Red Raiders Gameday: No. 19 Texas Tech MBB Opens Season vs. Jackson State

LUBBOCK -- Preseason No. 19-ranked Texas Tech hosts Jackson State on Monday, Nov. 2, to begin the 2026-27 men's basketball season at United Supermarkets Arena.

The matchup will take place at 6 p.m. CT and broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.

READ MORE: Texas Tech's High Ceiling Comes with Major Roster Questions

"We’re excited about getting to play on Monday against a great Jackson State team," fourth-year head coach Grant McCasland said last week. "It’s wild that we’re here and playing games and getting to compete here in the USA. We’re excited and ready to play somebody else. I love our team and am excited about this game.

"This team is ready to take the step of playing meaningful games. That’s where Monday night will be great. We’ve watched Jackson State on film and they have good guard play and athleticism."

The Red Raiders are looking to extend multiple streaks against the Tigers.

Texas Tech is a perfect 3-0 in season openers under McCasland. In broader history, Texas Tech is on a 46-game winning streak in non-conference home games, 23 of which have been coached by McCasland.

Texas Tech's lone exhibition on the schedule came against No. 23 Kentucky at Rupp Arena in Lexington on Oct. 23. The Wildcats took a 76-65 win.

The Red Raiders were led in scoring by fifth-year returner Donovan Atwell and Damarion Dennis with 11 points each. Dennis, a Wyoming transfer, is one of five newcomers through the portal and nine new faces overall. Atwell joins the five returning players on this year's roster, led by All-American forward JT Toppin, who remains out as he recovers from last year's torn ACL.

“We needed to find a competitive group that also enjoys playing basketball and is resilient,” McCasland said about building this year's roster. “That was our focus in this. We have great scoring, size, versatility, experience – all the ingredients that you need. We’ve made a step in the right direction defensively. We were not great about playing without the foul at Kentucky and I thought our inexperience playing together showed up.

"Not the inexperience in one player, but how do you communicate it together in those environments. That was perfect and a great learning experience. I love this team because I think we have a combination of all of it. You can’t really tee us up from one way with us having answers for you. Ultimately, how tough we can be defensively will separate us and it will take us a little time until we get everybody back."

READ MORE: 3 Takeaways From Texas Tech's Preseason Loss at Kentucky

The Red Raiders, who have made the NCAA tournament in each of McCasland's three seasons at the helm, are building on their first season in program history in which they were in the national rankings each week of the season.

Jackson State, hailing from the SWAC, went 12-21 last season. Texas Tech leads the all-time series 2-0, most recently taming the Tigers 102-52 in 2022.