In five days, the Grant McCasland era will officially tip off when Texas Tech takes the court at the United Supermarkets Arena against Texas A&M-Commerce. The Red Raiders recently took on former rivals Texas A&M in an exhibition in Denton, a contest in which Tech emerged victorious.

The exhibition was a good test for the Red Raiders, as the Aggies are expected to be one of the top teams in college basketball this season, led by SEC Preseason Player of the Year Wade Taylor IV. Though it will not officially appear in the record book, the game was an opportunity for McCasland to learn what his team is made of.

“It’s been a focus of our team, regardless of who we played in the exhibition, just like how well do we keep playing through mistakes?” McCasland said in a press conference Friday afternoon. “Cause early in the season, it seems like how you deal with disappointment, maybe yourself not playing good, and how quickly can you focus back on what the team needs us to play well… My favorite part was we made plenty of mistakes, but as the game went on, we stayed aggressive and we actually got better.”

As the contest wore on with A&M, the Red Raiders were forced to throw a variety of lineups on the floor, a by-product of the foul trouble that Tech found itself in. It allowed McCasland and his staff to assess players in different lights and how certain groups would mesh with each other in real time.

“We did play 10 guys, and foul trouble dictated a lot of that,” McCasland said. “Maybe some of the combinations we didn’t plan to see as early, but foul trouble helped us get a lot of different looks… It was close, and obviously foul trouble dictated some changes and timing, but I thought it was a good opportunity for us to see what the lineups look like. I do think we’ll make some changes, but in regards to the game, it was what we hoped.”

A major point of emphasis surrounding the offseason was the pace of play at which Tech would try to run offensively, with mission accomplished against the Aggies. The Red Raiders were also keen on firing away with the three-ball, launching 34 from beyond the arc and knocking in 14 of them. Guard play was key in helping set up the offense, but it was an unlikely source that really got the three-point game going for Tech.

“I’ve said it from the beginning, I think this team can shoot the ball well,” McCasland said. “If we can create opportunities for these guys, especially early in transition, we actually were 8-9 from three in transition, which is a crazy number. If we do that, we’ll have an opportunity to win a lot of games. But I think that all happened because of one person honestly, Warren (Washington). Warren did an unbelievable job running, and they run too, but (the defense) converged on him and really packed the paint and that opened up the opportunity. Everybody wants to talk about the guys that made threes, the assist guy was Warren Washington. He really created a lot of attention at the rim in transition. I thought he was the difference in us making threes.”

With the tip off of the newest era in Red Raider basketball on the horizon, the focus shifts from pure development to putting a product on the floor that can compete with the best in the nation. It may be an unfamiliar opponent coming into town in Commerce, but McCasland anticipates his team being ready when the season commences.

“In regards to the game, they’re physical, they play really hard,” McCasland said. “We’ve played against (coach Jaret von Rosenburg’s) teams in the past, they just have a way of competing and it’s kind of the way Jaret played. He’s just tough, so I would anticipate them being an aggressive team that will push tempo and play hard. We’re going to have to share the ball and really take care of the ball in order to be good. I do think our advantage will be around the rim. How do we not panic and get good shots against them? Because I do think we’ll have the opportunity to score, it’s just how do we want to score and being able to recognize that. They’re going to be a quality opponent and we anticipate a tough, physical game.”