the Big 12 Championship semifinals. A Finland native, Yalaho was 16-for-33 from the field and averaged 2.5 points and 1.5 rebounds per game. He had a career-best six rebounds at UCF where he also had eight points. Against Houston in Kansas City, Yalaho scored in double figures for the first time in his career after he also provided seven points and three rebounds in the regular-season finale win over Baylor. Over the summer, Yalaho returned to Finland where he participated in workouts with his national team. Yalaho has played in 24 career games and is currently averaging 3.1 points and 2.1 rebounds this season.
Green has appeared in six games this season after he joined the Texas Tech program as a walk-on in September. He played the previous two seasons at Air Force. A Midlothian native, Green returned to his home state having played in 36 career games and produced 46 blocked shots. As a freshman in the 2022-23 season, Green started 12 games and played in 24 at Air Force where he averaged 6.5 points and had 34 blocks. Last season, he played in 12 games where he averaged 2.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and had 12 blocked shots. His career-best came with 17 points and 12 rebounds against USC Update on November 21, 2022. Green is a junior with one year of eligibility remaining after this season.
Francis has appeared in seven games this season and 12 in his career. He recorded his first field goal in his career with a layup against ORU for his first points of the season. He is a walk-on who played in five games last season for the Red Raiders. He scored his first career points with a pair of free throws against Sam Houston in a non-conference win and had two rebounds against Kansas and Oklahoma State in Big 12 play. An Austin native, Francis was a practice player for the program during the 2022-23 season before earning a spot on the roster. He was a 1,000-point scorer at Anderson High School.
Horner scored his first career points in the win over ORU and has now made seven appearances this season. He is a true freshman who joined the Texas Tech program after playing at Dynamic Prep and Frisco Memorial. As a senior at Dynamic Prep, Horner averaged 14.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. He was a McDonald's All-American nominee and helped the program to the Texas Christian Athletic League 6A State Championship. He earned T-CAL All-State Second Team honors. At Frisco Memorial, Horner was a three-time all-district selection who had 889 points, 419 rebounds and 121 assists in three seasons.
Henderson will be out of action for an extended period as he recovers from a lower body injury. He joined the program as a walk-on this season after being a three-time state champion at Oak Cliff Faith Family in high school. A Dallas native, he averaged 14 points and 7 assists as a senior after going for 10 points and 7 assists as a junior.
Marial Akuentok officially signed with Texas Tech on January 10, 2025, and has enrolled at the University to join the program immediately… Akuentok is a 6-foot-10, 230-pound center/forward from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada who played with the Canada National Team and won a bronze medal in the FIBA U18 AmeriCup last summer… He is a top 100 recruit who has reclassified from the 2025 class and joins the Red Raiders this semester but will redshirt.
McCasland statement regarding Devan Cambridge: "Devan is seeking a medical hardship waiver and is no longer with the team. We are thankful for his contributions to our basketball program."
TEAM NOTES: Texas Tech is on a five-game winning streak (four straight by double figures) and has a 7-2 conference record through nine games for the first time since 2005… The team has won four straight road games to begin Big 12 play for the first time in program history… The 1996-97 season was the inaugural year for the Big 12 and the Red Raiders dropped their fourth road game after winning three in a row for the only other time with three in a row… A win over Houston would give Tech its best start through 10 games in Big 12 history… Tech's 16 3-pointers in the opener against Bethune-Cookman matched the program record that was most recently accomplished against Kansas back on February 23, 2019, and also against UNC-Asheville (2004) and New Mexico State (1996)… The Red Raiders finished last season with 11 games of 10 or more 3s, including a season-high 15 against Sam Houston and then making 14 at TCU in Big 12 play... This year's team has matched that, making 10 or more 3s in 11 games this season after going 10-for-31 in the win over TCU… Tech has shot over 45 percent from 3-point range in six games this season… A season-best stretch of three straight games with 10 or more 3s ended against UCF after Tech went just 3-for-16 (18.8 percent) from 3-point range in the Big 12 opener… The Red Raiders have shot over 50 percent from 3-point range in three games this season: Bethune (53.3), Wyoming (55.6) and Northern Colorado (56.5)… Texas Tech was second in the Big 12 last season by shooting 35.9 percent on 3-pointers and third with 8.5 made per game… Last season, Tech led the Big 12 at the free-throw line shooting 78.0 percent and this season had its best performance of the season by going 24-for-26 (92.3 percent) against Northern Colorado… The 24 makes at the line matched two games from last season against TCU and Texas A&M-Commerce for the most under McCasland… Tech went 15-for-21 (71.4 percent) against TCU… Tech is now shooting 76.6 percent at the line while, in comparison, opponents are shooting 67.3 percent at the line in games against the Red Raiders… Tech's largest runs of the season have been 17-0 spurts, the first time to end the first half against Bethune-Cookman and then midway through the first half against ORU to build out a 22-point halftime lead… Tech had 13-0 runs in the second halves against Arizona and K-State – finishing off Arizona with a 13-0 run in the 16-point win… The 30 assists against UAPB marked the eighth time in program history with 30-plus assists and the most since a 32-assist performance against Tennessee State in 2019; Tech now has four games with 20 or more assists this season after having 26 assists on 34 makes against ORU and with 24 assists at Utah on 34 makes… The Red Raiders are averaging 17.1 assists per game after having 16 on 23 makes against the Horned Frogs… Tech's 47-point win over Wyoming was its largest margin of victory since a 50-point victory over Jackson State on December 17, 2022 and a 28-point win at Utah matched the second biggest margin in a Big 12 road game in program history… Texas Tech remained dominant in non-conference home games where it has now won 38 straight after the win over ORU to extend the streak into next season… The program has not lost a non-conference home game since falling to Kentucky in a 76-74 overtime decision on January 25, 2019.
