Big 12 Basketball: Preseason conference power rankings for 2023-24 season

10. Texas Tech Red Raiders

Last season: 16-16, 5-13 in the Big 12

Head coach Grant McCasland takes over the Texas Tech Red Raiders after leading the North Texas Mean Green to an NIT Championship and a 31-7 record this past season. He’ll look to make his mark in the Big 12 after leading the Mean Green to a 211-89 record and leading the nation in scoring defense the past two seasons.

Pop Isaacs (11.5 ppg) leads the five returning names for them while they’ll add former West Virginia guard Joe Toussaint, Darrion Williams (Nevada), KyeRon Lindsay (Georgia), Chance McMillian (Grand Canyon) and former Arizona State Sun Devil’s Devan Cambridge and Warren Washington.

They’ll have a nice mix of old and new for Coach McCasland to work with in his debut season in the conference. Toussaint and Williams are certainly names fans should know as instant impact additions. Toussaint is a familiar face from the Mountaineers who averaged 9.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 2.6 apg this past season. He’ll fit right into the defensive scheme McCasland will look to run.

Williams is an underrated forward who took home MWC Rookie of the Year honors in 2022-23 after posting 7.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.7 apg and 1.4 spg on 35.7 percent shooting from 3-point land and 41.4 percent shooting from the field. He’ll bring them some versatility this season at power forward role. This group could turn heads before it’s all said and done if they can figure things out in the backcourt.