Mark Adams was introduced as the new Texas Tech men’s basketball head coach on April 6.
On Nov. 9, his first basketball game in that position will take place against North Florida at 7 p.m. at the United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock.
Adams will lead a 14-man roster with nine transfers.
“This is an unusual team,” Adams said. “We have tremendous depth, and so every player on this roster has some strengths that can help this team, so one of our challenges is going to be how we can use those minutes and the pieces and put everybody together.”
He said they hope to fully figure out the rotation sooner rather than later.
“As a head coach, you’re always trying to not only find the best players to put on the floor,” Adams said, “but find those guys that can play well together. So we got a couple of challenges, but it’s a good problem to have when you have this much depth.”
Bryson Williams, a super senior transfer from UTEP, said the team is already “very cohesive” off the court, but many of the players were “the man” or in a different role at their previous school from the one they will take at Tech.
He said it will take some time to adjust, but they will need to figure it out since the regular season is just about to start.
Kevin McCullar, a returning junior who will be the primary point guard this season, echoed many of the same sentiments.
“You know, it’s always gonna take time,” McCullar said, “especially with new teams and the coaching change and a lot of new pieces coming in, you know, everybody’s still trying to find their niche and their role.”
He said players have been gelling together pretty fast so far, and once they get into the season, he said it should happen pretty quickly.
Ratings and Rankings
Texas Tech is ranked 12th in the nation in Ken Pomeroy’s ratings, only behind two Big 12 schools in Kansas and Baylor.
The Red Raiders are two spots ahead of Texas, the school previous Tech coach Chris Beard left for.
In the initial KenPom ratings, Tech’s defense is fourth in adjusted defensive efficiency.
Despite the high KenPom rating, Tech is unranked in the preseason Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls. Tech finished No. 22 in the final 2020-21 Coaches Poll.
Big 12 head coaches voted Tech to finish fourth in the conference in October, behind Kansas, Texas and Baylor.
Those three teams are all in the top 10 of both the AP and Coaches polls, yet they are the only three Big 12 teams in the top 25 of either.
Tech received votes in both polls, along with Oklahoma State and West Virginia.
Four teams in the Big 12 did not receive any votes in either poll: Oklahoma, TCU, Iowa State and Kansas State.
First Game: Tuesday v. North Florida
The North Florida Ospreys will come to Lubbock to start the season for both teams.
Adams said North Florida has an explosive offense, and Tech will need to defend the 3-point line heavily.
He said the Red Raiders are not a finished product, but playing North Florida will help them start on the path to getting better each game.
“From a head coach’s perspective, I’m never completely ready ‘cause it’s still a work in progress,” Adams said. “It’s not a finished product, but you know, I think we got to start some time, and once we get going, we’ll see some more of our weaknesses, and North Florida will expose some of those for us. You know, the objective is to keep getting better each game and get this team ready for Big 12 competition.”
Tip off is at 7 p.m. at the United Supermarkets Arena. A live stream is on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ with radio coverage on the Texas Tech Sports Network.
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