Texas Tech University Athletics
Red Raider Report | Baha Mar Championship
November 16, 2025 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK – No. 11 Texas Tech travels to the Bahamas for the second time in three seasons this week where it will play in the Baha Mar Championship for the first time. The Red Raiders (3-1) are coming off an 80-63 win over Milwaukee last Friday to respond from a four-point loss at No. 14 Illinois on Tuesday and are now set to take on Wake Forest at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday with the game to be broadcast on CBS Sports Network. Tech's game will follow a matchup between No. 2 Purdue and Memphis which will set up Friday's matchups at the event. Tech is making its Baha Mar debut but did play in the 2023 Battle 4 Atlantis in head coach Grant McCasland's first season leading the program.
Updated national rankings, Big 12 weekly awards and full Texas Tech game notes will be available on Monday afternoon.
Christian Anderson leads the nation with 36 total assists and is second nationally with 9.0 assists per game while JT Toppin tops the Big 12 and is seventh nationally with 24.3 points per game. Toppin is also second in the Big 12 and 15th nationally with 11.7 rebounds per game, including going for 35 points and 11 rebounds at Illinois last Tuesday. Anderson is coming off a game against Milwaukee where he led the team with 18 points and seven assists while Donovan Atwell went 5-for-9 on 3-pointers and is leading the Big 12 and is ninth nationally with 4.5 made 3-pointers per game. Atwell is shooting 48.6 percent on 3-pointers with a conference-leading 18 made through four games while LeJuan Watts is averaging 14.0 points and 6.3 rebounds after coming up one rebound shy of his first double-double of the season with 10 points and nine rebounds against Milwaukee.
Tech has made 12 or more 3-pointers in three of the first four games of the season, including setting a new program record with 17 in the season opener against Lindenwood and knocking down 13 in its last game against Milwaukee. The Red Raiders travel to the Bahamas shooting 48-for-126 (38.1 percent) as a team and currently ranks second in the Big 12 and 19th nationally by making 12.0 3-pointers per game. Tech leads the Big 12 with 16.0 offensive rebounds per game after having 15 more against Milwaukee and fourth in the Big 12 with 8.8 steals per game and only 10.0 turnovers per game. Through four games, Texas Tech is averaging 88.3 points, 17.8 assists, 41.5 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game as a team. Defensively, Tech has not allowed an opponent to make more than seven 3-pointers in a game and is limiting the opposition to only 70.3 points per game and to 41.7 percent shooting overall.
BAHAMAS MATCHUPS
Wake Forest owns a 2-0 advantage over Tech in the all-time series with a 70-61 win on Nov. 27, 2011 in Orlando, Florida and a 78-73 overtime victory over the Red Raiders on November 18, 2005 in New York. Wake Forest (2-1) takes on UMass Lowell on Sunday afternoon before shifting its attention to the Bahamas. The Demon Deacons opened their season with wins over American and Morehead State before taking an 85-84 overtime loss at No. 6 Michigan last Tuesday. A matchup against Purdue (3-0) would set up the fourth meeting between the two programs with the Boilermakers owning a 2-1 advantage (last meeting came with Tech winning 78-65 in the 2018 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16) while Memphis owns a 6-1 all-time advantage over Tech with the Red Raiders taking a 78-67 win back on Dec. 1, 2019 in Miami in the most recent matchup.
RED RAIDER ROSTER REPORT (*"players defining themselves")
Tyeree Bryan: "Team player. Competitor. Hard worker."
Bryan recorded his 51st career game scoring in double figures after going for a season-high 13 points on 5-for-10 shooting in the win over Milwaukee after having a previous high of 12 against Sam Houston… An Orlando, Florida native, Bryan has started all four games this season and is averaging 8.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game… He is in his first season at Texas Tech after playing the past two at Santa Clara and beginning his career with one season at Charleston Southern and one at River State College… Bryan has 935 points, 440 rebounds, 125 assists and 65 steals through 97 career games played… He is coming off a season at Santa Clara where he averaged 10.4 points per game and shot 66-for-154 (42.9 percent) on 3-pointers… Bryan scored a career-high 35 points against Gonzaga last season after going 7-for-12 from deep… He made four or more 3-pointers in seven games last season and is now 149-for-3361 (41.3 percent) on 3-pointers in his career.
Jazz Henderson: "Vocal. Confident. Energetic."
