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WICHITA, Kan. — The Texas Tech basketball team unofficially opened up the 2024-25 season with a scrimmage against Drake. Six months later, the Red Raiders and Bulldogs will meet in the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament, where one team will see its season end and the other will earn a coveted spot in the Sweet 16.
The Red Raiders (26-8) and Bulldogs (31-3) each earned 10-point victories in their first-round March Madness matchups on Thursday, 3-seed Tech beating 14-seed UNC Wilmington 82-72 and 11-seed Drake upsetting 6-seed Missouri 67-57.
The game will pit one of the nation's best offenses in Texas Tech (80.9 points per game) against the national leader in scoring defense in Drake (58.38 points per game allowed).
Here's how the Red Raiders and Bulldogs stack up, which players to watch and predicting who will win the game.
More: Old friends vying for Sweet 16 berth as Texas Tech basketball faces Drake in March Madness
Drake is riding an eight-game winning streak after their first-round NCAA Tournament victory over Missouri. In that game, the Bulldogs withstood a late comeback attempt by the Tigers and wound up widening the gap, something Texas Tech did against UNCW.
Defense is Drake's calling card, and for Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland, it's not about the flashiness of the Bulldogs.
"Their switchability is one," McCasland said of what stands out in Drake's defense. "They don't like to do it much, but they have such good gap help. Their ball pressure is unbelievable. They don't give up angles. They know how to create turnovers with their hands. It's one of the most underrated teams at turning people over, even though they really have a gap mentality."
More: Elijah Hawkins shows 'championship level' ability in Texas Tech basketball's March Madness win
The Bulldogs average nearly 14 forced turnovers per game, ranking in the top 50 nationally.
Texas Tech, though, is one of the best at taking care of the ball. The Red Raiders average just 9.8 turnovers per contest, which is 25th in the country.
"They present a lot of issues offensively and defensively," Drake head coach Ben McCollum said, "and we need to find a way to kind of slow down some of those things."
Darrion Williams looked as fresh Thursday against UNCW as he had in a number of weeks. Texas Tech managed Williams' workload, and he admitted he was pretty rusty shooting — he was 5-of-15 from the field — but finished with 13 points and nine rebounds on the night.
"Couldn't make shots," Williams said, "but trying to do whatever I can for my team, not shooting bad ones. Obviously I want to make all the ones I missed, but I felt good."
Williams being as close to healthy as possible is a key component as the Red Raiders will likely be without guard Chance McMillian for a third game in a row.
More: March Madness meeting with Drake 'personal' for Texas Tech basketball's Kevin Overton
On the flip side, all attention is on Drake's Bennett Stirtz. The 6-foot-4 guard plays a smooth, controlled game and doesn't force the issue when defenses are focused on shutting him down.
For example, Stirtz took just three shots (making all of them) in the second half against Missouri, none of them coming until the 10:11 mark. In that time, Drake expanded its lead and wound up winning by double digits.
Stirtz is more than willing to work the ball around the court and wait for the right time to pounce. Patience will be a virtue in trying to contain him.
Score prediction: Texas Tech 78, Drake 77 — The Red Raiders have a decent size advantage in this one with nobody on Drake's roster matching the height of Texas Tech's 6-foot-9, Big 12 Player of the Year JT Toppin, who had a relatively quiet game against UNCW by his own standards. Look for Tech to exploit that matchup as much as possible, especially in the closing minutes.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Texas Tech vs Drake prediction, pick for March Madness second round
Continue reading...
The Red Raiders (26-8) and Bulldogs (31-3) each earned 10-point victories in their first-round March Madness matchups on Thursday, 3-seed Tech beating 14-seed UNC Wilmington 82-72 and 11-seed Drake upsetting 6-seed Missouri 67-57.
The game will pit one of the nation's best offenses in Texas Tech (80.9 points per game) against the national leader in scoring defense in Drake (58.38 points per game allowed).
Here's how the Red Raiders and Bulldogs stack up, which players to watch and predicting who will win the game.
More: Old friends vying for Sweet 16 berth as Texas Tech basketball faces Drake in March Madness
Scouting Texas Tech basketball's March Madness opponent: Drake Bulldogs
Drake is riding an eight-game winning streak after their first-round NCAA Tournament victory over Missouri. In that game, the Bulldogs withstood a late comeback attempt by the Tigers and wound up widening the gap, something Texas Tech did against UNCW.
Defense is Drake's calling card, and for Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland, it's not about the flashiness of the Bulldogs.
"Their switchability is one," McCasland said of what stands out in Drake's defense. "They don't like to do it much, but they have such good gap help. Their ball pressure is unbelievable. They don't give up angles. They know how to create turnovers with their hands. It's one of the most underrated teams at turning people over, even though they really have a gap mentality."
More: Elijah Hawkins shows 'championship level' ability in Texas Tech basketball's March Madness win
The Bulldogs average nearly 14 forced turnovers per game, ranking in the top 50 nationally.
Texas Tech, though, is one of the best at taking care of the ball. The Red Raiders average just 9.8 turnovers per contest, which is 25th in the country.
"They present a lot of issues offensively and defensively," Drake head coach Ben McCollum said, "and we need to find a way to kind of slow down some of those things."
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Player to watch: Texas Tech's Darrion Williams and Drake's Bennett Stirtz
Darrion Williams looked as fresh Thursday against UNCW as he had in a number of weeks. Texas Tech managed Williams' workload, and he admitted he was pretty rusty shooting — he was 5-of-15 from the field — but finished with 13 points and nine rebounds on the night.
"Couldn't make shots," Williams said, "but trying to do whatever I can for my team, not shooting bad ones. Obviously I want to make all the ones I missed, but I felt good."
Williams being as close to healthy as possible is a key component as the Red Raiders will likely be without guard Chance McMillian for a third game in a row.
More: March Madness meeting with Drake 'personal' for Texas Tech basketball's Kevin Overton
On the flip side, all attention is on Drake's Bennett Stirtz. The 6-foot-4 guard plays a smooth, controlled game and doesn't force the issue when defenses are focused on shutting him down.
For example, Stirtz took just three shots (making all of them) in the second half against Missouri, none of them coming until the 10:11 mark. In that time, Drake expanded its lead and wound up winning by double digits.
Stirtz is more than willing to work the ball around the court and wait for the right time to pounce. Patience will be a virtue in trying to contain him.
Texas Tech prediction vs. Drake: March Madness second round
Score prediction: Texas Tech 78, Drake 77 — The Red Raiders have a decent size advantage in this one with nobody on Drake's roster matching the height of Texas Tech's 6-foot-9, Big 12 Player of the Year JT Toppin, who had a relatively quiet game against UNCW by his own standards. Look for Tech to exploit that matchup as much as possible, especially in the closing minutes.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Texas Tech vs Drake prediction, pick for March Madness second round
Continue reading...
