Tech looks to extend its tournament performance against Northern Colorado | sport

Texas Tech men’s basketball (5-1) will look to learn from its inconsistencies in the UKG Legends Classic when it returns to United Supermarkets Arena to face the University of Northern Colorado (6-2) on Friday at 7 p.m.

The Red Raiders are coming off a 1-1 performance in the tournament in Brooklyn, New York, where they lost to Saint Joseph’s University 78-77 on November 21st before beating Syracuse University 79-74 on November 22nd defeated.

McCasland said the series was a learning experience for the team and allowed them to figure out how to win when the offense was out of sync.

“We have a team that is extremely capable of being a great defensive team,” McCasland said. “We play this game without fouls and we get into better shape so we can keep possession of the ball longer. We needed to expand that deep reservoir and expand our ability to protect for longer.”

Tech sophomore JT Toppin enters Friday’s competition with a hot tournament performance that earned him Big 12 Newcomer of the Week honors on Monday. According to Tech Athletics, Toppin scored in double figures in three straight games, including 22 points and 18 rebounds against St. Joseph’s, the most of his career.

McCasland said that while Toppin is hard on himself for not getting the wins, the young forward is showing Tech why they acquired him from the transfer portal this offseason.

“He has elite basketball sense and is an elite rebounder,” McCasland said. “JT was really upset after the St. Joseph loss and as a coach he played well. For all intents and purposes, you can go into the locker room and say, “I played well,” and he was the most upset in the locker room. That’s what I love most about JT right now.”

The Bears and Red Raiders share a connection with assistant coach Jeff Linder, who was Northern Colorado’s head coach from 2016-2020.

According to Tech Athletics, Northern Colorado is the second team the Red Raiders have played this season where Linder was the head coach. The first game was on November 13th against the University of Wyoming.

Tech head coach Grant McCasland said that while Linder is familiar with the Bears, the changes to Northern Colorado’s roster will bring new challenges that the Red Raiders have not experienced in the past.

“Their team is well coordinated and they have a good plan. They can trick you into playing the game a certain way,” McCasland said. “We are familiar with them, but you also play against a lot of personnel that are different. A lot of these games are driven by both personnel and scheme.”

Tech will try to extend its 34-game non-conference home winning streak on Friday, but will also continue to evaluate internally before conference play, McCasland said.

“They have a good team and we will have our hands full,” McCasland said. “We have to be ready to play. This will be a great opportunity to test ourselves.

Tickets, streaming options and live stats for Friday’s game can be found on the Tech Athletics website.