How Does Big 12 Tournament Set Up For Red Raiders Postseason Hopes?
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Texas Tech secured the No. 4 seed after finishing the regular season with a 12-6 record in conference play and a 22-9 mark overall. The top-four finish gives the Red Raiders a double-bye into the quarterfinal round, allowing them to avoid the first two days of tournament action.
The tournament will take place March 10-14 at the T-Mobile Center, with the champion earning the conference’s automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.
Final Big 12 Standings
1. Arizona Wildcats (16-2)
2. Houston Cougars (14-4)
3. Kansas Jayhawks (12-6)
4. Texas Tech Red Raiders (12-6)
5. Iowa State Cyclones (12-6)
6. TCU Horned Frogs (11-7)
7. West Virginia Mountaineers (9-9)
8. UCF Knights (9-9)
9. Cincinnati Bearcats (9-9)
10. BYU Cougars (9-9)
11. Colorado Buffaloes (7-11)
12. Arizona State Sun Devils (7-11)
13. Baylor Bears (6-12)
14. Oklahoma State Cowboys (6-12)
15, Kansas State Wildcats (3-15)
16. Utah Utes (2-16)
Double-Bye Advantage
The double-bye provides a significant advantage for coach Grant McCasland and his team. Texas Tech will not begin tournament play until the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 12.
Under the bracket format, the top eight teams receive a first-round bye, while the top four seeds advance directly to the quarterfinals.
Texas Tech finished tied near the top of the standings in one of the nation’s most competitive conferences. Only Arizona, Houston and Kansas finished ahead of the Red Raiders in the final seedings.
With a No. 4 seed, Texas Tech enters the conference tournament with a competitive advantage that positions them to make a deep run with fewer games on its schedule compared with the majority of the field.
Can Tech Navigate Bracket?
Texas Tech will open the tournament against the winner of a second-round matchup featuring lower-seeded teams that must advance through the early rounds.
Teams such as West Virginia, UCF, Cincinnati and BYU sit in the middle of the bracket and could emerge as possible quarterfinal opponents depending on the early results.
The Cougars finished the regular season with a 9-9 conference record and will begin tournament play earlier in the week.
For Texas Tech, the primary focus will be regaining an offensive rhythm that carried the Red Raiders through much of conference play. Guard Christian Anderson has been central to that success since star forward JT Toppin's injury, leading the team in scoring and setting a program season record for assists.
Perimeter shooting also remains a strength for Texas Tech. The Red Raiders demonstrated that ability even in their regular-season finale, knocking down 16 three-pointers in a tightly contested game against BYU.
Find Way to Build Postseason Momentum
While the Red Raiders closed the regular season with a loss at BYU, the program still enters the conference tournament with strong positioning and an opportunity to build momentum before Selection Sunday.
Texas Tech split the season series with BYU and remained among the top teams in the conference standings throughout the year.
With experienced guards, reliable perimeter scoring and the advantage of additional rest, the Red Raiders enter Kansas City with a realistic opportunity to challenge for the conference title.
If Texas Tech can capitalize on its double-bye and advance through the quarterfinal round, the Red Raiders could find themselves only two wins away from a Big 12 championship and a strong position heading into the NCAA Tournament.
Even after going 0-2 this week, ESPN's Joe Lunardi still has the Red Raiders on the four-seed line going into Sunday. That bodes well for coach Grant McCasland's team that the selection committee takes Tech's full body of work in consideration even without their national player of the year candidate.
Big 12 Tournament Schedule
First Round (Tuesday, March 10)
No. 12 Arizona State vs. No. 13 Baylor (11:30 AM CT/12:30 PM ET – ESPN+) Game 1
No. 9 Cincinnati vs. No. 16 Utah (2:00 PM CT/3:00 PM ET – ESPN+) Game 2
No. 10 BYU vs. No. 15 Kansas State (6:00 PM CT/7:00 PM ET – ESPN+) Game 3
No. 11 Colorado vs. No. 14 Oklahoma State (8:30 PM CT/9:30 PM ET – ESPN+) Game 4
Second Round (Wednesday, March 11)
No. 5 Iowa State vs. Winner of Game 1 (11:30 AM CT/12:30 PM ET – ESPN/2) Game 5
No. 8 UCF vs. Winner of Game 2 (2:00 PM CT/3:00 PM ET – ESPN+) Game 6
No. 7 West Virginia vs. Winner of Game 3 (6:00 PM CT/7:00 PM ET – ESPN+) Game 7
No. 6 TCU vs. Winner of Game 4 (8:30 PM CT/9:30 PM ET – ESPN/2) Game 8
Quarterfinals (Thursday, March 12)
No. 4 Texas Tech vs. Winner of Game 5 (11:30 AM CT/12:30 PM ET – ESPN/2) Game 9
No. 1 Arizona vs. Winner of Game 6 (2:00 PM CT/3:00 PM ET – ESPN/2) Game 10
No. 2 Houston vs. Winner of Game 7 (6:00 PM CT/7:00 PM ET – ESPN/2) Game 11
No. 3 Kansas vs. Winner of Game 8 (8:30 PM CT/9:30 PM ET – ESPN/2) Game 12
Semifinals (Friday, March 13)
Winner of Game 9 vs. Winner of Game 10 (6:00 PM CT/7:00 PM ET – ESPN/2) Game 13
Winner of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 12 (8:30 PM CT/9:30 PM ET – ESPN/2) Game 14
Big 12 Championship Game (Saturday, March 14)
Winner of Game 13 vs. Winner of Game 14 (5:00 PM ET/6:00 PM CT – ESPN) Game 15
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Jacob is a contributor to Texas Tech and a seasoned journalist with over eight years of covering college football on digital platforms. He also contributes to Arkansas On SI and has previous writing experience at Saturday Down South and SB Nation. He is a graduate of Southern Arkansas University.
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