With five straight wins in their back pocket, No. 11 Texas Tech heads to Orlando this Saturday looking to keep the momentum alive against a scrappy UCF squad that’s been gaining steam in Big 12 play.
The Red Raiders (16-4, 6-1 Big 12) are coming off their most impressive win of the season - a 90-86 home thriller over No. 6 Houston that doubled as a statement and a bit of revenge.
Back on Jan. 6, Texas Tech dropped a tight one in Houston, but this time around, they flipped the script - and they did it with grit, glass domination, and a full-on JT Toppin takeover.
Toppin, the reigning Big 12 Player of the Year, was everywhere. He poured in 31 points, pulled down 12 boards, and played every single minute. That’s not just a double-double - that’s a full-court, full-throttle performance that reminded everyone why he's one of the most dominant forwards in the country.
“What I was most thrilled about is that we didn’t back down,” said head coach Grant McCasland. “It looked like they knocked us off-center when they got a lead in the second half and we looked tired.
It looked like we were trying to figure out what was left in our tank to finish. There was a lot of resilience in our timeouts.”
That resilience showed up in the paint and on the boards. In their earlier loss to Houston, the Red Raiders were edged out 36-35 in rebounding.
But in the rematch, they flipped the script in a big way - outrebounding the Cougars 44-28, including a staggering 21 offensive boards. That kind of effort on the glass doesn’t just win games - it sets the tone.
They also edged Houston 26-22 in points in the paint - not a huge gap, but enough to make the difference in a four-point game and enough to snap Houston’s 11-game win streak and end a 16-game road run that stretched nearly two years.
Toppin said it best: “In a game like this with as physical as they are, you have to have the same mindset of being tough.”
Toughness has become Texas Tech’s calling card. Toppin continues to lead the way, averaging 22.1 points and 10.9 rebounds while also protecting the rim with 1.7 blocks per game.
But he’s not doing it alone. Guard Christian Anderson has been a steady force in the backcourt, putting up 19.8 points per game while leading the Big 12 with 7.5 assists.
He also chips in 1.5 steals per game, making him one of the most well-rounded guards in the conference.
Now comes the next test - a road trip to face a UCF team that’s quietly building a résumé of its own.
The Knights (16-4, 5-3 Big 12) have won four of their last six and are coming off a wild comeback win over Arizona State that showed just how dangerous they can be when the game’s on the line. Down by 12 with just over six minutes to go and seemingly out of gas, UCF flipped the switch. They rattled off an 11-0 run, and in the final 35 seconds, Jordan Burks buried a go-ahead three and then forced a turnover to seal a 79-76 victory.
“We kept competing,” said head coach Johnny Dawkins. “You’re not going to make shots every night, and I try to instill that in our guys.
So you have to find another way. I’m glad these guys believed in the system enough to dig deep and find a way.”
That belief showed up in the clutch. Burks’ three was the exclamation point on a five-triple barrage to close out the game. Chris Johnson hit two, while Riley Kugel and Carmelo Pacheco each added one to fuel the rally.
Jamichael Stillwell, who averages 12.5 points and leads the team with 7.9 rebounds, summed up the team’s mindset: “You’ve got to fight adversity and stay together.”
Kugel leads the Knights in scoring at 15.1 points per game, with Themus Fulks right behind at 13.9 and a strong 7.2 assists per game. Between Fulks’ playmaking, Kugel’s scoring, and a deep supporting cast that’s proven it can step up in big moments, UCF has the tools to give Texas Tech a real fight.
Saturday’s matchup is more than just another conference game - it’s a chance for Texas Tech to solidify its place among the Big 12 elite, and for UCF to show it belongs in that conversation too. If both teams bring the same fire they showed last week, we’re in for another battle that could have March implications written all over it.