No. 10 Texas Tech has highest preseason AP ranking and preseason All-America forward JT Toppin
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Monthly Digital Subscription
$1 per week for 24 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $4.00 plus GST every four weeks. After 24 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.00 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
Monthly Digital Subscription
$4.75/week*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $19 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Texas Tech (28-9, 15-5 Big 12)
The 10th-ranked Red Raiders have never started a season ranked so high. This is after being No. 8 in the final Associated Press Top 25 poll last season, matching the best in program history. They made it to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament before an 84-79 loss to eventual national champion Florida. Third-year coach Grant McCasland and Tech return standout 6-foot-9 forward JT Toppin and sophomore guard Christian Anderson, to go with five transfers and a highly touted freshman class.
Players to watch
AP preseason All-America forward Toppin is also the Big 12 preseason player of the year. The 6-foot-9 junior from Dallas averaged 18.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game in his Tech debut after his freshman season at New Mexico. Toppin had 19 double-doubles, including all four of Tech’s NCAA Tournament games.
Anderson was one of the Big 12’s top freshmen last season, averaging 10.6 points and 2.2 assists per game.
Departures and arrivals
Darrion Williams transferred to North Carolina State after averaging 15.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists at Tech last season, and guard Chance McMillian (14.2 ppg) exhausted his eligibility. Among the five incoming transfers is LeJuan Watts, a 6-6 junior who was Pac-12 newcomer of the year after averaging 13.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.4 assists at Washington State last season. Donovan Atwell averaged 13.3 points at UNC Greensboro, and Tyeree Bryan 10.4 at Santa Clara. The freshman additions include two Gatorade players of the year: 6-5 guard Nolan Groves in Minnesota, and 6-1 guard Jaylen Petty in Washington.
Top games
The Red Raiders get an early road test Nov. 11 at 17th-ranked Illinois. They have neutral-site games three consecutive weekends in December, against LSU at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth; against No. 14 Arkansas at the home of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks; then sixth-ranked Duke at Madison Square Garden. Their first Big 12 road game is Jan. 6 at second-ranked Houston, whose only conference loss last season was at home to Texas Tech.
Facts and figures
This will be the 101st season of Tech basketball. … McCasland got a new contract in May that extended him through the 2030-31 season. He is 51-20 at Texas Tech, and has gotten a contract extension after each of his first two seasons. He went 23-11 with an NCAA Tournament appearance in his 2023-24 debut.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball