Texas Tech’s Grant McCasland reveals text that inspired win over Houston

The Texas Tech basketball team continued a strong season on Saturday, with a Big 12 conference win over Houston. Following the game, Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland revealed a former Red Raiders player texted him before the game.

McCasland said that text helped inspire his team to victory.

“It’s funny, Chance McMillian texted me and said ‘let’s win this game’. He’s invested in this, and it reminds of his heart. They got the same fight to them,” McCasland said of his team, per The Daily Toreador.

#TexasTech head coach Grant McCasland on Donovan Atwell coming up big late in the game:

“It’s funny, Chance McMillian texted me and said ‘let’s win this game’. He’s invested in this, and it reminds of his heart. They got the same fight to them.” pic.twitter.com/Sw53p4quFB

— Cory Whitman (@CoryWhitmanDT) January 24, 2026

The Red Raiders improved to 16-4 on the season with a 90-86 win over the Cougars. Texas Tech has now won five in a row on the season.

Texas Tech got a big performance from JT Toppin against Houston

JT Toppin was on fire for the Red Raiders, in their win over Houston. He finished the game with a double-double, including 31 points. Toppin also grabbed 12 rebounds.

Texas Tech was able to smother Houston on the glass. It was a tough fact to stomach for Houston basketball coach Kelvin Sampson.

“They did an awesome, awesome job on the offensive boards,” Sampson said, per the Associated Press. “They did to us what we’ve made a living doing to other people.”

Texas Tech coach McCasland says the rebounding battle looked at times like a war was being fought out on the floor.

“There were some haymakers being thrown in that game. I mean, I’m talking like every time a shot goes up, it was just literal fighting,” McCasland said. “I mean, it’s not an easy way to play.”

Texas Tech basketball is proving to be a tough out once again in the Big 12 this season. The Red Raiders are a perfect 11-0 at home. The club also has nine wins now in their last 10 games.

Toppin was the star of the day for the Red Raiders. His play set the tone for the rest of the team. Following the game, the Texas Tech star was humble about his strong performance.

“Just do what I do best, trying to play for my team,” Toppin said. “We just kept staying together. I love these guys.”

Toppin now has 44 career double-doubles, per the Associated Press.

The post Texas Tech’s Grant McCasland reveals text that inspired win over Houston appeared first on ClutchPoints.