Texas Tech University Athletics
Texas Tech Athletics
Jackson State
October 30, 2026 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK, Texas โ No. 19 Texas Tech is set to open the 102nd season in program history with a five-game homestand, starting against Jackson State at 6 p.m. on Monday at United Supermarkets Arena. The Red Raiders enter the season on a 46-game non-conference home winning streak and are 23-0 under head coach Grant McCasland in those games.
"We're excited about getting to play on Monday against a great Jackson State team," McCasland said. "It's wild that we're here and playing games and getting to compete here in the USA. We're excited and ready to play somebody else. I love our team and am excited about this game. "This team is ready to take the step of playing meaningful games. That's where Monday night will be great. We've watched Jackson State on film and they have good guard play and athleticism."
Tech's roster is comprised of 14 players with five returners and nine newcomers. The five returners include starters JT Toppin and Donovan Atwell along with Josiah Moseley, Marial Akuentok and LaTrell Hoover. Additions from the transfer portal include Damarion Dennis (Wyoming), Cruz Davis (Hofstra), Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn (UNLV), Darrion Williams (NC State) and Jamichael Stillwell (UCF). From the international pro ranks, Bassala Bagayoko joined the program after playing for Bilbao Basket in Spain while three high school signees include DaKari Spear, Amari Barrett and Trey Hall โ each of whom won championships in their final prep season. Williams returns to Texas Tech after playing for the Red Raiders for two seasons before transferring to play at NC State last season and returning this season. Williams, Toppin and Akuentok are the three players who remain on the roster from the run to the 2025 Elite Eight.
Tech had one exhibition game during the preseason, falling 76-65 at Kentucky last Friday night at Rupp Arena. The exhibition saw four players score in double figures with Donovan Atwell and Damarion Dennis leading the team with 11 points each while Bassala Bagayoko and Cruz Davis both scored 10. Davis led Tech with seven assists and Josiah Moseley grabbed 10 rebounds. In his first action back at Texas Tech, Darrion Williams produced nine points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals.
"We needed to find a competitive group that also enjoys playing basketball and is resilient," McCasland said. "That was our focus in this. We have great scoring, size, versatility, experience โ all the ingredients that you need. We've made a step in the right direction defensively. We were not great about playing without the foul at Kentucky and I thought our inexperience playing together showed up. Not the inexperience in one player, but how do you communicate it together in those environments. That was perfect and a great learning experience. I love this team because I think we have a combination of all of it. You can't really tee us up from one way with us having answers for you. Ultimately, how tough we can be defensively will separate us and it will take us a little time until we get everybody back."
SUSTAINED SUCCESS
Tech is coming off its third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament under McCasland and a season where it set a program record with three wins over teams ranked in the top five of the AP Top 25 and four wins over top 10 opponents. The highlight came with a 78-75 overtime win at No. 1 Arizona and also included wins over No. 3 Duke, No. 6 Houston and at No. 4 Iowa State. The Red Raiders were a ranked team throughout the season, rising as high as No. 10 and remaining in the national rankings throughout a season for the first time in program history. Tech comes into this season at No. 19 in the AP Top 25 Preseason Poll and at No. 16 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.
SEASON-OPENING GAMES
Texas Tech is 3-0 in season-opening games under McCasland and 74-27 all-time in the first game of the season. The Red Raiders are on a 26-game winning streak in season-opening games after rolling to a 98-60 win over Lindenwood to begin last season on November 4, 2025. Under McCasland, the Red Raiders have season-opening wins over Texas A&M-Commerce, Bethune-Cookman and Lindenwood. The program's last loss in an opener was against Indiana on November 19, 1999 with a 68-60 loss at the USA.
NON-CONFERENCE HOME STREAK
Tech is on a 46-game non-conference home winning streak entering this season, including going 23-0 in non-conference home games under McCasland. The last loss at home in a non-conference game came in the 2019-20 season with a 76-74 overtime loss to Kentucky on January 25, 2020 in a Big 12/SEC Challenge matchup. The loss to Kentucky snapped a 54-game non-conference home winning streak by the program.
JACKSON STATE NOTE
The Tigers are coming off a 12-21 overall record and went 10-8 in SWAC games. The Red Raiders are 2-0 all-time against Jackson State, including a 102-52 win in Houston in the 2022 season and an 84-75 win in Lubbock in 2012. Trey Jackson is entering his first season as the head coach at Jackson State after four seasons with the program as an assistant coach. This will be the first time Texas Tech has opened a season against Jackson State.
