LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Texas Tech men’s basketball (22-10) was picked as a No.5 seed in the Midwest Regional of the 2026 NCAA Tournament and will meet the No. 12 seed, Akron Zips (29-5) in the first round out in Tampa, Florida. This will be the Red Raider 22nd appearance in program history.
The Red Raiders enter the tournament off of a season that saw plenty of highs and lows.
Texas Tech ended the regular season with four top ten wins, and Grant McCasland became the first head coach since Bob Knight to lead the Red Raiders to three consecutive 20-win seasons. The Red Raiders also finished top four in the Big 12 earning a double-bye in the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament.
As for the lows, the Red Raiders have lost three games in a row as they enter March Madness. The most recent loss coming at the hands of the Iowa State Cyclones in the Quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament. Texas Tech will also have to continue to navigate the postseason without All-American forward JT Toppin. The Red Raiders have been playing without the former Big 12 Player of the year for the last six games, and will have to continue to do so for the NCAA Tournament.
On the other end, the Akron Zips are fresh off of a MAC Tournament Championship where they beat the fourth-seeded Toledo Rockets, 79-76, on Saturday at Rocket Arena in Cleveland to earn the league’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. This was the Zips third consecutive league tournament title as they became the first team in league tournament history to capture back-to-back-to-back championships.
Michigan is the No.1 seed in the Midwest Region.
Texas Tech and Akron are set to play Friday, March 20.
The other matchup out in Tampa has 4th seeded Alabama facing Hofstra.
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