Texas Tech Becomes First Team Outfitted By Under Armour to Reach NCAA Men’s Basketball Title Game

With its 61-51 win over Michigan State in the Final Four on Saturday night, Texas Tech became the first men’s college basketball program outfitted by Under Armour to reach the national championship game.

Wreck ‘em and advance. @TexasTechMBB flexes their 🔒-down defense to #UnleashChaos on Sparty. The Red Raiders are headed to the Natty. 🏀 #WEWILL pic.twitter.com/tpA26ddHRA
— Under Armour (@UnderArmour) April 7, 2019

Under Armour placed just two teams in the 2014 NCAA Tournament — a number deemed “embarrassing” by CEO Kevin Plank — but that ballooned to 17 this year, otherwise known as 25 percent of the 68-team field. That includes national semifinalist Auburn, which dropped a heartbreaker to top-seeded Virginia, 63-62, earlier this evening.

“It’s a seminal moment. It’s an inflection point. It shows what you can do when you put your mind to something and write a good plan,” said Plank, who founded the Baltimore-based company in 1996. “We’ve demonstrated that you can win championships when you wear our brand.”

Under Armour has a chance to sweep both the men’s and women’s national titles this season, as the Notre Dame Fighting Irish take on Nike-sponsored Baylor Bears on Sunday. The No. 3 seed Red Raiders will then look to capture their first national championship on Monday, with tip off from U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis set for 9 p.m. ET on CBS.