Anderson delivers career night as No. 10 Texas Tech defeats Lindenwood 98-60
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No. 10 Texas Tech men’s basketball tipped off its 2025-26 season with a 98-60 victory over Lindenwood on Tuesday night at the United Supermarkets Arena.
With forwards J.T. Toppin and LeJuan Watts out due to lower-body injuries, the Red Raiders got off to a slow start. After six total lead changes in the first seven minutes, all it took was a made three-pointer from guard Christian Anderson to pull away as he recorded a career night.
The stage was set for the sophomore guard to lead. Anderson led the Red Raiders after his first career double-double. He recorded a career-high 34 points and 11 assists in 37 minutes of play.
“He's composed, and he spent a lot of time doing it,” Grant McCasland, Tech head coach, said. “Though this is not because he's talented. He is talented, but it's because he works. This is a byproduct of his work, and it was great to see him get in a rhythm. He's a great teammate, and I thought he really did lead our guys today.”
First time in double-figures this season for @chrisanders2024 🚨
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) November 5, 2025
19th in his career! pic.twitter.com/IBkjLmZZCj
Before Anderson’s eclipse, Lindenwood gave Tech a back-and-forth look. The Lions took a 14-13 lead as Tech missed shots on multiple possessions in the first half.
A made shot from Anderson behind the arc at the 12:50 mark pulled the Red Raiders out of the stalemate. From then on, the Red Raiders didn’t look back. Tech went on a 20-5 scoring run over the course of six minutes to take the final lead of the game before halftime.
McCasland said the team's ability to outrebound Lindenwood after the inconsistent start was the key to finding a stride. Tech outboarded the Lions 59-43.
1H 16:00 | Lindenwood 8, Texas Tech 5
— Cory Whitman (@CoryWhitmanDT) November 5, 2025
The Red Raiders are struggling on the defensive side of the ball in the paint early in the first.
Four different Lindenwood players have recorded a basket.
“They haven't heard my voice enough, some of them, because we haven't got enough consistent practices and games together,” McCasland said. “We leaned into it and got better.”
Lindenwood failed to find any scoring momentum after that. The Red Raiders’ efforts extended beyond Anderson’s offensive scoring as Tech’s defense fended off any comeback attempts made by the Lions to close out its home opener.
McCasland emphasized the need to improve the team’s defense ahead of Tuesday’s game, and the team delivered. The Lions finished the night shooting 19-of-61 from the floor. Additionally, Tech’s defense limited the Lions to a 23.8 shooting percentage on 21 shots from the three-point line.
“We went into this game just with a scrap mentality, that we'd have to be great defensively and rebound,” McCasland said. Honestly, just the mentality and being like, ‘how physical can we be without fouling,’ because we did have a size disadvantage.”
The Red Raiders created extra opportunities on the floor with 13 forced turnovers. In return, Tech managed 17 points off of it to top off the wide scoring margin.
Tech guard Donovan Atwell added 22 points to aid the team’s lead in the second half. Standing at 6-foot-5-inches, true freshman guard Nolan Groves finished with 16 rebounds in his first game.
“Nolan's kind of gone through a lot just to transition to this level,” McCasland said. “You can just see, by the way he plays, this means a lot to him, probably too much in regard to how much he cares.”
The Red Raiders will return to the United Supermarkets Arena for a matchup against Sam Houston State on Friday at 7 p.m.
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Keith Inglis is a contributor for Texas Tech On SI with a passion for sports storytelling. He honed his journalism skills at the Daily Toreador, the university’s student-run publication, where he has covered Red Raider football, basketball, and tennis throughout his time at Tech.