SERIES HISTORY
The Red Raiders are 2-0 all-time against Jackson State with a home win in 2012 and a neutral-court victory in 2022. The most recent matchup between the two programs took place in Houston with the teams playing at Delmar Fieldhouse. The Red Raiders earned a 102-52 win over Jackson State in the matchup to move to 2-0 in the all-time series.
UP NEXT
The first week of the season continues with a matchup against Bethune-Cookman on Thursday, November 5 at the USA. The Wildcats went 17-15 overall and were 14-4 in SWAC play โ ending their season with a loss to Prairie View A&M in the opening round of the conference tournament. Tech is 2-0 all-time against Bethune-Cookman with a pair of home wins. The Red Raiders most recently earned a 94-61 win to open the 2024-25 season. The Wildcats, who are from Daytona Beach, Florida, are led by head coach Reggie Theus who is entering his sixth season. Theus, who has also been the head coach at New Mexico State and Cal State Northridge, was an NBA All-Star during his playing career.
ROSTER NOTES (numerical order)
Spear is set to make his collegiate debut on Monday night after a prep career that make him the No. 26-ranked player on the SC Next 100. From The Colony, Texas, Spear played three seasons at The Colony High School and finished his prep career by playing at Dynamic Prep and for FaZe in Overtime Elite. He won a championship with FaZe and also earned a nomination to the McDonald's All-American Team and competed in the Iverson Classic All-American and Jordan Brand Classic All-American games. At Dynamic Prep, Spear averaged 20 points per game and then averaged 19.8 points for FaZe โ earning himself Overtime Elite Target Bullseye as the league's top shooter at over 40 percent on 3-pointers. He signed with Tech last fall and was a four-star recruit and top 10 shooting guard nationally. At The Colony HS, Spear was named a Class 5A All-State player and was the unanimous District 12-5A Most Valuable Player after his junior season where he matched the program's single-season record with 700 points and became The Colony's second all-time leading scorer with 1,819 points and also with 197 made 3-pointers. In Tech's exhibition at Kentucky, Spear played eight minutes as a reserve and scored three points after going 1-for-1 from beyond the arc.
A Dallas native who finished his high school career in San Antonio, Dennis is back in the state of Texas after playing last season at Wyoming. A junior guard, Dennis began his college career at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi before playing one season at Wyoming where he averaged 11.2 points and 3.2 rebounds per game last season. He signed with the Red Raiders out of the transfer portal on April 21, 2026 and enters his third collegiate season with 586 points, 165 rebounds and 87 assists in 66 career games. In Tech's exhibition game at Kentucky, Dennis scored 11 points on 5-for-11 shooting with one 3-pointer while also adding two rebounds, one assist and one steal. Last season at Wyoming, Dennis produced 19 double-figure scoring performances with a career-high 21 points against Colorado State and South Dakota. He enters this season with three games in his career scoring 20-plus points and with 23 double-figure scoring performances. He had one double-double last season, grabbing a career-best 11 rebounds and scoring 13 points against UNLV in the WAC Tournament. As a freshman, Dennis averaged 6.7 points per game at Corpus Christi after graduating from Veterans Memorial High School in San Antonio where he led his team to the Class 5A State Tournament and set the school's scoring record.
Moseley scored a career-high 16 points in an NCAA Tournament win over Akron in his first season at Texas Tech where he played in 14 games and averaged 5.5 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. A Round Rock native who earned 2023-24 Texas Gatorade Player of the Year at Stony Point HS, Moseley began his college career at Villanova where he played in 30 games. After missing the first 19 games last season with a lower body injury, Moseley came on strong including securing a career-high nine rebounds in a road win at No. 4 Iowa State. Moseley made his Tech debut last season in a home win over Houston where he produced six points and six rebounds in just under 10 minutes of play. At Kentucky in the exhibition, Moseley played 19 minutes in a reserve role and produced 10 rebounds and four points. Through two collegiate seasons, Moseley has produced 135 points and 119 rebounds in 44 career games.
