Texas Tech Athletics
Lamar
Tech, Lamar set for noon tip on Saturday
December 18, 2024 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK – With the Christmas break and Big 12 play looming, Texas Tech remains focused on the task at hand where it is set to complete non-conference action by hosting Lamar (6-5) at noon on Saturday at United Supermarkets Arena. The Red Raiders (8-2) come into the game leading the Big 12 and are fourth nationally with a 59.4 effective field goal percentage along with being second within the conference by shooting 39.8 percent from 3-point range and 78.4 percent at the free-throw line. The team extended a 37-game non-conference home winning streak with an 86-50 win over Oral Roberts on Monday and is currently 7-0 on its home court this season where it has outscored its opponents by a 30.0 margin.
"Ultimately, these games are always the most dangerous games because you can find yourself looking too far into the future," Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. "Whether that's the break or Big 12 play, you have to come ready to play. I told our team that this is the most important game so far this season because not only are we facing a great opponent, but we have to keep improving. This is a team that can come in here and beat us. We'll have to play our best in order to win. I think we have our guys understanding how important this one is."
Tech remains unranked in the national polls but has boosted itself up to No. 23 in the Kenpom.com ratings and No. 28 in the NCAA NET in updates posted on Wednesday morning. The team made 10 3-pointers in the win over ORU and has now made 10 or more in six games this season where it is currently shooting 98-for-246 (39.8 percent) from 3-point range. Following 26 assists against ORU (only 10 turnovers), Texas Tech is now third in the Big 12 with 18.3 assists per game which also ranks in the top 20 nationally.
Lamar travels to Lubbock on a five-game winning streak after earning a 69-65 win over Southern Mississippi on Tuesday in Hattiesburg, Mississippi for its fourth road win of the season. Alexis Marmolejos led the Cardinals with 20 points while Cody Pennebaker added 16 points and Andrew Holifield had 12 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots. Marmolejos is averaging 16.3 points per game this season, Ja'Sean Jackson is adding 11.9 points and 5.0 assists and Holifield is scoring 11.7 points per game and leads the team with 6.0 rebounds. Lamar is shooting 46.0 percent from the field, has made 78 3-pointers and leads the Southland Conference with 16.5 assists per game. The Cardinals began the season with a 1-5 record but have since run off wins over Our Lady of the Lake, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, UTRGV, Louisiana and Southern Mississippi.
"We really respect the way they are playing right now," McCasland said. "Winning four straight road games shows they have a great plan and are playing really well. They've been improving their program every year. This team we're playing is capable of beating any team on any night. We know that coming into it."
Tech is 4-1 all-time against Lamar after an 89-57 win back on November 27, 2021, in the most recent game and an 83-68 win on December 13, 1979, in the first game of the series. The lone loss for the Red Raiders came in 2008 with Lamar taking an 85-79 win in Beaumont. Tech is 4-0 all-time against the Cardinals in Lubbock. Lamar is led by Alvin Brooks who was an assistant coach at Texas Tech during the time when McCasland was the program's director of operations. Brooks has also coached at Houston, Kentucky, Texas A&M, UTEP and North Texas. The Cardinals are coming off a season where they went 19-14 overall and were 12-6 in Southland Conference play. Brooks is in his ninth season as a head coach that includes five as the head coach at Houston (1993-98) and three in Beaumont.
Chance McMillian comes into the non-conference finale having scored 20 or more points in three straight games and is currently leading the Big 12 by shooting 53.8 percent from 3-point range while Darrion Williams leads the conference at the free-throw line with an 89.2 percentage. The Red Raiders have four players scoring in double figures, led by JT Toppin who is averaging 18.6 points and 11.0 rebounds per game. Toppin, who has missed the past three games with a lower body injury, leads the Big 12 in rebounding and is third in scoring. McMillian's offensive outburst includes ORU (20), Texas A&M (23) and DePaul (22) and he is now fourth in the Big 12 with 16.1 points per game. Williams is ninth in the conference with 15.8 ppg. along with being sixth with 5.2 assists per game after going for 10 points and nine assists in the win over ORU. Kevin Overton is adding 10.8 points per game to lead the Red Raider reserves while Federiko Federiko and Christian Anderson are averaging over seven per game. Federiko is coming off a career-high 23 points against ORU where he also had 12 rebounds and five assists to record his first double-double of the season and the third of his career. It was the seventh double-double for Tech this season with Toppin leading the way with four and Williams and Elijah Hawkins having one each. Hawkins leads Tech with 5.3 assists per game this season and is currently third amongst all NCAA active players with 6.3 assists per game through 100 games in his career. Toppin is now fourth in the NCAA active rankings with 9.3 rebounds per game through 43 games in his career. McMillian was 8-for-9 from the field with three 3-pointers against ORU and is fourth in the Big 12 by shooting 60.2 percent from the field this season.
