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NCAA Tournament: What to know about Texas Tech, Drake's next opponent
Aaron Marner
Digital Editor
NCAA Tournament: What to know about Texas Tech, Drake's next opponent
JEFF, THANKS. DRAKE UNIVERSITY IS GETTING TO PLAY ITS FIRST GAME IN ROUND TWO SINCE 1971. THAT’S THANKS TO LAST NIGHT’S 6757 UPSET WIN OVER MISSOURI vlog. SHANNON EARHART IS WITH THE TEAM IN WICHITA. SHANNON, THIS IS HUGE FOR THIS PROGRAM. BEN, IT’S A CHANCE TO GO TO THE SWEET 16, THE SWEET 16. DRAKE DIDN’T WIN ITS FIRST OR IS ADVANCING TO THE SECOND ROUND FOR THE FIRST TIME. LIKE YOU SAID SINCE 1971. BUT HOW BIG OF A DEAL THIS IS? I’LL TELL YOU HOW BIG. THIS IS A DREAM COME TRUE. AND THEY HAVE THEIR LUCKY CHARM WITH THEM HERE IN WICHITA. DOLPH PULLIAM WAS ON THE 1969 FINAL FOUR TEAM THAT NEARLY BEAT LEW ALCINDOR, A.K.A KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR AND UCLA. DOLPH SPENT DECADES WORKING FOR DRAKE AS MARKETING DIRECTOR AND BROADCASTER. HE WAS ALSO A SPORTSCASTER HERE AT vlog. HE IS DRAKE’S LINK TO THE GLORY DAYS AND SAYS BEING HERE WATCHING DRAKE IS A DREAM COME TRUE WITH ME. IT’S LIKE TURNING BACK THE CLOCK AND YOU KNOW, FROM 56 YEARS AGO WHEN I PLAYED IN THE IN THE NCAA FINAL FOUR, BEING BACK WITH THIS TOURNAMENT, WATCHING THESE YOUNG MEN PLAY AND THEY’RE PLAYING, THEY’RE PLAYING WITH THEIR HEART. THEY’RE JUST GIVING EVERYTHING THEY GOT. AND SO ME AND MY FRIENDS, WE’RE STANDING BEHIND THE BENCH AND WE’RE SCREAMING AND YELLING, GIVE US FIVE MORE MINUTES. GIVE US THREE MORE MINUTES, BECAUSE THAT’S WHAT WE DO AND THAT’S HOW IT FEELS. YOU. WE’RE A KID AGAIN. I’M. I’M LIKE A KID IN A CANDY SHOP WATCHING THESE KIDS PLAY AND AND CHEERING FOR THEM. THEY HAVE BROUGHT SO MUCH ENTHUSIASM BACK. YEAH, YOU CAN TELL YOU SEE THEM BEHIND THE BENCH WITH ALL OF HIS. HE CALLS THEM HELLISH BAND OF BROTHERS IN THEIR WHITE SHIRTS AND BLUE TIES. HE WILL BE THERE ON SATURDAY WHEN DRAKE TAKES ON THE THREE SEED TEXAS TECH AT 510 ON TNT. YOU KNOW, DRAKE DID TALK TO THIS DRAKE TEAM EARLIER IN THE SEASON. AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SEASON, HE TOLD HIM, HEY GUYS, YOU CAN BE A FINAL FOUR TEAM. TO THINK THAT THEY HAVE ALREADY WON ONE GAME HERE IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT IS HUGE, AND THE PLAYERS SAY THEY CAN DEFINITELY HEAR THOSE BAND OF BROTHERS CHEERING GAME AFTER GAME.
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NCAA Tournament: What to know about Texas Tech, Drake's next opponent
Aaron Marner
Digital Editor
Drake's NCAA Tournament journey continues Saturday.The No. 11 seed Bulldogs advanced to the round of 32 with a win over No. 6 seed Missouri, 67-57, Thursday evening. No. 3 seed Texas Tech now awaits after the Red Raiders took down UNC Wilmington.Here's what to know about Texas Tech ahead of Saturday's second-round matchup.Drake vs. Texas Tech: How to watch and stream the NCAA Tournament gameWhen: 5:10 p.m. CT, Saturday, March 22Where: Intrust Bank Arena, Wichita, KansasTV: TNTLivestream: March Madness LiveAll men's NCAA Tournament games will be played on CBS, TBS, TNT or truTV, and all games will be streamed on March Madness Live. CBS games will also stream on Paramount+, while TNT, TBS and truTV games will also stream on Max.Tickets for Drake vs. Texas Tech in the NCAA TournamentThe NCAA still has tickets available for Saturday, which will get you into both the Drake vs. Texas Tech game and the Gonzaga vs. Houston game that will follow shortly after.Texas Tech NCAA Tournament history, stats and moreRecord: 26-8Conference: Big 12 (15-5; second place)NCAA Tournament history: A good chunk of Texas Tech's postseason history has occurred in the last decade.The Red Raiders have been to the Big Dance seven times in the last eight seasons and have made three trips past the first weekend, including a loss in the 2019 national championship game against Virginia. The Red Raiders have made the tournament both years since coach Grant McCasland was hired in 2023-24.Texas Tech's offense ranks No. 5 in adjusted efficiency according to college basketball analytics website KenPom. It is well above average in 3-point shooting (37.4%) and six different players are averaging more than one made 3-pointer per game.Texas Tech players to watch: JT Toppin, Darrion Williams, Kerwin WaltonThree players average 14 or more points per game for Texas Tech.Toppin, a second-team All-American and the Big 12 Player of the Year, is Texas Tech's driving force. He's a 6-foot-9 sophomore and averages 17.9 points per game to go along with 9.2 rebounds.Darrion Williams joins him in the frontcourt. Williams, a 6-foot-6 junior, averages a well-rounded 14 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists per game.Kerwin Walton averages just 6.4 points per game, but the fifth-year senior guard may have saved his best for last. Walton poured in a game-high 27 points in Texas Tech's first-round victory over UNC Wilmington, hitting eight 3-pointers and not taking a single 2-point attempt.Also of note: Chance McMillian, a 14-point-per-game scorer who leads the team in made threes, did not play in Tech's win over UNC Wilmington. He was considered a game-time decision and will likely have a similar designation going into Saturday's game vs. Drake. McMillian has missed two games in a row since leaving a Big 12 Tournament game vs. Baylor early with what the team has called an upper-body injury.Watch: Drake great Dolph Pulliam shares his excitement for Bulldogs' NCAA Tournament run» Subscribe to vlog's YouTube page» Download the free vlog app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play
WICHITA, Kan. —