Davis enters his first season at Texas Tech and final in college basketball after earning Coastal Athletic Association Player of the Year last season at Hofstra. In Tech's exhibition at Kentucky, Davis provided 10 points and seven assists in the start at Rupp Arena. A dynamic point guard, Davis averaged 20.1 points and 4.7 assists per game last season and led Hofstra to the NCAA Tournament. A Plano, Texas native, he returns to Texas after also playing at Iona, St. John's and the past two seasons at Hofstra. Through 95 career games, Davis has recorded 1,327 points, including scoring a career-high 36 points last season at Pitt. During his career, he has 58 games scoring in double figures, including 27 games scoring 20-plus and five with 30-plus points. Davis has two double-doubles on his resume with one coming as a junior and another last season. Davis ranked 29th nationally in scoring last season with his 20.1 points per game and finished last season shooting 82-for-205 (40.0%) on 3-pointers. Along with CAA Player of the Year honors, Davis was also named to the All-CAA First Team and was a three-time CAA Player of the Week.
Gibbs-Lawhorn averaged 20.7 points per game last season at UNLV and comes into his first season at Texas Tech needing only two points to reach 1,000 for his career. A senior guard with two years of eligibility remaining, Gibbs-Lawhorn joined the Red Raider program after playing his first two seasons at Illinois and last season at UNLV where he earned All-MWC First Team and MWC Newcomer of the Year honors. At Kentucky last week in the exhibition, Gibbs-Lawhorn started for the Red Raiders and finished the game with seven points, three assists and four rebounds. A prolific scorer, Gibbs-Lawhorn went 101-for-244 (41.4%) on 3-pointers last season at UNLV and has made 134 3-pointers in 98 career games. He has 998 career points, including scoring a career-high 42 points last season against Nevada. Through those 98 games, he has recorded 43 double-figure scoring performances with 19 games scoring 20-plus points, six with 30-plus and one with 40-plus. Gibbs-Lawhorn ranked 21st nationally in scoring last season, shooting 257-for-517 (49.7%) from the field and making 109 free throws. Before UNLV, he played two seasons and 63 games at Illinois โ averaging 5.9 points per game as a sophomore. Last season, his 42-point performance against Nevada came with him making eight 3-pointers and he also made six 3-pointers in games against Fresno State, Boise State, Colorado State and Grand Canyon.
Williams returns to Texas Tech after a year away and enters this season having already produced 1,601 points, 825 rebounds, 387 assists and 163 steals in 133 career games. A two-time All-Big 12 selection while at Tech in the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, Williams played last season at NC State before returning to Lubbock and signing with the Red Raiders to play his fifth year. During his previous time at Tech, Williams earned All-Big 12 First Team and helped lead the Red Raiders to the 2025 Elite Eight as a junior where he averaged 15.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Last season at NC State, he earned All-ACC Honorable Mention selection after leading the team with 14.0 points per game and adding 4.6 rebounds per game โ including scoring a career-high 32 points in a win over UNC Greensboro. As a sophomore (2023-24) in McCasland's first season at Tech, Williams led the Red Raiders with nine double-doubles, 7.5 rebounds per game and finished his first season in Lubbock with 11.4 points per game where he earned All-Big 12 Third Team and All-Big 12 Newcomer Team honors. During the 2025 NCAA Tournament, Williams led the Red Raiders by averaging 21.0 points per game, including going for 23 points in the Elite Eight matchup against Florida and scoring a season-high 28 points against Drake in the NCAA Tournament Second Round. Among his career highlights as a Red Raider, Williams went off for 30 points in a home win over No. 6 Kansas where he went 12-for-12 from the field with four 3-pointers during his sophomore season. A Sacramento, California native, Williams began his collegiate career at Nevada where he earned 2022-23 Mountain West Freshman of the Year after averaging 7.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.4 steals per game. A four-star prep player at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Williams was named the Nevada Gatorade Player of the Year following his senior season after averaging 15.2 points,10.1 rebounds and 4.0 steals per game. Before transferring to Bishop Gorman, Williams played two varsity seasons at Capital Christian in his hometown of Sacramento where he averaged 11.2 and 7.8 rebounds as a sophomore.
