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Texas Tech Star JT Toppin Earns Questionable Ejection Early in Game vs. No. 6 Houston
The No. 22 Texas Tech Red Raiders traveled to No. 6 Houston on Saturday in one of the biggest games of the day in college basketball.
In order for the Red Raiders to pull off a road upset, a big game was needed from sophomore star JT Toppin, who entered the contest averaging 16.4 points and 8.9 rebounds on 56.1% shooting from the floor on the season.
Unfortunately for Toppin, his night ended prematurely before the first media timeout of the first half, thanks to some suspect officiating.
Toppin caught a pass on the left wing and faced a double team. He jumped up to make a cross court pass, and his right leg caught the groin of Houston forward Joseph Tugler. The play didn't look intentional in the slightest, but upon review, Toppin was assessed a Flagrant 2 foul and was ejected from the contest.
Toppin came back onto the court after being assessed the technical, but was shocked when he realized he was ejected from the game.
JT Toppin just got EJECTED… for that?! pic.twitter.com/4vehWoxGTg
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) February 1, 2025
Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland was also ejected from the contest for arguing with the officials following the ejection.
The Red Raiders will now need to rally around the absence of Toppin for the rest of the game to pull off the upset in Houston.
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Mike McDaniel is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated, where he has worked since January 2022. His work has been featured at InsideTheACC.com, SB Nation, FanSided and more. McDaniel hosts the Hokie Hangover Podcast, covering Virginia Tech athletics, as well as Basketball Conference: The ACC Football Podcast. Outside of work, he is a husband and father, and an avid golfer.