Texas Tech University Athletics
Red Raiders rise to No. 16 nationally
December 08, 2025 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK – The national polls are out and a top 20 matchup in Dallas is set. Texas Tech rose to No. 16 in the latest release of the Associated Press Men's Basketball Top 25 Poll while Arkansas is now at No. 17. The two programs, which met in the 2025 NCAA Sweet 16, are now set for a rematch during a rare one-game week at 11 a.m. on Saturday at American Airlines Center in Dallas.
The Red Raiders (7-2) are on a three-game winning streak and have now been ranked in the AP Top 25 for a program record 15 straight releases. Tech finished last season at No. 8 in the rankings and earned the program's best preseason ranking at No. 10 to begin this season. The team was at No. 19 last week before rising three spots this week. The Razorbacks (7-2) were at No. 25 last week and have won two straight, including knocking off Louisville which was ranked No. 6 last week. Texas Tech earned an 85-83 overtime victory over Arkansas last season in the Sweet 16 in San Francisco and now leads the all-time series by a 41-40 margin.
Arizona (8-0) moved up to No. 1 in the AP Top 25 and is followed by Michigan (8-0), Duke (10-0), Iowa State (9-0) and UConn (8-1) in the top five. Purdue, which was at No. 1, dropped back to No. 6 this week following a loss to the Cyclones. The Big 12 is also represented by No. 7 Houston (8-1), No. 10 BYU (7-1) and No. 19 Kansas (7-3). The Red Raiders are currently 0-2 against AP Top 25 opponents this season after losses to then-ranked No. 1 Purdue and No. 14 Illinois. The Fighting Illini are at No. 13 in this week's rankings. The Red Raiders are also set to play No. 3 Duke on Saturday, December 20 at Madison Square Garden in New York during a challenging non-conference schedule.
Along with rising in the AP national poll, the Red Raiders are up to No. 16 in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll, No. 19 in Kenpom ratings and No. 20 in the NCAA NET Rankings following the 82-58 win over LSU on Sunday in Fort Worth. Tech was at No. 36 in the NET previously. Statistically, the team leads the Big 12 by making 10.7 3-pointers per game after going 13-for-27 (48.1 percent) from beyond the arc against LSU. It was the sixth game this season with double-figure 3-pointers, including setting the program's record with 17 made 3-pointers in the season opener against Lindenwood. Tech is also third in the conference with 40.3 rebounds per game and second with 14.7 offensive rebounds per game.
Through nine games on the schedule, Tech has four players averaging in double-figure scoring with JT Toppin leading the way with 20.8 points per game and Christian Anderson scoring 19.1 points per game. Anderson, Toppin and LeJuan Watts each recorded a double-double in the win over LSU with Anderson going for 27 points and 10 assists, Toppin finishing with 15 rebounds and 11 points and Watts notching his first double-double of the season with 15 points and 10 rebounds. A junior from Dallas, Toppin is now leading the Big 12 with 11.5 rebounds per game and is fourth in scoring. His rebounding average ranks fourth nationally while his scoring is 20th. Donovan Atwell, who is now at 997 career points, finished with three 3-pointers and nine points and is now averaging 12.0 points per game. Atwell is currently third in the Big 12 with 3.4 made 3-pointers this season and leads the team with 31 made this season. Watts is averaging 12.0 points and 6.1 rebounds following his 11th career double-double.
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