Henderson made his college debut and scored two points in seven minutes of playing time against Lindenwood and contributed two rebounds in the win over Sam Houston… He is in his second season with the Texas Tech basketball program after redshirting due to injury last season… A Dallas, Texas native, he was a three-time state champion at Oak Cliff Faith Family High School where he averaged 14 points and 7 assists as a senior.
LeJuan Watts: "Tough. Leader. Consistent."
Watts knocked on the door of his first double-double of the season by having 10 points and nine rebounds in the win over Milwaukee and is now averaging 14.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists through three games played… Watts, who has 43 double-figure scoring performances in his career, scored a season-high 21 points on 8-for-10 shooting from the field (2-2 on 3s) at No. 14 Illinois… He made his Tech debut in the second game of the season against Sam Houston and finished with 11 points and six rebounds in 25 minutes of play… He had missed the season opener with a lower body injury… Watts is in his first season at Texas Tech and entered the season as the Big 12 Preseason Newcomer of the Year along with being selected for the Julius Erving Award Preseason Watch List… A Fresno, California native, he is in his fourth year in college after playing last season at Washington State and spending two seasons at Eastern Washington where he redshirted as a freshman… At Washington State last season, he averaged 13.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game… He had 10 double-doubles and also recorded a triple-double with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Santa Clara… He scored a career-high 24 points in a game against San Francisco and grabbed a career-best 14 rebounds against Idaho last season… Watts now has 810 points, 404 rebounds, 208 assists and 10 double-doubles through 69 career games played in his career.
Christian Anderson: "Tough. Team player. Human highlight."
Anderson leads the nation with 36 total assists and is second with 9.0 assists per game leading into the trip to the Bahamas… Anderson led the Red Raiders with 18 points and seven assists in the win over Milwaukee and now has 21 games in his career scoring in double figures… He is averaging 19.5 points, 9.0 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 2.8 steals per game… He matched his career-high with 11 assists and also scored eight points in the loss to No. 14 Illinois… An Atlanta, Georgia native, he was named the Big 12 Player of the Week and to the Big 12 Starting Five on November 11 after averaging 26.0 points, 9.0 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 steals in the first week of the season – along with only having three turnovers… He recorded his first career double-double and established new career highs with 34 points and 11 assists in the win over Lindenwood in the season opener and followed it with 18 points and seven assists in the win over Sam Houston… He is the first player in program history to have a double-double with 30-plus points and 10-plus assists… Entering the season, Anderson was named to the All-Big 12 Preseason Team and is on the Bob Cousy Award Preseason Watch List… He is coming off a freshman season where he averaged 10.6 points and 2.2 assists per game – earning All-Big 12 Freshman Team honors before helping Germany to the silver medal in the FIBA U19 World Cup during the summer in Switzerland… An 6-foot-3 point guard, Anderson scored a previous career-high 22 points in the Sweet 16 win over Arkansas last season and matched the team lead by making 71 3-pointers… He led the Red Raiders with 46 made 3-pointers in Big 12 play and finished the season shooting 38.0 percent from distance… During the summer with Germany, Anderson averaged 17.3 points, 6.6 assists and 4.9 rebounds, including scoring 18 points and having nine assists against the USA in the championship game… He finished his freshman season with four games of scoring 20 or more points and had a career-high six assists in the win at Kansas… Anderson enters this week with 450 points, 113 assists, 122 rebounds and 52 steals through 39 career games.
Josiah Moseley: "Versatile. Energetic. All over the court."
Moseley has missed the first four games of the season with a lower body injury… He returned to his home state of Texas after playing his freshman season at Villanova where he played in 30 games as a reserve… A Round Rock, Texas native, he was the 2023-24 Texas Gatorade Player of the Year after averaging 22.8 points and 8.9 rebounds for Stony Point High School… At Villanova, Moseley scored a career-high 10 points against Lafayette and had a career-best seven rebounds against Temple… He finished his freshman season averaging 1.9 points and 2.3 rebounds per game.
Leon Horner: "Vocal. High intensity. Coachable."
Horner scored a career-high 10 points after making 2-of-3 shots from beyond the arc in the season opener against Lindenwood along with grabbing six rebounds but missed the games against Sam Houston and No. 14 Illinois with a lower body injury… Horner has played in 10 career games after he returned for his second season at Texas Tech following playing nine games last season as a true freshman… A Dallas, Texas native, he scored his first career points in a win over Oral Roberts and had one rebound in five games… Horner played at Dynamic Prep and a was a McDonald's All-American nominee as a senior where he averaged 14.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
Nolan Groves: "Hardworking. Coachable. Team player."