Drake's NCAA Tournament journey continues Saturday.

The No. 11 seed Bulldogs advanced to the round of 32 with a win over No. 6 seed Missouri, 67-57, Thursday evening. No. 3 seed Texas Tech now awaits after the Red Raiders took down UNC Wilmington.

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Here's what to know about Texas Tech ahead of Saturday's second-round matchup.

Drake vs. Texas Tech: How to watch and stream the NCAA Tournament game

  • When: 5:10 p.m. CT, Saturday, March 22
  • Where: Intrust Bank Arena, Wichita, Kansas
  • TV: TNT
  • Livestream:

All men's NCAA Tournament games will be played on CBS, TBS, TNT or truTV, and all games will be streamed on March Madness Live. CBS games will also stream on Paramount+, while TNT, TBS and truTV games will also stream on Max.

Tickets for Drake vs. Texas Tech in the NCAA Tournament

for Saturday, which will get you into both the Drake vs. Texas Tech game and the Gonzaga vs. Houston game that will follow shortly after.

Texas Tech NCAA Tournament history, stats and more

  • Record: 26-8
  • Conference: Big 12 (15-5; second place)

NCAA Tournament history: A good chunk of Texas Tech's postseason history has occurred in the last decade.

The Red Raiders have been to the Big Dance seven times in the last eight seasons and have made three trips past the first weekend, including a loss in the 2019 national championship game against Virginia. The Red Raiders have made the tournament both years since coach Grant McCasland was hired in 2023-24.

Texas Tech's offense ranks No. 5 in adjusted efficiency according to college basketball analytics website KenPom. It is well above average in 3-point shooting (37.4%) and six different players are averaging more than one made 3-pointer per game.

WICHITA, KANSAS - MARCH 20: JT Toppin #15 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders attempts a dunk against the North Carolina-Wilmington Seahawks defense during the first half in the first round of the NCAA Men&apos&#x3B;s Basketball Tournament at INTRUST Arena on March 20, 2025 in Wichita, Kansas.  (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Jamie Squire
WICHITA, KANSAS - MARCH 20: JT Toppin #15 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders attempts a dunk against the North Carolina-Wilmington Seahawks defense during the first half in the first round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at INTRUST Arena on March 20, 2025 in Wichita, Kansas.

Texas Tech players to watch: JT Toppin, Darrion Williams, Kerwin Walton

Three players average 14 or more points per game for Texas Tech.

Toppin, a second-team All-American and the Big 12 Player of the Year, is Texas Tech's driving force. He's a 6-foot-9 sophomore and averages 17.9 points per game to go along with 9.2 rebounds.

Darrion Williams joins him in the frontcourt. Williams, a 6-foot-6 junior, averages a well-rounded 14 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists per game.

Kerwin Walton averages just 6.4 points per game, but the fifth-year senior guard may have saved his best for last. Walton poured in a game-high 27 points in Texas Tech's first-round victory over UNC Wilmington, hitting eight 3-pointers and not taking a single 2-point attempt.

Also of note: Chance McMillian, a 14-point-per-game scorer who leads the team in made threes, did not play in Tech's win over UNC Wilmington. He was considered a game-time decision and will likely have a similar designation going into Saturday's game vs. Drake. McMillian has missed two games in a row since leaving a Big 12 Tournament game vs. Baylor early with what the team has called an upper-body injury.

Watch: Drake great Dolph Pulliam shares his excitement for Bulldogs' NCAA Tournament run

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