Texas Tech Drops Regular Season Finale at BYU 82-76

Head Coach Grant McCasland expresses disappointment in second-half performance as Red Raiders head to Big 12 Tournament

Published on Mar. 8, 2026

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

The Texas Tech men's basketball team ended the 2025-2026 regular season on a two-game losing streak after falling to BYU 82-76 in Provo. Head Coach Grant McCasland was critical of his team's second-half effort, particularly their struggles on the glass and in the paint, where BYU outscored Texas Tech 48-14. Despite a strong first half that saw the Red Raiders hit 12 three-pointers, they were unable to maintain that momentum in the second half.

Why it matters

The loss drops Texas Tech to 4th place in the Big 12 standings, setting up a Thursday matchup in the Big 12 Tournament. While disappointed in the result, McCasland believes his team has the potential to bounce back and make a deep postseason run if they can address their second-half struggles, particularly on the defensive end and on the boards.

The details

Texas Tech jumped out to an early lead, hitting 12 three-pointers in the first half. However, BYU dominated the second half, outscoring the Red Raiders 44-30 and holding a significant advantage in points in the paint (48-14), second-chance points (20-9), and points off turnovers (13-3). McCasland cited his team's inability to get defensive stops and secure rebounds as the primary factors in the collapse.

  • The regular season finale took place on March 8, 2026.
  • Texas Tech will begin play in the Big 12 Tournament on Thursday.

The players

Grant McCasland

The head coach of the Texas Tech men's basketball team, who expressed disappointment in his team's second-half performance against BYU.

Texas Tech Red Raiders

The men's basketball team at Texas Tech University, who finished the regular season 4th in the Big 12 Conference.

BYU Cougars

The men's basketball team at Brigham Young University, who defeated Texas Tech 82-76 in the regular season finale.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What they’re saying

“The tale of two halves where we didn't defensive rebound well enough. When you make 12 threes in the first half, you would expect to have a better first advantage than whatever it was. We actually guarded them in a decent way in the first half, especially making them miss the first time. Our physicality was right. But you're only up 8 and they were really crushing us on the glass, and it continued in the second half.”

— Grant McCasland, Head Coach (Texas Tech Sports Network/Learfield)

“I thought this game on the road requires you to really have a competitive spirit together. What I look for in these games is when things kind of start to go against us, do we have a way that we wonder how it's going to happen? It just looked like a few times with a few guys still looking around like 'how is this going to happen?' instead of competing together in a way that believes it's going to happen.”

— Grant McCasland, Head Coach (Texas Tech Sports Network/Learfield)

What’s next

Texas Tech will begin play in the Big 12 Tournament on Thursday, where they will look to bounce back from the regular season-ending loss and make a deep postseason run.

The takeaway

Despite the disappointing end to the regular season, Texas Tech has the potential to make noise in the postseason if they can address their second-half struggles, particularly on the defensive end and on the boards. The Red Raiders will have a week to prepare and regroup before the Big 12 Tournament, where they will look to prove they are a force to be reckoned with.