MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Fresh off its regular season sweep of Cincinnati, West Virginia returns to the road to face ninth-ranked Texas Tech on Saturday afternoon at United Supermarkets Center in Lubbock, Texas.
 
It will be the Mountaineers' seventh game against a nationally ranked opponent, and their sixth against a top-10-ranked team.
 
"They are a terrific team, just so balanced," West Virginia coach Darian DeVries said of the Red Raiders on his weekly United Bank Playbook segment posted online earlier today. "They've got great shooting everywhere. They've got playmakers and a terrific post. There is really not a weakness in their offensive attack, and that's what makes them so difficult. Plus, they really guard as well."
 
The post DeVries is referencing is former 6-foot-9, 225-pound New Mexico forward JT Toppin, who transferred to Texas Tech to improve his NBA Draft stock. The decision is paying off big time as the sophomore is leading the Red Raiders in scoring and rebounding with averages of 17.1 points and 9.2 rebounds per game.
 
Toppin is shooting an impressive 57.1% from the floor, while grabbing a team-best 69 offensive rebounds. He has also blocked 27 shots.
 
Texas Tech's perimeter scoring comes from 6-foot-9 senior guard Chance McMillian, who is shooting 45.4% from 3-point distance and is averaging 15.1 points per contest, and 6-foot-6 junior forward Darrion Williams, who is scoring slightly more than McMillian at 15.2 points per game.
 
Those three give Coach Grant McCasland's Red Raiders the most potent offensive trio in the Big 12.
 
The remainder of Tech's starting five consists of 5-foot-11 senior point guard Elijah Hawkins, averaging 9.2 points and 6.1 assists per game, and 6-foot-5 senior guard Kerwin Walton, averaging 4.8 points per contest.
 
Tech's top reserve is 6-foot-2 freshman guard Christian Anderson, who is averaging 9.6 points per game while shooting 40.2% from behind the arc.
 
"For the most part, they just want to spread you out, and then they make you make decisions and get you in close outs," DeVries said. "They really share the ball, too. They all play to their strengths. They all spot it up and are ready to shoot, and it's pretty simple, some of their stuff, but they're so good at it because they know exactly what they want."
 
Texas Tech (20-6 overall and 11-4 in Big 12 play) recently knocked off Houston in overtime during a seven-game winning streak that ended at Arizona on Feb. 8. Since then, the Red Raiders have won in double overtime at Arizona State, blown out Oklahoma State and lost by three at TCU on Monday night.
 
TCU took advantage of a 15-to-five free throw disparity to hold on for its biggest victory of the season. Texas Tech got 21 from Williams, 19 from McMillan and 14 from Toppin, but the rest of the team tallied just 12.
 
The Horned Frogs outrebounded Texas Tech 37 to 29 and got nearly half of their points in the paint.
 
On the other side of Saturday's game for Texas Tech is a Monday night rematch against Houston in Lubbock.
 
West Virginia, now 16-10 and 7-8 in Big 12 play, returns to the WVU Coliseum to take on TCU on Tuesday night.
 
Saturday's game will tip off at 1 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN+ (James Westling and Sean Harrington). Mountaineer Sports Network Radio coverage with Tony Caridi, Brad Howe and studio host David Kahn gets things started at noon on stations throughout West Virginia, online via WVUsports.com and the Varsity Network and WVU Gameday apps.
 
"They're really sound in what they do. They're versatile, and they've got good size and experience. They don't beat themselves at either end of the floor, and they are so well-coached in that way," DeVries concluded.