Groves established a new Texas Tech freshman record in his college debut by grabbing 16 rebounds in the win over Lindenwood and scored seven points in the first two games of the season… Through four games played, he is averaging 3.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game… Against Lindenwood, he had six offensive rebounds and 10 on the defensive side of the court to go along with scoring seven points, dishing out three assists and coming away with two steals in 27 minutes of action from the starting lineup… Groves entered his freshman season after earning Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year while playing for Orono High School… He finished his senior season averaging 34.1 points, 8.5 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 3.0 steals per game… A Long Lake, Minnesota native, Groves scored 40 or more points in nine games and had a 57-point performance.
Luke Bamgboye: "Resilient. Humble. Athletic."
Bamgboye made his Texas Tech debut with four blocked shots and four points in the win over Milwaukee… He had missed the first three games this season with a lower body injury… He transferred to Texas Tech after playing his freshman season at VCU where he ranked second among all freshmen in the nation with 75 blocks and was tied for 17th overall with 2.14 blocks per game... A London native, he averaged 3.8 points and 3.3 rebounds in a season where he earned Atlantic 10 Conference All-Defensive Team and All-Rookie honors… He appeared in 35 games with 24 starts, including scoring a career-high 17 points and having a career-best seven blocks against UMass… Bamgboye comes into this week with 79 blocked shots through 36 career games played.
Jack Francis: "Humble. Resilient. Coachable."
Francis is the longest tenured Red Raider, having joined the program as a practice player in the 2022-23 season… He has appeared in 18 games over the past three seasons, including playing in 11 last season… An Austin, Texas native, Francis played at Anderson High School where he scored over 1,000 points in his career… At Tech, he scored his first career points with a pair of free throws against Sam Houston and also scored last season against Oral Roberts… Texas Tech is 18-0 in games he has appeared in.
Jaylen Petty: "Leader. Creative. Bucket-getter."
Petty scored a career-high 11 points after making three 3-pointers in the win over Milwaukee… He is averaging 6.3 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists through his first four games of his freshman season… He made a strong collegiate debut by going for nine points, eight rebounds, five assists, two steals and having only one turnover against Lindenwood in the opener after playing 34 minutes off the bench and finishing the night with four offensive rebounds and made two 3-pointers… Petty earned Washington Gatorade Player of the Year honors last season after averaging 24.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 3.2 steals per game at Rainier Beach High School… A four-star recruit from Seattle, Washington, he led his team to a state championship and had a triple-double in a game where he produced 61 points, 15 assists and 15 steals… Petty was a McDonald's All-American nominee, adidas All-America, NBPA Topp 100 selection, a two-time Donovan Mitchell camp participant, an Allen Iverson Showcase selection and the Iverson Class 24K Showcase MVP.
Donovan Atwell: "Hit shots. Consistent. Play hard."
Atwell is 18-for-37 (48.6 percent) on 3-pointers to begin the season and is averaging 15.3 points and 4.0 rebounds per game… He started the season with two straight games with six 3-pointers and is coming off a game against Milwaukee where he was 5-for-9 from deep and finished with 17 points… Atwell made six 3-pointers against Sam Houston and Lindenwood… He comes into the Baha Mar Championship with 17 career games with five or more 3-pointers… He also led Tech with six 3-pointers and finished with 22 points in the season-opening win over Lindenwood… Atwell went 6-for-13 on 3-pointers and also added four rebounds and two steals in the opener… He joined the Red Raiders for his senior season after playing the past three at UNC Greensboro and is coming off a junior season where he averaged 13.3 points per game and was 96-for-241 (39.8 percent) on 3-pointers… His 96 3-pointers were the 43rd most in the nation…A Huntersville, North Carolina native, Atwell now has 950 career points and is 229-for-574 (39.9 percent) on 3-pointers in his career… He scored a career-high 28 points last season at Chattanooga by going 6-for-7 on 3-pointers and has two games in his career with eight made 3-pointers… Atwell has averaged scoring in double figures the past two seasons, including going for 11.4 points per game as a sophomore in the 2023-24 season where he was 93-for-220 (42.3 percent) on 3-point attempts… His career-high for 3-pointers made is eight, knocking down eight 3s against Kansas City and Eastern Kentucky during the 2023-24 season while at UNC Greensboro.
Marial Akuentok: "Energetic. Encouraging. Fearless."
