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WICHITA, Kan. — Make no mistake about it. Chance McMillian wants to be on the floor with this Texas Tech basketball teammates. He would if he could, but the upper body injury he's dealing with makes it pretty much impossible right now.
Sitting on the bench as the Red Raiders began their run in the 2025 NCAA Tournament on Thursday wasn't where McMillian wanted to be. He certainly didn't like playing zero minutes in Tech's 77-64 win over Drake Saturday in INTRUST Bank Arena.
But McMillian is an optimist, positive to a fault and always ready with a smile and encouraging word. Sulking in his current predicament wouldn't be doing himself or Texas Tech any favors.
While McMillian isn't putting up the career-high numbers in March Madness like he did during the regular season, the fifth-year senior is still very much a part of the team. And he enjoyed everything about his teammates clinching a spot in the Sweet 16.
"This team is deep," McMillian said. "I know I'm not playing, but I'm not the focal point. I'm happy for my guys. It hurts I can't play, but I'm still happy. I'm still part of this team. Even if I don't play a second, I'm still happy."
HOW IT HAPPENED: Texas Tech basketball vs Drake live score: Red Raiders handle Bulldogs, advance to Sweet 16
To the Red Raiders, playing without McMillian, which some would consider a detriment, is exactly why head coach Grant McCasland built the team the way he did.
A variety of scoring options have been on display throughout the season, allowing even the best players to have an off night with somebody else ready to take the wheel. On Saturday, the Red Raiders just happened to be able to rely on its top two weapons in Darrion Williams and JT Toppin.
Facing an undersized Drake squad, Texas Tech made a point of attacking the paint. Two days after jacking an NCAA Tournament-record 46 3-point attempts against UNC Wilmington, the Red Raiders didn't take their first 3 until nearly eight minutes of game time had passed.
That's because Toppin and Williams, Tech's two first-team all-Big 12 performers, were at their best, accounting for 33 of the team's 37 points at halftime.
Williams had a game-high 28 points to go with 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. Toppin went for 25 points, 12 rebounds and 2 blocks. They did this while also fighting through their own injuries, each leaving the game for a spell. The lead never diminished in their absence, and Tech pulled away with the 13-point win anyway.
"I'm good," Williams joked after the game. "I was being dramatic, I guess."
Toppin's exit came with the Red Raiders needing to have five ball handlers and their best free throw shooters on the floor. The ability to have the Big 12 Player of the Year on the sidelines for the closing moments in an NCAA Tournament game, and the lead growing, was what McCasland wanted from the beginning, and it paid off in a big way.
Each of Tech's top three scorers either didn't play at all or got hurt in the game. One of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country going 2-for-14 from 3 against the Bulldogs. Didn't matter. Still won.
"Everybody is talking about how many 3s we shot. ... on Thursday," McCasland said, "but I think we showed that we can win in different ways."
WHAT'S NEXT?: Who does Texas Tech basketball play next in NCAA Tournament: Sweet 16 bracket update
The Red Raiders pounded the paint, outscoring Drake 50-20 in that area. They also had another masterful game from Elijah Hawkins, who set the Texas Tech single-season assist record with seven helpers.
Two days after getting hit in the jaw, cutting up his tongue so bad he was able to digest one true meal and some smoothies in the past two days, Hawkins played 37 minutes, had 16 points, was 10-of-11 from the free throw line and helped make Drake leading Bennett Stirtz work for a 9-of-19 shooting night.
"We just grinded it out, man," Hawkins said. "We've got a lot of dogs on our team. We always play for each other. One man go down, we got to pick each other up. We got Chance not playing right now, we just had to pick him up. Hopefully he'll be back for us, but whatever happens man, we just play for each other."
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: True depth of Texas Tech basketball on display in March Madness run
Continue reading...
Sitting on the bench as the Red Raiders began their run in the 2025 NCAA Tournament on Thursday wasn't where McMillian wanted to be. He certainly didn't like playing zero minutes in Tech's 77-64 win over Drake Saturday in INTRUST Bank Arena.
But McMillian is an optimist, positive to a fault and always ready with a smile and encouraging word. Sulking in his current predicament wouldn't be doing himself or Texas Tech any favors.
While McMillian isn't putting up the career-high numbers in March Madness like he did during the regular season, the fifth-year senior is still very much a part of the team. And he enjoyed everything about his teammates clinching a spot in the Sweet 16.
"This team is deep," McMillian said. "I know I'm not playing, but I'm not the focal point. I'm happy for my guys. It hurts I can't play, but I'm still happy. I'm still part of this team. Even if I don't play a second, I'm still happy."
HOW IT HAPPENED: Texas Tech basketball vs Drake live score: Red Raiders handle Bulldogs, advance to Sweet 16
To the Red Raiders, playing without McMillian, which some would consider a detriment, is exactly why head coach Grant McCasland built the team the way he did.
A variety of scoring options have been on display throughout the season, allowing even the best players to have an off night with somebody else ready to take the wheel. On Saturday, the Red Raiders just happened to be able to rely on its top two weapons in Darrion Williams and JT Toppin.
Facing an undersized Drake squad, Texas Tech made a point of attacking the paint. Two days after jacking an NCAA Tournament-record 46 3-point attempts against UNC Wilmington, the Red Raiders didn't take their first 3 until nearly eight minutes of game time had passed.
That's because Toppin and Williams, Tech's two first-team all-Big 12 performers, were at their best, accounting for 33 of the team's 37 points at halftime.
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Williams had a game-high 28 points to go with 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. Toppin went for 25 points, 12 rebounds and 2 blocks. They did this while also fighting through their own injuries, each leaving the game for a spell. The lead never diminished in their absence, and Tech pulled away with the 13-point win anyway.
"I'm good," Williams joked after the game. "I was being dramatic, I guess."
Toppin's exit came with the Red Raiders needing to have five ball handlers and their best free throw shooters on the floor. The ability to have the Big 12 Player of the Year on the sidelines for the closing moments in an NCAA Tournament game, and the lead growing, was what McCasland wanted from the beginning, and it paid off in a big way.
Each of Tech's top three scorers either didn't play at all or got hurt in the game. One of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country going 2-for-14 from 3 against the Bulldogs. Didn't matter. Still won.
"Everybody is talking about how many 3s we shot. ... on Thursday," McCasland said, "but I think we showed that we can win in different ways."
WHAT'S NEXT?: Who does Texas Tech basketball play next in NCAA Tournament: Sweet 16 bracket update
The Red Raiders pounded the paint, outscoring Drake 50-20 in that area. They also had another masterful game from Elijah Hawkins, who set the Texas Tech single-season assist record with seven helpers.
Two days after getting hit in the jaw, cutting up his tongue so bad he was able to digest one true meal and some smoothies in the past two days, Hawkins played 37 minutes, had 16 points, was 10-of-11 from the free throw line and helped make Drake leading Bennett Stirtz work for a 9-of-19 shooting night.
"We just grinded it out, man," Hawkins said. "We've got a lot of dogs on our team. We always play for each other. One man go down, we got to pick each other up. We got Chance not playing right now, we just had to pick him up. Hopefully he'll be back for us, but whatever happens man, we just play for each other."
You must be registered for see images
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: True depth of Texas Tech basketball on display in March Madness run
Continue reading...
