Neutral-Site Gauntlet: Grant McCasland Breaks Down Texas Tech's Schedule

"In the Big 12, going from 20 games to 18 games, we needed to add a couple of games that we knew would be significant that matched the strength of schedule for our league," said Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland.

"There's just an edge that you have to compete with in the Big 12, and everybody says it, but there are no nights off. And so, how do you create that same intensity in the non-conference [schedule]?"

Seven of the 16 programs in the Big 12 made it to The Big Dance in 2024, and 12 teams were ranked inside the top 75 by KenPom at the end of the season. This season, the Red Raiders will face four teams — Illinois, Memphis/Purdue, Arkansas, and Duke — who are coming off of NCAA Tournament runs, allowing them to stack the résumé before conference play even begins.

However, only one will come in a true road environment. The Red Raiders play the first stage of a home-and-home with the Illinois Fighting Illini in 2025, with the matchup returning to Lubbock, Texas, in 2026.

Every other non-conference game will tip off at a neutral site: Wake Forest and either Memphis or Purdue in Nassau, Bahamas; LSU in Fort Worth; Arkansas in Dallas; and Duke in New York City.

A date with Duke at Madison Square Garden, a matchup met with emotion for Texas Tech fans, may be the most highly anticipated game on the schedule. However, McCasland also brought attention to the value of the games against LSU and Arkansas in the DFW metroplex.

"Playing in the Metroplex, I think, is a big deal, and having an opportunity to have, not only playing there, but having quality opponents and then trying to create a home-court, neutral-court combination," said McCasland.

Tech is playing LSU at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, the fourth time the program has played there, all since 2020. This is also the team's third year in a row at Dickies Arena; the Red Raiders have visited the stadium each year under McCasland's leadership.

Similarly, they face off in a renewed rivalry with Arkansas at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, home of the Dallas Mavericks, where the Red Raiders have not played since 2018.

McCasland sees the opportunity to tap into Texas Tech's fan base in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which could be crucial to elevating the Red Raiders' schedule. If the program continues to play games in the Metroplex, like they have in recent seasons, they could create a strong home-court advantage in a location that will be credited in bracketology formulas as a neutral site.

So far, the results have been middling; Tech went 1-1 over the last two seasons at Dickies Arena, with a loss against a Tournament-bound Texas A&M squad in 2024. However, establishing a foothold in the DFW area could prove fruitful in the long run, especially as the Red Raiders look to contend not just for the Big 12 but for national titles.

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