Akuentok started and made his college debut in the win over Lindenwood – going for eight rebounds, seven points and having one blocked shot – before playing in a reserve role against Sam Houston and Illinois… Through three games played, Akuentok is averaging 3.0 points and 4.0 rebounds per game… He was 3-for-5 from the field in 17 minutes of action against Lindenwood and scored the first points of the season for the Red Raiders with a 3-pointer… Akuentok returned for his second season at Texas Tech after redshirting last year… He joined the program in January and experienced the journey to the Elite Eight… Akuentok is from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and was a top-100 recruit who reclassified… He played at Fort Erie International Academy and was named the co-player of the year and defensive player of the year… He also competed for the U18 Canada National Team and helped lead them to the bronze medal at the 2024 FIBA U18 AmeriCup.
JT Toppin: "Dawg. Fearless. Resilient."
Toppin is averaging 24.3 points, 11.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.3 blocks per game to begin his junior season after going off for 35 points and 11 rebounds at No. 14 Illinois before having 10 rebounds and seven points against Milwaukee last week… The 35/11 double-double at Illinois was his fifth double-double of his career with 30-or-more points and double-digit rebounds… He now has 33 career double-doubles and leads the team with 53 double-figure scoring performances in his career… Toppin missed the season opener with a lower body injury but showed no signs of alarm in his debut, going off for 31 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and three steals in his junior season debut against Sam Houston… The 35 points at Illinois was his 21st game scoring over 20 points… Toppin returned for his junior season from a Consensus Second Team All-America season as a sophomore and has a slew of preseason honors leading into this season… He was named the Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year, Associated Press Preseason All-American and is on the Karl Malone Award Preseason Watch List… A Dallas, Texas native, he was coming off a season where he recorded 19 double-doubles and averaged 18.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game – each the team's leader… He set a career-high with 41 points in an overtime win over Arizona State and had a career-best 18 rebounds against Saint Joseph's… Toppin recorded three games with 30-plus points including going for 32 points and 12 rebounds at Oklahoma State and producing 30 points and 14 rebounds in the home finale against Colorado… He also had seven double-doubles with 25-plus point performances… Toppin ranked third in the Big 12 in scoring and rebounding while having the seventh most double-doubles in the nation… A sophomore from Dallas, Toppin scored 20 or more points in 17 games last season, passing Jarrett Culver (2018-19) who had 13 games of 20 or more as a sophomore during the run to the 2019 Final Four… His 18.2 points per game were also the most for the program since Culver averaged 18.5 in the 2018-19 season with the program record being 24.5 from Greg Lowery in the 1971-72 season where he posted 19 games of 20-plus scoring… His 19 double-doubles were only behind Tony Battie's 20 during the 1996-97 season in the Tech record book and was the 7th most nationally during the season… Toppin comes into the matchup against Wake Forest having already produced 1,120 points, 671 rebounds and 120 blocked shots through 72 career games.
LaTrell Hoover: "Energetic. Coachable. Hardworking."
The final addition to this year's roster, Hoover signed with the Red Raiders on September 8 and immediately joined the program to begin practicing… McCasland said he plans to redshirt Hoover this season… Hoover is listed at 7-foot tall, making him the tallest player on the roster… A San Antonio, Texas native, Hoover played at Samuel Clements High School where he averaged 11.4 points and 8.8 rebounds per game as a senior – earning all-district second team honors
McCasland is now 265-110 (70.7%) in his NCAA career, including his Texas Tech records of 54-21 overall (75 games – 72.0%), 26-12 in Big 12 games, 32-5 at home and 12-9 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 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup over the summer in Switzerland after winning the 2024 FIBA U18 AmeriCup in Buenos Aires… McCasland was a 2025 Werner Ladder Naismith Men's College Coach of the Year Semifinalist presented by AXIA Time… His 53-21 record at Tech is the best start for a head coach in program history… McCasland joined Bob Knight as the only two coaches in program history with 20-plus wins in their first two seasons after Knight's teams accomplished it in 2001-02 and 2002-03… In 11 seasons as an NCAA coach, McCasland has won 20 or more games 10 times with the only exception coming in an 18-win year in 2020-21 at UNT with reduced games because of Covid restrictions… He is in his 10th season as an NCAA Division I coach.
VIDEO RESOURCES: Define Yourself | TTW EP1 | TTW EP2 | TTW EP3 | TTW EP4
FEATURES: Watts | Toppin (The Athletic) | Anderson – FIBA U19
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