On the Pitch
No. 15/6 Texas Tech takes on No. 23/18 Baylor as part of the 2025 Big 12 Tournament in Ft. Worth.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
MATCHUP: No. 15/6 Texas Tech (13-2-3, 7-1-3 Big 12) vs. No. 23/18 Baylor (12-3-3, 7-3-1 Big 12)
TOURNAMENT: 2025 Big 12 Tournament Quarterfinals
DATE: Monday, Nov. 3, 2025
TIME: 11:30 a.m.
LOCATION: Fort Worth, Texas (Garvey-Rosenthal Stadium)
WATCH: ESPN+
On the Hardwood
Lady Raider Basketball tips off against the North Carolina A&T Aggies today at 6:00 p.m. at the United Supermarkets Arena. The game will be on ESPN+.
CBS Sports’ Isaac Trotter sorts out national title contenders by tiers and Texas Tech is in the 1st tier:
The path to the title: Grant McCasland does not have the deepest team, but the optionality throughout the eight-man rotation is tantalizing. The Anderson-Toppin two-man game should be outstanding, and Watts is the picturesque Darrion Williams replacement as a jumbo wing who loves to find mismatches with post-ups. Texas Tech’s offense could be one of the best in America because it has real-deal floor spacing and a vertical lob threat in Bamgboye, surrounding the nucleus of Toppin, Anderson and Watts.
Elite rim defense has become essential to win a National Championship. It’s why Bamboye was such a huge priority for Texas Tech in the portal. Opponents shot just 43% at the rim against VCU when Bamgboye was on the floor, per hoop-explorer. If he has a similar impact for Texas Tech, watch out.
Injuries feel like the only thing that could slow this team down, but you could say that about a ton of programs.
On the Gridiron
College Football Game Day will be in Lubbock for the BYU game. I have not watched a pre-game show in ages and will not do so on Saturday. Regardless, I recognize and appreciate that the college football world will be focused on Texas Tech and Lubbock for a weekend.
Palestine Westwood 2027 quarterback Kavian Bryant (6-2/185) committed to Texas Tech sometime in the second half of yesterday’s game. Bryant is a composite 5-star, but by each of the services he’s rated as a 4-star. I have no idea how to explain that and really don’t care. Based on the DCTF video below, Bryant is going to play both football and basketball and was recruited on both playing surfaces. Bryant was offered by everyone, but think he was down to SMU, Texas, Florida State, and Colorado in addition to Texas Tech.
Profile Links: On3 | 24/7 Sports | ESPN
According to 24/7 Sports, he’s the 31st best player and 3rd best quarterback, On3 says he’s the 29th best player and 2nd best quarterback and ESPN says he’s the 2nd best quarterback.
ESPN predicts the College Football Playoff field with Texas Tech largely receiving 9th place spots (except for your pal Bill Connelly who has Texas Tech 6th).
ESPN’s Heather Dinich projects the playoff field (but with more detail) and has Texas Tech 9th:
Need to know: If Texas Tech loses to BYU on Saturday but still wins the Big 12, it’s a CFP lock. The problem is that if the Red Raiders lose a second conference game, they’re going to need some help to reach the Big 12 championship. So a loss to BYU could be devastating to their conference and CFP hopes. If the Red Raiders beat BYU next Saturday but lose to the Cougars in the Big 12 championship game, they will still have a chance at an at-large bid as the Big 12 runner-up. They would be able to claim a win over the eventual Big 12 champs, which would be a much-needed boost to their résumé. It would depend in part on how the game unfolded.
Toughest remaining game: Nov. 8 vs. BYU. The Cougars are the only remaining opponent with a winning record, as Texas Tech ends the season against UCF (4-4) and at West Virginia (3-6).
CBS Sports’ David Cobb has winners and losers from week 10 and grades the playoff contenders. This is from the first link:
Winner: Texas Tech shows its mettle
No. 13 Texas Tech walked into a potentially thorny situation at Kansas State and walked out with a 43-20 win thanks to five turnovers from the Wildcats. K-State had won two straight and three of its past four to pick up some traction entering what amounted to a make or break game for the Red Raiders. With a massive showdown against No. 10 BYU awaiting next week, it may have been tempting for Texas Tech be in lookahead mode. In fact, a sluggish start suggested that may be the case.