Texas Tech Set To Face Alabama In Second Round Of March Madness Tournament

Red Raiders will be tested by powerful Crimson Tide offense in second round

Mar 20, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders head coach Grant McCasland in the second half against the Akron Zips during a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Benchmark International Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Texas Tech Red Raiders know their next matchup for the second round of the March Madness tournament.

The No. 5 seed Red Raiders of the Midwest region will face the No. 4 seed Alabama Crimson Tide in the round of 32. Tech took care of business early Friday, defeating the No. 12 Akron Zips, 91-71.

As for the Tide, they defeated the No. 13 seed Hofstra Pride, 90-70, to live to fight another day.

Texas Tech will take on Alabama on Sunday in Tampa, Florida. The winner of that matchup will take on the No. 1 seed Michigan Wolverines or the No. 9 seed Saint Louis Billikens in the Sweet 16 next weekend.

Can Texas Tech Finally Break Through Against Alabama?

This will be the ninth-ever matchup between these two programs. The Crimson Tide leads the all-time head-to-head matchup against the Red Raiders, 7-1.

Tech has only come away with one victory against the Tide, which came in the 1963-64 season. The Red Raiders have lost the last six matchups against the Crimson Tide. The last time the Red Raiders faced the Tide was in the 2013-14 season.

Alabama came out on top in that November 2013 matchup, 76-65.

However, these two programs are a lot different from how they were 13 years ago. Tech has established itself as a force to be reckoned with, led by head coach Grant McCasland.

McCasland has led his team to three consecutive March Madness appearances. He knows what it takes to win in the big dance, and he spoke on that after defeating Akron.

In addition, McCasland addressed the chatter about Tech's upset leading up to their match against the Zips.

"No, we didn't talk about it, honestly," McCasland said of the upset talk surrounding his team. "I mean, I've played in this game as a 13 seed and the more you make out of it, I just tried to show them the realities of this, this team [Akron] stinking good. They can put pressure on you, let's not make this more than what it is. If you put the number by somebody's name and try to determine how hard you're gonna play by a number, then you're dumb."

"If you put the number by somebody's name and try to determine how hard you're gonna play by a number, then you're dumb."@TexasTechMBB head coach Grant McCasland responds to conversations surrounding upsets and how the team approached today's game vs. Akron. pic.twitter.com/5arkQ5FIDT

— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) March 20, 2026

McCasland and his team took care of business and will now look to beat the Tide for the second time in program history.

Texas Tech entered the tournament without their best player, JT Toppin. Friday marked their seventh game without the All-American forward, and with the win, they improved to 4–3 in that stretch.

Sophmore star guard Christian Anderson has become the focal point of the team in Toppin’s absence. Following the win over Akron, he spoke about what worked for the team and how the group leaned on a collective effort without Toppin in the lineup.

“We practice how we want to play,” Anderson said. “Even when somebody like JT went down, guys were ready to step up.”

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