Texas Tech Set for Sweet 16 Showdown Against Arkansas

The Red Raiders (27-8) are making their seventh Sweet 16 appearance in program history. Texas Tech advanced after a dominant 77-64 win over No. 11 Drake in the Second Round, following a record-setting 82-72 victory against No. 14 UNC Wilmington in the opener. Arkansas (22-13) earned its spot with a 75-66 upset of No. 2 St. John’s, two days after knocking off No. 7 Kansas in the First Round in Providence, Rhode Island.

Thursday’s game marks the 81st all-time meeting between the former Southwest Conference rivals. The series is tied 40-40. The teams last met in the NCAA Tournament in 2021, where Arkansas edged Texas Tech 68-66 in the Second Round.

Tech, now 21-21 all-time in NCAA Tournament games, is playing in its 21st tournament and has reached the Sweet 16 in four of the past seven appearances. The Red Raiders previously advanced to the Elite Eight in 2018 and reached the national championship game in 2019.

McCasland is 50-19 in his second season leading Texas Tech and has guided the Red Raiders to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. His squad features nine players with prior NCAA Tournament experience and a roster made up of five returners and eight newcomers.

Forward JT Toppin leads Tech with 18.1 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. He has 17 double-doubles this season, including a 25-point, 12-rebound performance against Drake. Darrion Williams added a season-high 28 points in the Second Round win, while Elijah Hawkins contributed 16 points and seven assists without a turnover.

In the opening-round win over UNCW, Kerwin Walton scored a career-high 27 points, making a school-record eight 3-pointers. The Red Raiders set a program NCAA Tournament record with 13 made 3-pointers and 46 attempts.

Hawkins, who ranks fifth nationally with a 3.40 assist-to-turnover ratio, became the program’s single-season assist leader during the tournament and now has over 800 career assists. He nearly recorded a triple-double against UNCW with 14 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds.

Texas Tech enters Thursday’s matchup, having won six of its last seven games. The Red Raiders finished second in the Big 12 with a 15-5 record, the best conference mark in school history, and earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time (1996, 2018, 2019, 2022).

Arkansas, under head coach Eric Musselman, is looking to return to the Elite Eight after falling in the Sweet 16 last year. The Razorbacks' upset over St. John’s was led by a balanced scoring attack and a strong defensive effort. The Razorbacks and Red Raiders are meeting for the first time since that 2021 NCAA Tournament thriller.

The winner of Thursday’s contest will face either No. 1 Florida or No. 4 Maryland in Saturday’s regional final, with a trip to the Final Four in San Antonio on the line.