JT Toppin scored eight of his 31 points in overtime, bullying Arizona’s defense with tip-ins and post moves that nobody inside McKale Center could answer, and No. 16 Texas Tech stunned No. 1 Arizona 78-75 on Saturday in front of a sellout crowd of 14,688.
The Wildcats have now lost two straight after opening the season 23-0, and the Big 12 title race has been blown wide open.
Toppin’s Overtime Takeover Cements All-America Case
Toppin was unstoppable from the opening tip of the extra period. He scored Texas Tech’s first three baskets on a mix of putbacks and low-post moves, turning every Arizona miss into a second-chance nightmare. Donovan Atwell buried a corner three off a Toppin kickout to push the lead to 75-71, and Toppin added one more bucket to make it 77-73 with 1:18 left. Arizona never got closer than two the rest of the way.
The final line was absurd. Toppin finished 13-of-22 from the field with 31 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, and two steals in 44 minutes of work. It was his 16th double-double of the season and 47th of his career.
According to ESPN research, he became the first player in more than 20 seasons to post at least 30 points, 10 rebounds, and zero turnovers against an AP No. 1 team. The Big 12 Conference confirmed he’s only the second player in league history to record a 30-point double-double against the top-ranked team, joining West Virginia’s Devin Williams, who did it against Kansas in the 2016 Big 12 Championship Game.
“JT Toppin was not going to be denied at the end of this game,” Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland told reporters afterward.
Arizona forward Tobe Awaka, who had 16 points and 12 rebounds of his own, offered a scouting report that read more like a surrender.
“He has a really quick second jump,” Awaka told ESPN. “He has great body placement, in terms of the ball and tracking it down. He seems to always be in the right place at the right time.”
Toppin, Toppin, Toppin. The game is tied yet again ‼️#TTW | 📺 ESPN: https://t.co/xcUrGbZdBa pic.twitter.com/N7n35Z8km2
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) February 15, 2026
Toppin wasn’t alone. Christian Anderson played all 45 minutes and finished with 19 points, eight assists, and six three-pointers.
Atwell added 11 points after a scoreless first half, including the go-ahead corner three with 25 seconds left in regulation that capped a 9-0 Texas Tech run and erased a seven-point Arizona lead. The Wildcats held a 64-57 advantage with 3:29 left in regulation before going scoreless from the field the rest of the way.
That run was the dagger, even if the Wildcats didn’t know it yet. Ivan Kharchenkov tied the game at 66 with two free throws with 16 seconds remaining, but overtime belonged to Toppin.
Arizona’s 1-Seed Case Crumbles as Peat Injury Looms
A week ago, Arizona was 23-0 and sitting comfortably atop the AP poll. Now the Wildcats are 23-2 after consecutive losses to Kansas, 82-78 on Monday, and Texas Tech, and the cracks in their resume are real.
Arizona shot 39.3% from the field Saturday and went 4-of-16 from three-point range. Jaden Bradley was 4-of-14. The Wildcats scored a season-low 26 points in the paint against a Texas Tech team that matched them physically on every possession.
Worse, star freshman Koa Peat left with a lower-leg injury in the first half and didn’t return. He played just 11 minutes, scored two points, and didn’t attempt a field goal. Arizona was already without reserve forward Dwayne Aristode, who missed the game with an illness, leaving coach Tommy Lloyd with essentially a six-man rotation for the final 20 minutes and overtime.
“It’s a lower leg deal,” Lloyd said of Peat’s injury. “I know the doctors are on it and I’m sure they’ll do some testing and we’ll figure out where it’s at.”
Peat, a projected first-round NBA draft pick, is averaging 14.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.6 assists this season. Losing him for any significant stretch could be devastating given what Arizona faces next: BYU on Wednesday, then No. 3 Houston, No. 5 Iowa State, and a rematch with No. 9 Kansas across the next two weeks. Arizona’s schedule was always backloaded. Now it’s backloaded, and the Wildcats are limping.
Houston, meanwhile, beat Kansas State 78-64 on Saturday to move to 23-2 and 11-1 in conference play. The Cougars now sit alone atop the Big 12. Arizona (10-2) is a full game back, with Iowa State, Kansas, and Texas Tech all knotted at 9-3.
For Texas Tech, the win was the program’s third all-time over a No. 1-ranked team and third victory over a top-10 opponent this season. The Red Raiders are building an NCAA Tournament resume that’s starting to look like a protected seed. Toppin is averaging 21.5 points and 10.9 rebounds per game, numbers that would make him the frontrunner for Big 12 Player of the Year in most seasons.
Saturday was the stage he’s been waiting for. College GameDay was in Tucson. Caleb Love’s Ring of Honor ceremony was at halftime. The building was electric. And Toppin turned it into his own personal highlight reel, tip-in by tip-in, until the No. 1 team in the country had nothing left to give.