Texas Tech vs. Akron: NCAA Tournament Predictions & Preview

by BettingPros Staff |
Mar 15, 2026

The 2026 NCAA Tournament is officially here! The March Madness Bracket is set, and first-round NCAA Tournament matchups are in place. It’s time to make your picks and predictions for the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament! We’re here to help as we’ll have picks and predictions for each of the first round 2026 NCAA Tournament games. Here are our NCAA Tournament predictions and preview for Texas Tech vs. Akron.

2026 NCAA Tournament Predictions & Preview: Texas Tech vs. Akron

Here are the odds for this opening-round matchup of the 2026 NCAA Tournament. Let’s dive into our preview and predictions for this NCAA Tournament matchup.

Texas Tech 2026 NCAA Tournament Preview

JT Toppin tore his ACL at Arizona State on February 17th. After that game, the Red Raiders went 3-3. The Toppin loss is devastating in any evaluation of what Texas Tech could have been. And yet Grant McCasland has somehow kept his team at a level where it wouldn't be surprising if they made a run in March.

That starts with Christian Anderson. The 6-foot-3 guard averages 19 points, leads the Big 12 in assists and is on the John R. Wooden Award watch list. Donovan Atwell set the Texas Tech program record for single-season three-pointers this season with 124 and ranks second nationally with 3.9 threes per game on 45.4% shooting. The Red Raiders led the Big 12 with 11.6 three-pointers per game and have made 10_ threes in 25 out of 32 games. There is a clear offensive identity for Texas Tech that is not easy to stop.

Despite this team leaning on its perimeter shooting, the ceiling is seriously capped without its star. Across the whole season, without Toppin in the lineup, Texas Tech's defense dropped from 31st to 87th, and its turnover rate went from 16% to nearly 20%, 333rd in the country. The Red Raiders’ rim defense got worse, and their rebounding took a step back. Toppin was the only player on this roster who could legitimately rebound at an elite level against physical opponents, and his 10.8 per-game average is not something Luke Bamgboye, Lejuan Watts or Josiah Moseley can replicate.

Anderson and Atwell are legitimate wrecking balls who are good enough to lift this team to some tournament wins. Texas Tech’s shooting can get hot enough to take down any team, and its perimeter defense doesn't leave much to be desired. Whether the Red Raiders can get past losing one of the best players in college basketball is what the bracket will answer.

Akron 2026 NCAA Tournament Preview

No program in MAC history had won three consecutive conference tournaments. Akron just became the first. The Zips rallied from double digits down to beat Toledo on a buzzer three from Shammah Scott, winning their 10th straight game and securing their fourth NCAA Tournament appearance in five seasons.

This is a legitimate mid-major team, sitting at 64th nationally in KenPom, the highest ranking among programs from traditional one-bid conferences. The story is shooting. Scott has hit 42.2% from three on the season. Bowen Hardman, inserted into the starting lineup a month ago, is right behind him at 42%. Freshman Eric Mahaffey checks in at 40.3% off the bench. Then add Tavari Johnson (20.3 points per game, 5.0 assists per game, 37.9% from three-point range) and Amani Lyles (7.8 rebounds per game, 37.9% from three-point range on 116 attempts), and you have arguably the most complete perimeter-shooting roster in the field. All five of the players who logged significant minutes in the MAC championship are seniors or fifth-years. Akron is 19th nationally in minutes continuity, and the ball movement reflects it, as the Zips rank 64th in assist rate.

The concern is on the other end. The Zips rank outside of the top 250 in three-point defense and outside of the top 300 in opponent three-point attempt rate. Their lack of size is real, with Lyles at 6-foot-9 being their only player taller than 6-foot-6. They can be posted up and beaten on the glass, and teams will try to exploit that immediately. This will be a popular upset pick with their offensive efficiency, but the Zips appear to be quite matchup-dependent.

More NCAA Tournament Predictions & Previews

#1 Duke vs. #16 Siena
#8 Ohio State vs. #9 TCU
#5 St. John’s vs. #12 Northern Iowa
#4 Kansas vs. #13 Cal Baptist
#6 Louisville vs. #11 South Florida
#3 Michigan State vs. #14 North Dakota State
#7 UCLA vs. #10 UCF
#2 UConn vs. #15 Furman

#1 Arizona vs. #16 LIU
#8 Villanova vs. #9 Utah State
#5 Wisconsin vs. #12 High Point
#4 Arkansas vs. #13 Hawai’i
#11 Texas vs. North Carolina State
#3 Gonzaga vs. #14 Kennesaw State
#7 Miami (FL) vs. #10 Missouri
#2 Purdue vs. #15 Queens

#16 UMBC vs. Howard
#8 Georgia vs. #9 Saint Louis
#5 Texas Tech vs. #12 Akron
#4 Alabama vs. #13 Hofstra
#11 Miami OH vs. SMU
#3 Virginia vs. #14 Wright State
#7 Kentucky vs. #10 Santa Clara
#2 Iowa State vs. #15 Tennessee State

#16 Prairie View A&M vs. Lehigh
#8 Clemson vs. #9 Iowa
#5 Vanderbilt vs. #12 McNeese
#4 Nebraska vs. #13 Troy
#6 North Carolina vs. #11 VCU
#3 Illinois vs. #14 Penn
#7 Saint Mary’s vs. #10 Texas A&M
#2 Houston vs. #15 Idaho

Subscribe to the BettingPros Podcast

Navigate