Texas Tech University Athletics
October 19, 2026 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK, Texas โ Texas Tech will start the 2026-27 season ranked in both major college basketball preseason polls, coming in at No. 19 in the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 and at No. 16 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. The Red Raiders were ranked throughout last season for the first time in program history and were as high as No. 10 in the national polls.
The Red Raiders are set to play an exhibition game at Kentucky at 6 p.m. CT on Friday at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky and will open the regular season at home by hosting Jackson State at 6 p.m. on Monday, November 2 at United Supermarkets Arena. Kentucky is at No. 23 in the AP Preseason Top 25. The exhibition at Kentucky will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
The AP Top 25 Preseason Poll is topped by Florida at No. 1 along with No. 2 Duke, No. 3 Illinois, No. 4 UConn and No. 5 Arizona. The 2026-27 season for Tech has four preseason top 10 teams on it, including No. 10 Houston. The Red Raiders are set to host No. 3 Illinois at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at the USA and are also schedule to take on No. 2 Duke on Monday, Dec. 21 at Madison Square Garden. ย
Tech is coming off its third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament under head coach Grant McCasland and finished last season at No. 21 in the AP Top 25. The Red Raiders were ranked No. 10 in last season's preseason poll.