Texas Tech will have a nine-day break from game action following the game against Lamar before opening its 20-game Big 12 schedule against UCF at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, December 31 at United Supermarkets Arena. The Red Raiders finished tied for third in the Big 12 standings last season with an 11-7 conference record. The team will follow its conference opener with a pair of road games to begin the 2025 calendar year, first against Utah on January 4 in Salt Lake City and then at BYU on January 7 in Provo.
GAME INFORMATION
Matchup: Lamar (6-5) at Texas Tech (8-2)
Location: Lubbock, Texas
Venue: United Supermarkets Arena
Tip: 12 p.m., Saturday, December 21, 2024
TV: ESPN+
TV CALL: John Harris (play-by-play), Chris Level (analyst)
TEXAS TECH SPORTS NETWORK: Geoff Haxton (play-by-play), Clark Lammert (analyst)
Grant McCasland improved to 242-102 (70.3%) in his career after the win over ORU, including his Texas Tech records of 31-13 overall and 22-2 at home. Last season, McCasland led Tech to six wins over ranked opponents and is now 6-6 against AP Top 25 teams as Tech's head coach. McCasland's roster has 13 players on it this season, including two fifth-year seniors (McMillian, Kerwin Walton), two seniors (Hawkins, Federiko), three juniors (Jack Francis, Corbin Green, Williams), three sophomores (Overton, Toppin, Eemeli Yalaho) and three freshmen (Anderson, Jazz Henderson, Leon Horner).Â
Williams is coming off his eighth straight game scoring in double figures after producing 10 points and nine rebounds in the win over ORU to take his season averages to 15.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game. It was his 39th career game scoring in double figures and his third this season with eight or more assists. Williams had 11 points, five assists and four rebounds against Texas A&M. Over the past five games, Williams is averaging 16.4 points and 6.0 rebounds. 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 coming into Saturday's matchup against Lamar. 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 leads the Big 12 at the free-throw line by shooting 89.2 percent (33-for-37) after going 3-for-4 at the line against ORU. 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, 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 39 games scoring in double figures in his career with nine this season. In his second season at Tech, he's now at 786 points, 544 rebounds and 224 assists through 76 career games.
McMillian has now scored 20 or more points in seven games in his career with his current three-game streak after going for 20 points against ORU where he went 8-for-9 from the field and 3-of-4 from 3-point range. He also added five assists and had only one turnover in the game and is now averaging 16.1 points, 2.2 assists and 3.8 rebounds. McMillian leads the Big 12 by shooting 53.8 percent from 3-point range, is ninth with 2.8 3s per game and is currently fourth in the conference by shooting 60.2 percent from the field and in scoring. 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 9 of 10 games this season, in 57 games throughout his career and now has scored 20 or more points in seven games in his career. A fifth-year senior, he leads Tech by playing 30:40 minutes per game and with his 28 made 3-pointers. Over the past five games, he is averaging 17.4 points per game and is 14-for-26 (53.8 percent) from 3-point range. 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 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. He arrived in Brooklyn after going for 11 points with three 3-pointers and matching his career-high with six assists against UAPB following 16 points on a 4-for-4 display from 3-point range against Wyoming. He also drilled four 3-pointers and went off for 17 points, five assists and five rebounds against Bethune-Cookman in the season opener. 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 six games this season and is currently 202-for-488 (41.4 percent) on 3-pointers in his career. A starter throughout the year, he enters his 11th game of the season with 1,188 points, 210 assists, 87 steals, 399 rebounds and 57 double-figure scoring performances through 134 games played in his career. His 41.4 percentage from 3-point range is the 18th best for all active players in the NCAA.
Toppin has missed the past three games against ORU, Texas A&M and DePaul with a lower body injury and is listed as day-to-day. In his last game played, he recorded his fourth double-double of the season and 16th of his career with 15 rebounds and 11 points in the win over Northern Colorado and leads the Red Raiders with 18.6 points, 11.0 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game this season. He is the only player on Tech's roster to score in double figures in every game he's played this season and leads the Big 12 with his 11.0 rebounds per, 77 total rebounds and 4.6 offensive rebounds per game after having five against Northern Colorado. At the free-throw line, he is currently 26-for-34 (76.5 percent) after going 5-of-6 against Northern Colorado and Syracuse after making 6-of-8 against Saint Joseph's. 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 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. Toppin is third in the Big 12 with 130 total points this season and is third with his 18.6 points per game. 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 48-for-77 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 against Lamar with six games of 20-plus point scoring performances, 30 double-figure scoring games and 575 total points through 43 career games played.Â
Hawkins is third in the NCAA active rankings with 6.30 assists per game in his career and is sixth with 603 total assists after providing four assists and seven points in the win over ORU – his 100th career game. A senior in his first season at Texas Tech, Hawkins is currently averaging 6.9 points, 5.3 assists and 2.0 steals through eight games played this season after missing the first two games with a lower body injury. Among active NCAA leaders, he is also ranks 20th with 1.85 steals per game, 24th with 185 career steals and 26th with a 1.81 assist-to-turnover ratio. He recorded his 11th career double-double 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 all five games 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. For his career, Hawkins is 140-for-374 (37.4 percent) on 3-pointers and has made 277 free throws (12-for-14 this season). 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 64 games with double-figure scoring performances in his career. Hawkins is on the Bob Cousy Award Watch List and currently has 1,132 points, 630 assists and 185 steals through 100 games played in his career.
