Red Raiders rise to No. 16 nationally

November 09, 2026 | Men's Basketball

LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech rose three spots to No. 16 in the Associated Press Top 25 College Basketball Poll after starting the season with two wins and now is set to play No. 3 Illinois at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at United Supermarkets Arena. The Red Raiders (2-0) have now appeared in a program record 31 straight releases of the AP Top 25.

Illinois, which advanced to the 2026 Final Four, will be the highest ranked non-conference opponent to ever play against the Red Raiders in Lubbock and the seventh non-conference top 10 team to make the trip. The previous highest ranked non-conference opponent was a No. 4-ranked SMU team on February 9, 1957 – with the Red…