A freshman from Oklahoma, Barrettย signed with Texas Tech on July 6, 2026 and joins the Red Raider program for the 2026-27 season and with a five-year period of eligibility. An Oklahoma City native, Barrett joined the Red Raiders after helping Millwood High School to back-to-back state championships. As a senior, Barrett averaged 17 points per game in a season where his team won its final 20 games for its second straight Oklahoma Class 3A State Championship. A 6-foot-4 guard, Barrett also averaged 16.4 points and 7.4 rebounds as a junior. On the EYBL Circuit, Barrett averaged 9.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.2 steals per game with Mokan Elite. A three-star recruit, Barrett was originally committed to Ball State and also held offers from UT Arlington and SIU Edwardsville before signing with the Red Raiders. He was ranked as the No. 48 shooting guard in the 2026 class by 247Sports.
A freshman from Crowley, Texas, Hall signed with Texas Tech on May 24, 2026, joining the Red Raider program for the 2026-27 season and with a five-year period of eligibility. Hall helped North Crowley High School win the 2026 Class 6A State Championship as a senior where he averaged 14.4 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.9 blocks and 2.0 steals per game. Hall recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds in the title game to help clinch the program's second state championship while also earning Class 6A All-Tournament honors. As a senior, Hall secured Class 6A, District 3 Co-Offensive Player of the Year, First Team All-District, All-Academic Team and All-Region and finished his final high school season shooting 65% from the field and 38% on 3-pointers while leading his team to a 35-3 overall record. Hall, a 6-foot-7, 210-pound forward, completed his high school career with 547 points, 341 rebounds and 73 blocked shots. He also played for Southern Assault Metro YGC in Dallas-Fort Worth.
Atwell returns for another season at Texas Tech after establishing new program records by making 130 3-pointers last season and connecting on a Big 12 record 81 3-pointers in conference play. Atwell scored 11 points with three 3-pointers in the exhibition at Kentucky in 31 minutes of play. A fifth year from Huntersville, North Carolina, Atwell is now in his second season at Texas Tech after playing his first three seasons at UNC Greensboro. Last season, Atwell earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention after averaging 13.5 points per game and shooting 130-for-284 (45.8%) from beyond the arc. His 81 3-pointers also established a new Big 12 record that was previously held by Buddy Hield (Oklahoma). Atwell finished the 2025-26 season leading the Big 12 and second nationally with 3.82 made 3-pointers per game and he also ranked second nationally by making 45.8% of his 3-point attempts and with his 130 makes from beyond the arc. The previous 3-point record for the Red Raiders had stood for nearly 30 years with Cory Carr making 94 in the 1996-97 season and sitting atop the record book category until Atwell's prolific season. Atwell enters this season having already produced 1,348 points and with 341 made 3-pointers through 128 games played. His 11 points matched Dennis for the team lead in the team's only open preseason action. In Big 12 games last season, Atwell averaged 15.6 points per game and shot 47.9% on 3-pointers. He scored in double figures in 25 games last season, including a season-high 26 points in a home win over Kansas State. His historic season included going 7-for-10 on 3-pointers at Baylor for a 21-point performance and making five or more 3-pointers in 12 games. Atwell was the only Red Raider last season to start all 34 games.
Akuentok played in 15 games last season, including recording career-highs with seven points and eight rebounds in the season-opening win over Lindenwood to begin the season. An Edmonton, Alberta, Canada native, Akuentok is in his third season with the Red Raiders after joining mid-year during the 2024-25 season and taking a redshirt. He finished last season averaging 1.1 points and 1.7 rebounds per game โ scoring three points and grabbing three rebounds against Cincinnati for his conference highlight. He played in both NCAA Tournament games for the Red Raiders, including getting one rebound against Alabama. Prior to Tech, he was a member of the Canada National Team that won a bronze medal at the 2024 FIBA U18 AmeriCup and a top 100 recruit who reclassified to enroll early at Tech. As a junior in high school, he helped lead Fort Erie International Academy to a championship and was named the co-player of the year and the defensive player of the year.
