Game Info
Good Guys: Texas Tech Red Raiders (28-8)
Bad Guys: Drake Bulldogs (31-3)
When to Watch: Saturday, March 22nd @ 5:10 pm
Where to Watch: INTRUST Bank Arena | Wichita, Kansas
How to Watch: TNT
How to Listen: 97.3 FM | Affiliates | Varsity Network
The Line: Texas Tech -6.5
Advanced Stats
| TEXAS TECH | STAT | DRAKE |
|---|---|---|
Lineups
| THE STARTERS | Pts / Reb | |
|---|---|---|
| POINT GUARD | Elijah Hawkins (5-11/160) | 9.2 / 6.5* |
| SHOOTING GUARD | Chance McMillian (6-3/190) | 14.2 / 4.1 |
| SMALL FORWARD | Kerwin Walton (6-5/210) | 6.4 / 1.2 |
| POWER FORWARD | Darrion Williams (6-6/225) | 14.2 / 5.4 |
| CENTER | JT Toppin (6-9/225) | 17.9 / 9.2 |
| THE BENCH | Pts / Reb | |
| SIXTH MAN | Christian Anderson (6-2/165) | 10.7 / 2.3* |
| SEVENTH MAN | Kevin Overton (6-5/200) | 8.0 / 3.7 |
| EIGHTH MAN | Federiko Federiko (6-11/215) | 5.2 / 4.5 |
| NINTH MAN | Eemeli Yalaho (6-8/240) | 3.3 / 2.4 |
| TENTH MAN | Leon Horner (6-4/215) | 0.3 / 0.6 |
| ELEVENTH MAN | Jack Francis (6-3/185) | 0.3 / 0.3 |
| TWELFTH MAN | Corbin Green (6-5/230) | 0.0 / 0.5 |
| THIRTEENTH MAN | Jazz Henderson (5-11/175) | – / – |
| THE STARTERS | Pts / Reb | |
| POINT GUARD | Isaiah Jackson (6-3/180) | 3.9 / 2.0* |
| SHOOTING GUARD | Bennett Stirtz (6-4/180) | 19.2 / 5.6* |
| SMALL FORWARD | Mitch Mascari (6-5/200) | 9.7 / 2.2 |
| POWER FORWARD | Daniel Abreu (6-6/220) | 10.2 / 3.3 |
| CENTER | Cam Manyawu (6-8/228) | 7.2 / 5.3 |
| THE BENCH | Pts / Reb | |
| SIXTH MAN | Tavion Banks (6-7/200) | 10.0 / 5.1 |
| SEVENTH MAN | Kael Combs (6-4/190) | 3.5 / 1.9 |
| EIGHTH MAN | Isaia Howard (6-5/200) | 4.7 / 2.6 |
| NINTH MAN | – (-/-) | – / – |
| TENTH MAN | – (-/-) | – / – |
* Assists.
Starting 5
1. Stats. Drake is a really good offensive team with one glaring weakness (sort of two), the first is that they are a turnover machine, 289th in the nation in turnover percentage, and they also don’t make free throws, 263rd overall. What they do well is that they are great on the offensive boards, 18th, and free throw rate, 11th overall. They are a good shooting team, 93rd in 3-point shooting and 52nd in 2-point shooting. Defensively they are really good, but the one thing they don’t do well is defending 2-point shooting, 291st in the nation, and they tend to put teams on the line, 271st in opponent free throw rate. They are great at turnover over teams, 9th in the nation, and 20th in limiting offensive rebounds, 20th, and really good at defending the 3-point line, 59th.
2. Scouting. Stirtz is the straw that stirs Drake’s drink. Just a fantastic player and shooter. He is good at pretty much everything, a terrific shooter, 55% for his 2-point shots and 40% from deep. Stirtz has a high steal and assist rate, while not turning the ball over. He is a high usage player, but Banks has even a higher usage and he’s effective in all of the ways that Stirtz is not, which is that he’s a terrific rebounder, gets to the line, and doesn’t shoot the 3, but makes 57% of his shots inside the arc. Manyawu is going to rebound the ball. I’d also add that the Bulldogs have 3 volume shooters from deep, Stirtz, Mascari who makes 41% and Abreu makes 33%.
3. How They Match Up. Drake lost 3 games and it was largely because they didn’t play well defensively. They simply could not defend anything inside or outside the arc, and the opposing team made a good chunk of their 3’s. Texas Tech isn’t a team that necessarily turns the ball over, so Drake’s inability to keep the ball isn’t necessarily an advantage. My guess is that Drake will employ a defense to stop Toppin inside and maybe live-by-the-3, die-by-the-3 philosophy on the defensive end of things. I don’t know if that’s a solid philosophy, but Drake will have to pick and choose, and it’s not just Toppin, but also Williams who can bully his way around the basket.
4. lagniappe | something given as a bonus or extra gift.
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal’s Nathan Giese: Elijah Hawkins shows ‘championship level’ ability in Texas Tech basketball’s March Madness win
“I just do whatever my team needs me to do to win,” Hawkins said. “I don’t really pay attention to everything else, all the stats, who gets credit. I just know I do whatever to help my team win. And today that was doing everything.”
