Texas Tech’s JT Toppin Underwent Torn ACL Surgery Before March Madness
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Texas Tech forward JT Toppin underwent surgery on his torn ACL on Thursday, a day before the team's first-round matchup against Akron.
Texas Tech insider Nathan Giese shared the news via X.
"JT Toppin underwent surgery on his torn ACL this week and is not with Texas Tech in Tampa currently, if you were hoping to hear from him," Giese wrote.
JT Toppin underwent surgery on his torn ACL this week and is not with Texas Tech in Tampa currently, if you were hoping to hear from him.
— Nathan Giese (@NathanGiese) March 19, 2026
Giese added that the star forward is not with the team in Tampa, Florida. The Red Raiders will face the Akron Zips on Friday in their first tournament game.
How Big of a Blow Is JT Toppin’s Injury to Texas Tech’s Title Hopes?
Toppin suffered the injury in mid-February against the Arizona State Sun Devils. He suffered the injury as he was driving to the basket late in the contest with six minutes left.
Losing the 20-year-old for the rest of the season has been a major blow for the Red Raiders. Although the Red Raiders won the first three games without Toppin in the lineup, they finished the season 0-3, including losses to TCU, BYU and Iowa State in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament.
The Red Raiders will look to get on the right track, and they must if they want to make a deep run in this year's tournament. Toppin would have given Texas Tech tremendous odds of making another deep run; however, that won't be the case this season.
Tech has 130-1 odds to come away with the title this season.
Despite not playing for the last few weeks of the season, Toppin still earned a first-team All-American nod. It's been quite the season for the Dallas, Texas native. In the season, he's put up stellar numbers, averaging 21.8 points per game (11th in the country), 10.8 rebounds (seventh in the country), 2.1 assists, 1.7 blocks and 1.4 steals while shooting 54.8 percent from the field in 25 games and 34.8 minutes of action.
After losing Toppin for the rest of the season, McCasland spoke on what makes the junior forward so special.
"JT Toppin is genuine. He's an unbelievable competitor. He's real," McCasland said following the injury. "You know how much JT loves our team and how hard he competed and how much he cared about that group. To understand that this is difficult and JT has a long road, to watch him weep and see how much this meant to him is hard.
"I'm excited to see what comes of this, because the joy comes in the morning," McCasland continued. "There's also a lot of hope in this, and even for JT there's a lot of hope that he'll get better because of this."
Toppin's second season at Lubbcok was one for the ages. Prior to the 2024-25 season, he transferred to West Texas after spending his freshman season in New Mexico.
He made headlines last offseason when he passed on declaring for the NBA Draft and inked a $4 million deal to return to Tech.
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Ricardo Sandoval is a Sports Writer for On SI based in Los Angeles, CA. Ricardo has been writing about a wide range of sports and was also an Associate Editor for Dodgers Nation. Ricardo was also a Contributing Sports Writer for Newsweek's Sports Section specializing in NBA, NFL and College coverage. He is a contributor for Texas Tech On SI.