Walton is sixth nationally in active 3-point percentage at 42.7 percent (187-for-438) after making two and finishing with six points against ORU. A starter in all 10 games, he is currently averaging 6.3 points per game and is 18-for-43 (41.9 percent) from 3-point range this season. He 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. 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. He is the longest tenured Red Raider in his third season in the program and fifth as a collegiate player who now has 783 points and 187 made 3-pointers through 130 games in his career. 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 70 games with 43 starts at Texas Tech where he is 106-for-235 (45.1 percent) from 3-point range as a Red Raider.Â
Overton had with 17 points against Texas A&M in a game where he had four 3-pointers and also finished with five rebounds before finishing with three points in the win over ORU. He is averaging 10.8 points and 4.0 rebounds per game this season after he also scored a season-high 20 points against Northern Colorado. A sophomore in his first season at Texas Tech, his 20-point production was the fourth time in his young career with 20 or more points. Overton has recorded five double-figure scoring performances to begin this season after also providing 19 points in a game against Northwestern State where he was 8-for-9 from the free-throw line. He also scored 10 points in his only appearance from the starting lineup in his Red Raider debut against Bethune-Cookman with one 3-pointer. 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 before beginning his collegiate career. He has 502 points, 157 rebounds and 24 double-figure scoring performances through 45 games in his collegiate career.
Anderson recorded the second double-figure scoring performance of his career with 11 points against ORU after he scored a career-high 12 points by going 4-for-6 on 3-pointers and adding four assists against Northern Colorado. Against ORU, Anderson was 3-for-8 from 3-point range and also had four rebounds. He had three assists but was held scoreless against Texas A&M for the only time this season and is now averaging 7.6 points, 2.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game to begin his freshman season. Through eight games played (after missing the first two of the season with a lower body injury), he already has four games with four assists and five with three or more. Anderson led Tech with four assists and provided five points in the loss to Saint Joseph's before providing seven points and an assist in the win over Syracuse in Brooklyn. He also had eight points, four assists and three steals against UAPB where he was 2-for-4 from 3-point range in his second game of the season. 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 shooting 4-for-7 from the field. He signed with Texas Tech on May 21 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 is currently 14-for-38 (36.8 percent) on 3-pointers this season.
Federiko had a career night against ORU, 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 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. For the season, he's now averaging 7.3 points and 4.9 rebounds. He made his first start of the season against DePaul and finished with eight points and five rebounds. 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. In a season-high 31 minutes against DePaul, Federiko was 4-for-8 from the field and finished with three offensive rebounds. For the season, he's now 30-for-39 (76.9 percent) from the field through nine games played. 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 454 points, 401 rebounds and 106 blocks through 77 games at the NCAA level.
Yalaho provided three rebounds and two rebounds 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 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 21 career games where he is averaging 2.4 points and 1.6 rebounds.
Green has appeared in four 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 two years of eligibility remaining
Francis has appeared in four games this season and nine 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 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 five appearances this season. He is a 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.
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: 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... The team has made 10 or more 3s in six games this season after going 10-for-29 (34.5 percent) in the win over ORU and 12-for-31 (38.7 percent) against Texas A&M… 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 8-for-13 at the line against ORU and is now shooting 78.4 percent for the season… The 94 points against Bethune-Cookman were the most in a season opener since a 101-58 win over Northwestern State in the 2020-21 season and the season-high of 98 points against Arkansas-Pine Bluff was the sixth time over 90 under McCasland… Tech's largest runs of the season have been a 17-0 runs, 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 also had a 14-0 spurt to take a 26-point halftime lead against Wyoming… The Red Raiders had a 12-0 run to start the game against DePaul and an 8-0 run to start the second half… 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 three games with 20 or more assists this season after having 26 assists on 34 makes against ORU… 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… Texas Tech remains dominant in non-conference home games where it has now won 37 straight after the win over ORU and has a 30.0 scoring margin of victory through seven wins. The program has not lost a non-conference home game since falling to Kentucky in a 76-74 overtime decision on January 25, 2019. The loss to Kentucky snapped a 54-game streak taking the current calculation to a 91-1 record during a span which started on December 30, 2013, with a win over Mount St. Mary's following a home loss to LSU. Since the start of the 2013-14 season, Tech is 96-2 in non-conference home games.
RANKINGS
• Tech remains unranked in both national polls this week but is at No. 22 in Kenpom.com and No. 29 in the NET Rankings
•  Tech moved from unranked to No. 24 in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll (Nov. 18) but has not been ranked yet in this season in AP Top 25... 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 joins 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
Formative Conversation | Four Journeys to Big 12 Media Day | 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 Tech men's basketball news at TexasTech.com and at the team's social media on Instagram, X and Facebook.