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal’s Nathan Giese: Old friends vying for Sweet 16 berth as Texas Tech basketball faces Drake in March Madness
Shortly thereafter, Midland College made it to the national JUCO tournament and met up with Emporia State, where McCollum had taken over as an assistant. The relationship between the three has blossomed since then — including fishing trips in Wyoming — making Saturday’s meeting one for strange bedfellows.
“It is what it is,” McCollum said. “You compete. I think for guys like myself and Jeff and Grant and all those guys, competition isn’t personal — it’s not a personal thing. It’s compete and take yourself to certain levels and see if we can beat them and they’ll see if they can beat us.”
McCollum said he felt like Texas Tech was a team capable of making the Final Four after that October scrimmage. McCasland has heard that from old friends before as Baylor coach Scott Drew said the same thing after their regular-season meeting in Lubbock.
ESPN’s Myron Medcalf: Men’s March Madness 2025: Ranking the remaining 32 teams
10. Texas Tech Red Raiders
Original seed: No. 3 (West)
First-round result: Defeated No. 14 UNC Wilmington, 82-72 (Thursday)
The Red Raiders are the only team to have a win over Houston since Nov. 30. They’ve played a top-10 defense all season, and they used that advantage to overcome a rough shooting night (28% from 3) against UNC Wilmington. They held the Seahawks to under 100 points per 100 possessions, the general standard for a good offensive output. Also, Texas Tech didn’t have Chance McMillian (14.2 PPG) and still scored 82 points. That’s impressive.
32. Drake Bulldogs
Original seed: No. 11 (West)
First-round result: Defeated No. 6 Missouri, 67-57 (Thursday)
Over the final month of the regular season, a Drake team that had lost just once since Jan. 5 had matured into one of America’s top defensive squads. And it showed Thursday, as the Bulldogs held Missouri — ranked fifth in adjusted offensive efficiency on KenPom entering the first round — to just 57 points, only the second time the Tigers have been held under 60 points this season. Bennett Stirtz (21 points), a Division II transfer, proved he can shine against any Division I team in the country.
ESPN’s Greg Peterson: Men’s March Madness 2025: Best bets for the round of 32
No. 3 Texas Tech vs. No. 14 Drake, 6:10 p.m. ET
Bet: Drake +6.5
Drake has the uncanny ability to slow anyone down, playing at the slowest tempo in the nation, and Texas Tech might not be at full strength. Chance McMillian, who averaged 14.2 points per game on 43.4% 3-point shooting during the season, was unable to play in Tech’s first-round matchup against UNC Wilmington. Even if he plays, he likely will not be at 100 percent, and Drake still has the most versatile player in this game with Bennett Stirtz. Stirtz has put up mind-boggling numbers this season with 19.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Drake, which ranks in the top 25 nationally in generating turnovers and not allowing opponents to grab offensive rebounds, has a good chance to keep this game tight.
CBS Sports’ Chip Patterson: 2025 March Madness predictions: NCAA bracket expert picks against the spread, odds in Saturday’s Round 2 games
(3) Texas Tech vs. (11) Drake
6:10 p.m. on TNT | March Madness Live: This is a wildly low line for two teams that operate at a pretty efficient clip on offense. Drake ranks No. 362 out of 364 Division I teams in transition but good offensive rebounding allows for even more chances to score in the half-court. As a sizable underdog, the Bulldogs will be chasing the game and can’t afford to milk away the clock. Texas Tech, meanwhile, boasts one of the most efficient offenses in the country, spaces the floor well and can heat up from deep. Something in the low 130’s seems more appropriate here given the shot-making ability on the floor for both teams. Pick: Over 127.5
5. Official Site. The official site has their preview right here:
A trip to the NCAA Sweet 16 is on the line when No. 3 Texas Tech takes on No. 11 Drake at 5:10 p.m. on Saturday in the NCAA Tournament Second Round at INTRUST Bank Arena. The Red Raiders (26-8) advanced with an 82-72 win over No. 14 UNC Wilmington on Thursday following the Bulldogs (31-3) and their 67-57 upset victory over No. 6 Missouri. The game is the first meeting between the two programs and will be broadcast on TNT while the Texas Tech Sports Network radio call can be heard locally on Double T 97.3 and the national radio coverage is on SiriusXM channel 211.
Kerwin Walton led Tech in its opening-round win, scoring a career-high 27 points after going 8-for-19 on 3-pointers. His eight 3-pointers established a new program record in the NCAA Tournament while the team set a new program tournament record with 13 made 3-pointers and an overall program record with 46 3-point attempts. Elijah Hawkins was one rebound shy of a triple-double, finishing the game by recording his sixth double-double of the season with 14 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. His 10 assists matched a program record in the NCAA Tournament and gave him 21 career games with double-figure assists. JT Toppin, who swept through the all-America honors along with being named Big 12 Player of the Year, went for 12 points and 11 rebounds in the first-round win over UNCW and is now leading Tech with 17.9 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. It was his 16th double-double of the season and 28th of his career along with bumping him up to 982 points and 603 rebounds in his career. Darrion Williams added 13 points and nine rebounds while Christian Anderson scored seven points as a starter with Chance McMillian out for the second straight game with an upper body injury.