Toppin is a two-time Consensus All-America Second Team and two-time All-Big 12 First Team selection who enters his senior season having already produced 1,593 points, 907 rebounds, 159 blocks and 47 double-doubles through 94 career games. Toppin is progressing in his rehab from a season-ending injury that forced him to miss the final five games of the regular season and the postseason last season. A Dallas native in his third season at Tech, Toppin is coming off a junior season where he averaged 21.8 points and 10.8 rebounds per game and has been selected to the 2026-27 All-Big 12 Preseason Team along with being a Malone Award Preseason Watch List and NABC Player of the Year Watch List selection among other preseason nods. Toppin has played in 58 games over the past two seasons at Texas Tech โ averaging 19.8 points and 10.0 rebounds in a Red Raider uniform after playing his freshman season at New Mexico. In his first season at Tech, Toppin earned 2024-25 Big 12 Player of the Year and Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and helped to lead the Red Raiders to the 2025 Elite Eight. Through three NCAA seasons, he is 673-for-1,181 (57.0%) from the field and has grabbed 344 offensive rebounds (3.7 per game). He scored a career-high 41 points in an overtime win over Arizona State in his sophomore season and recorded six games with 30 or more points last season, including going off for 31 points and 13 rebounds in a road win at No. 1 Arizona last season. He suffered his season-ending injury at Arizona State on Feb. 17, 2026 late in the second half of a game he had 20 points, eight rebounds, four assists, four blocked shots and two steals. Toppin had 16 double-doubles in 25 games played last season.
Hoover is in his second season at Texas Tech after redshirting last year. A San Antonio native, he played at Samuel Clemens High School where he earned All-District Second Team honors and helped the team to the regional finals. He averaged 11.4 points and 8.8 rebounds per game as a senior. Hoover is a 6-foot-11 freshman with four years of eligibility remaining.
Bagayoko signed with Texas Tech on July 14, 2026 and joined the Red Raiders with a five-year period of eligibility. Bagayoko started against Kentucky in the exhibition game and went for 10 points and three rebounds in 20 minutes of playing time. He finished the game shooting 5-for-6 from the field and grabbed two offensive rebounds. A 6-foot-10, 210-pound international signee, Bagayoko joined the Red Raiders after playing professionally for Bilbao Basket in Spain (Liga ACB) where he helped lead the team to two straight FIBA Europe Cup titles. Originally from Bamako, Mali, Bagayoko moved to Spain when he was 12 and made history when he played as a 14-year-old for Baloncesto Fuenlabrada - becoming the youngest player ever to play in Spain's top professional league. Bagayoko, now 19 and with a 7-foot-6 wingspan, is coming off a season with Bilbao where he averaged 4.3 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. In his 2026 NBA Draft profile, Bagayoko drew comparisons to Clint Capela, Robert Williams and Jalen Duren for his athletic profile and defensive potential. Prior to an injury in 2022, his NBA Draft projection was a potential top-five pick for the 2025 NBA Draft according to the profile.
Stillwell signed with Texas Tech on August 7, 2026 and joined the Red Raider program as a 5th Year forward after playing at UCF last season where he recorded nine double-doubles and averaged 11.6 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. An Atlanta, Georgia native, Stillwell started his collegiate career by playing at Miami Dade College as a freshman, at Butler Community College as a sophomore and Milwaukee for his junior season before one season at UCF. At Milwaukee in the 2024-25 season, Stillwell averaged a double-double with 13.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game โ finishing the season with 16 double-doubles and earning All-Horizon League First Team and Horizon League Newcomer of the Year honors. Through two NCAA seasons, Stillwell has recorded 25 double-doubles, 763 points and 586 rebounds through 62 career games. Last season at UCF, Stillwell averaged 3.4 offensive rebounds per game (104 total) โ ranking second in the Big 12 and 25th nationally in the final statistics that met minimums. Among his season highlights, he grabbed 10 offensive rebounds and scored a season-high 21 points against VMI. In Big 12 play, Stillwell recorded three double-doubles, including producing 10 points and 10 rebounds against the Red Raiders. Stillwell recorded his final double-double of the season in the NCAA Tournament, going for 13 rebounds and 10 points in a loss to UCLA. His season had 21 double-figure scoring performances, including producing 18 points in a win at Kansas State. Stillwell is the only player in Milwaukee history to average a double-double for a season and was a finalist for the 2024-25 Riley Wallace Award. He had three 20-plus scoring performances at Milwaukee and scored in double figures in 28 games along with adding 40 steals and 12 blocks in the season. Starting his career at two junior colleges, Stillwell averaged 12.5 points and 10.5 rebounds as a sophomore at Butler CC after averaging 13.9 points and 8.4 rebounds as a freshman at Miami Dade College. He played his final prep season at Elevation Prep (Fort Wayne, Indiana) where he averaged 24 points and 11 rebounds per game.
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