Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland watched the No. 22 Red Raiders’ 82-81 overtime victory over No. 6 Houston on Saturday from the locker room after he was ejected less than four minutes into the game.
McCasland was assessed two technical fouls for arguing a flagrant 2 call on JT Toppin after Toppin appeared to kick Houston’s Joseph Tugler in the midsection on a jump pass.
“This is genuinely my thought: JT Toppin is a left-handed basketball player, and we worked against the double team,” McCasland said after the game. “He spun to throw the basketball with his right, but he gets crowded quickly, and he’s trying to throw with his left.
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“I don’t know. Maybe we should call Patrick Mahomes and ask him because if you’re in a throwing motion, and you have to switch hands and you’re a lefty, you’re going to have to throw your body in a way to torque it to throw it with your left hand. Your body is going to turn in such a way that your right foot is going to go forward to throw it.”
The officials reviewed the play, Toppin was issued a flagrant 2, McCasland argued and had to be held back while being escorted off the court.
“I don’t know what else to say,” McCasland said. “If your judgment is that this is something that we told him to try to do something in a double-team. Two things I love about JT Toppin: One, he was really excited to play in this game, and he competes and he’s done a lot to put himself in this position. He went to the locker room in complete disbelief. He did not know why. He still had no idea in regards to why. He’s basically in tears in the locker room.”
Texas Tech AD Kirby Hocutt posted a statement on X, formerly Twitter, saying he was “appalled and disappointed by the official’s egregious decision to eject JT Toppin.”
“This decision, made on a play that was clearly accident and without intent, is unacceptable,” the statement said. “Immediately after the ejection, I spoke with Commissioner (Brett) Yormark, who assured me that the situation would be addressed and there would be accountability.”
McCasland said there was “no conversation why they tossed me.”
Texas Tech’s victory ended Houston’s 33-game home win streak. Houston hadn’t lost at home since a Jan. 22, 2023 defeat to Temple.
The Cougars’ 18-game Big 12 winning streak and 13-game winning streak were also snapped.
Mahomes, a Texas Tech alum, did not publicly weigh in on the foul, but he was excited about the win.
Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said he was disappointed with the loss but the “toughest team won the game.”
“The story of the game was Texas Tech,” Sampson said. “They were awesome. Let’s give them a little credit. They lose their best big, they come into this gym and go to the free-throw line 34 times, make 12 3s and play great.”
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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