Texas Tech basketball learns who its opponent will be in Legends Classic

Though most fans are focused on the upcoming Texas Tech football season, this week we got some interesting news about an intriguing matchup that the Texas Tech basketball team will take part in this season. Tuesday, it was announced that the Red Raiders will square off with St. Joseph's in the Legends Classic in Brooklyn, New York.

We had known for months that Tech would participate in this event along with Texas, Syracuse, and St. Joe's. However, until this week, we didn't know who the Red Raiders would face off with.

Naturally, every Red Raider fan wants the Red Raiders to meet up with the Longhorns during this event, which will take place November 21-22. That's the only time the teams would meet this year (unless they cross paths in the NCAA Tournament) thanks to Texas' move to the SEC.

While that's the game that everyone wants to see, the game against St. Joseph's will be one worth watching as well. This past season, the Hawks went 21-14 overall but did not qualify for the NCAA Tournament.

They are expected to be an improved squad in 2024-25, though. Senior guard Erik Reynolds II and sophomore guard Xzayvier Brown both return to form one of the better backcourts in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Last season, that duo averaged 30 points per game. Reynolds led the team at 17.3 p.p.g. earning first-team all-conference honors.

In this game, Tech will be looking to score its first-ever win over the Hawks. The last time these teams met was in the second round of the 2004 NCAA Tournament when St. Joe's was a No. 1 seed. That day, the Hawks walked away with a 70-65 win in what was the final college game for Red Raider legend Andre Emmett. The only other times these programs have met was in 1951, a 62-58 St. Joe's win in Philadelphia, PA.

While the Red Raiders have yet to announce their full non-conference schedule, we do know that the upcoming non-con slate of games will be tougher than last year's. Tech has already announced games against Texas A&M and DePaul to go along with the Legends Classic, which will provide two more resume-building opportunities.

It will be important for the Red Raiders to make the most of these non-con opportunities because there will be two fewer non-conference games this year. That's because the Big 12 has expanded to a 20-game conference season.

Hopefully, Grant McCasland's team will take care of business against St. Joe's and then get their shot at Texas in Brooklyn. Regardless, this event will be one that tells us quite a bit about who the Red Raiders are going to be in McCasland's second campaign.