Texas Tech basketball up to No. 6 in Coaches Poll

In the final round rankings for the regular season, the Texas Tech basketball program has moved up to as high as No. 6.

The co-Big 12 champion Texas Tech basketball team has reached its highest ranking of the season. In the final regular season poll, the Red Raiders come in at No. 6 in the Coaches Poll and No. 7 in the Associated Press Poll, both of which were released Monday.

After picking up two quality wins over Texas and Iowa State last week, Chris beard’s team jumped two spots in the Coaches Poll and one spot in the A.P. Poll. This is the 16th-consecutive week the Red Raiders have been in the polls after being ranked for the first time this season all the way back in week-four.

Gonzaga, Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky and Duke comprise the top-5 in both polls. In the A.P. Poll, Michigan State is at No. 6, just ahead of the Red Raiders.

As for the rest of the Big 12, co-champion Kansas State checks in at No. 14 in the Coaches and No. 15 in the A.P. Meanwhile, Kansas sits at No. 18 in the Coaches and no. 17 in the A.P. No other Big 12 teams are ranked but Iowa State and Baylor received votes in one of the polls.

Elsewhere, in the all-important NCAA Net Rankings, which is a data point used by the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee, Tech is now at No. 9 after sitting at No. 10 for several weeks. At No. 20, Kansas is the next highest-ranked Big12 team while Iowa State (23) and Kansas State (24) are both in the top 25.

And plenty of national pundits are giving the Red Raiders plenty of respect as well. Gary Parrish at CBSSports.com puts them at No. 7 in his latest rankings. He points out that Tech is 16-5 this year against teams in either Quadrant 1 or Quadrant 2.

At NCAA.com, Andy Katz has Tech at No. 8 in his power rankings, up four spots from last week. Katz is among the growing throng that believe Beard is making a strong push for national coach of the year.

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Somewhat surprisingly, Tech remained stagnant in Jeff Borzillo’s power rankings over at ESPN.com. He writes that Tech could earn a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament by winning this week’s Big 12 Tournament.

Tech is also at No. 10 in Molly Geary’s power rankings over at SportsIllustrated.com. Geary points out that Tech’s offense has been ranked 5th in the nation since January 31, making the Red Raiders one of the most dangerous teams in the nation.

It will be fascinating to see how the Red Raiders handle this week’s Big 12 Tournament. There is no doubt that Chris Beard will head to Kansas City with the intent of bringing home the title. That is the only way he knows how to operate and it is important for his team to maintain their intensity, which sets them apart from most teams.

But most believe that Tech has done enough to earn at least a No. 3 seeding and play their opening two rounds in Tulsa, the closest to Lubbock of any NCAA first-weekend site. Should Tech earn a No. 2 seed, they will likely still head to Tulsa to open the tournament but could also be in the Midwest Region, which would mean a trip to Kansas City for the second weekend. That would be a nice advantage because Tech will have played in the Sprint Center twice this season thanks to the Hall of Fame Classic in November and the Big 12 Tournament this week. The question is how for will Beard push to win three games in three days.

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Winners of nine-consecutive games, the Red Raiders are one of the hottest teams in the nation as the postseason begins. Now, it is time for Chris Beard and his team to validate their standing among the nation’s elite programs.

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