RANKINGS
• Tech is No. 22 in the AP Top 25, No. 19 in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll and is at No. 12 in Kenpom.com and in No. 13 in the NCAA NET rankings … The Red Raiders have now been in the AP Top 25 for a program-record eight straight seasons
•  Tech moved from unranked to No. 24 in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll (Nov. 18)... A loss to Saint Joseph's bumped Tech from the USA TODAY Coaches Poll… The Red Raiders started the 2024-25 season unranked in the preseason polls after being at No. 22 in both national polls going into the NCAA Tournament last season… The Red Raiders were at No. 25 in the final 2023-24 USA TODAY Coaches Poll and received votes in the final AP Poll
• Texas Tech was picked 7th in the Big 12 Preseason Poll and did not have a player selected in the 2024 preseason awards
• Last season, Tech was at No. 15 (Jan. 29) for its highest ranking of the season; Tech came into the 2023-24 season unranked in the AP Preseason Poll and remained unranked in the Nov. 13, Nov. 20, Nov. 27, Dec. 4, Dec. 11, Dec. 18, Dec. 25, Jan. 1, and Jan. 8 polls; The team received votes for the first time last season with 62 in the January 8 poll after the win over the Longhorns in Austin to begin conference play
• 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
• 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
COACHING STAFF
McCasland's staff includes assistant coaches Luke Barnwell, Matt Braeuer, Jeff Linder and Achoki Moikobu along with Kellen Buffington (general manager), Andrew Wright (strength & conditioning), Chris Nottingham (player development), Jardon Powell (director of administration and operations), Cooper Anderson (operations) and Brian Pete (video coordinator). Linder joined the staff this season after being the head coach at Wyoming (2020-2024) and Northern Colorado (2016-2019) while Pete was at Vanderbilt last season. Braeuer, Moikobu and Wright are in their second season at Tech and all worked with McCasland at UNT.
PROGRAM NOTES
The Red Raiders have advanced to 20 overall NCAA Tournament appearances, including reaching the 2018 Elite 8, 2019 National Championship Final, 2022 Sweet 16 and the 2024 First Round… This is the 100th season in program history and includes recent appearances in the NCAA Tournament in 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2024... The program won the 2019 Big 12 regular-season championship.
RED RAIDERS IN THE PROS
Texas Tech has had 25 NBA Draft selections in program history… Recently in the NBA Draft, selections of Zhaire Smith (R1-P16), Jarrett Culver (R1-P6), and Jahmi'us Ramsey (R2-P43) were made… Tony Battie was selected at No. 5 in the 1997 NBA Draft for the top pick in Tech history... Mac McClung, who has signed a two-way with Orlando, represented the program by winning the 2023 and 2024 NBA Slam Dunk Contest… Former Red Raiders who are listed on NBA G-League rosters are Jarrett Culver (Osceola), De'Vion Harmon (Indiana), Mac McClung (Osceola), Kevin Obanor (905 Raptors), Jahmi'us Ramsey (Oklahoma City), Zhaire Smith (Cleveland) and Warren Washington (Sioux Falls)... Former players overseas includes: Adonis Arms (Guangdong Southern Tigers in Chinese Basketball Association), Brandone Francis (Selenge Bodons Sukhbaatar in Mongolian MBL), Keenan Evans (Olympiacos in Greek GBL), Bryson Williams (Aliaga Petkimspor Izmir in Turkish BSL), Marcus Santos-Silva (Saint-Quentin Basket-Ball in French Betclic ELITE ProA), Davion Warren (Guangzhou Loong Lions in Chinese CBA), Dejan Kravic (Estudiantes in Spanish Primera FEB), Joe Toussaint (Karhubasket in Finnish Korisliiga), Justin Gray (Itelyum Varese in Italian Serie A), Tariq Owens (Cremona in Italian Serie A), John Roberson (Al Ahly Cairo in Egyptian Superleague), Zach Smith (Pitesti in Romanian Liga Nationala), Michael Singletary (Fubon Braves in Taiwanese PLeague+), Joel Ntambwe (Abeilles in Central African D1), Kyler Edwards (JDA Dijon Bourgogne in France), Jeffrey Crockett (Keravnos in Cyprus), Toddrick Gotcher (Fomik Zamek in Poland), Davide Moretti (Umana Reyer Venezia in Italy Serie A), Robert Tuner (FOS Provence in French ProB), TJ Holyfield (Pass Lab Yamagata in Japanese B2), Matt Mooney (Adelaide 36ers in Australian NBL), Clarence Nadolny (Rouen in French ProB), Devon Thomas (U.M.F. Grindavik in Iceland), Chris Clarke (Obras in Argentina)... Former players who transferred to other college programs and are now on NBA rosters are: Terrence Shannon (Minnesota), Kevin McCullar (New York), Jaylon Tyson (Cleveland) *subject to change based on player movement throughout the year
VIDEOSÂ
EP1 - Toughest Team Wins | EP2 - Toughest Team Wins | EP3 - Toughest Team Wins | EP4 – Toughest Team Wins | Define YourselfÂ
FEATURE STORIES
Toughest Team Wins | Formative Conversation | Four Journeys to Big 12 Media Day | JT Toppin | Chance McMillian | Kerwin Walton | Elijah Hawkins – Cousy Award Watch List | JT Toppin – Malone Award Watch List | Darrion Williams | Grant McCaslandÂ
Follow the Red Raiders: Keep up with Texas Tech men's basketball news at TexasTech.com and at the team's social media on Instagram, X and Facebook.
