Texas Tech University Athletics
Toppin earns CSC Academic All-America First Team
April 14, 2026 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK – A highly decorated season awarding his dominance on the court has been added to for his work in the classroom with Texas Tech junior JT Toppin earning CSC Academic All-America First Team honors. The College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America award comes after Toppin received Associated Press All-America First Team, Wooden Award All-America, NABC All-America Second Team, USBWA All-America Second Team and The Sporting News All-America Second Team honors – securing back-to-back seasons as a Consensus All-America Second Team member.
A Communications Studies major at Texas Tech University, Toppin posted a 3.90 GPA to become the program's first ever CSC Academic All-America First Team selection and the fifth ever selection. On the court, Toppin led the Red Raiders with 21.8 points and 10.8 rebounds per game along with securing 16 double-doubles. Toppin follows Davide Moretti (2019-20 – 3rd Team), Tobin Doda (1985-86 – HM) and Bubba Jennings (1984-85 – HM, 1982-83 – HM) as Red Raiders to earn Academic All-America honors.
The CSC All-America Men's Basketball Division I Team was announced on Tuesday and is headlined by Iowa State's Tamin Lipsey who earned CSC Academic All-America Team Member of the Year. Toppin is joined on the Academic All-America First Team by Zuby Ejiofor (St. John's), Sam Hoiberg (Nebraska), Lipsey, and Nick Martinelli (Northwestern). The Second Team consists of Tobe Awaka (Arizona), Flory Bidunga (Kansas), Tyler Lundblade (Belmont), Xaivian Lee (Florida) and Nick Townsend (Yale) while the Third Team is comprised of Mason Falslev (Utah State), Bryce Hopkins (St. John's), Carson Johnson (Denver), Landon Lewis (Brown) and Robert Wright III (BYU).
Toppin, who had his season cut short after a season-ending injury on February 17, was leading the nation with 234 made field goals and was in the top 10 nationally in scoring, rebounding and double-doubles. In 25 games played this season, Toppin scored in double figures in 24 games, had 20 points or more in 15 and recorded six double-doubles with 30-plus points. A Dallas native, Toppin is the first Tech player in history to earn All-America honors in back-to-back seasons and is the first ever AP All-America First Team selection. Toppin earned All-Big 12 First Team for the second straight season after a year that was highlighted by going off for 31 points and 13 rebounds in a road win at No. 1 Arizona and a performance against Utah where he had 31 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and five blocked shots. He scored a season-high 35 points at Illinois where he also had 11 rebounds, three blocks and three steals. Â
For his career, Toppin now has 47 double-doubles, 1,593 points, 907 rebounds and 159 blocked shots in 94 collegiate games. Among his 47 double-doubles, Toppin has recorded nine games with 30-plus points in a double-double including a career-best 41 points against Arizona State during his first season at Texas Tech.
Academic All-American is a title reserved for college student-athletes who perform at an elite level in their chosen sport and in the classroom. The all-time list of 44,000+ Academic All-Americans includes major sports stars and some of the world's most accomplished individuals in medicine, business, science and the arts. Established in 1952 and selected by College Sports Communicators, Academic All-America is the longest running and premier award for athletic and academic success across championship college sports at all NCAA levels, the NAIA, two-year colleges and Canadian institutions. Teams are announced year round and amplified by CSC member colleges, universities, and conferences on a wide local, regional, national, and even international scope.Â
TOPPIN'S POSTSEASON AWARDS
Wooden Award All-America; AP All-America First Team; CSC Academic All-America First Team; NABC All-America Second Team; USBWA All-America Second Team; The Sporting News All-American Second Team; All-Big 12 First Team; Field of 68 All-American First Team; AP All-Big 12 First Team; Wooden Award Ballot, NABC Gulf District First Team
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