When TCU visits Oklahoma State on Tuesday night in Stillwater, Okla., both teams have an opportunity to rebound from a narrow defeat.
After dropping an 81-77 overtime contest at Cincinnati last Tuesday, TCU (13-5, 2-3 Big 12) fell on its home court for the first time this season on Saturday, as then-No. 24 Iowa State took a 44-26 halftime lead and held on for a 73-72 victory. It marks the Horned Frogs’ first two-game losing streak this season.
“Obviously, the goal this year was to not lose any home games,” TCU coach Jamie Dixon said after the Iowa State loss. “So I’m very troubled by that. I’m troubled by how we played, especially in the first half.”
Dixon often talks about a goal of committing 10 or fewer turnovers per game, but the Horned Frogs are averaging 23.0 over the past two contests. Ultimately, TCU’s 27 turnovers led to 36 points for Iowa State.
Oklahoma State (8-10, 0-5) has found itself in a tailspin, with five straight losses since Jan. 6. The Cowboys are 1-5 in the month of January and sit at the bottom of the league standings.
The most recent loss came at the hands of Kansas State on Saturday, 70-66. The Cowboys led 35-31 at the half but were outscored 39-31 over the final 20 minutes.
“I’m a process guy and a guy who understands this is a results-driven deal,” Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton said after the loss. “No one cares how it happened, the end result is we took another ‘L.’ But I tell our guys how proud I am of them and the way they competed for each other.”
Boynton added that the defensive effort shown from his team against Kansas State was improved compared to previous contests. The hope for the Cowboys is to maintain that defensive presence against TCU, which boasts one of the most potent offenses in the Big 12 and averages 75.6 points per game in league play.
“I thought this was the best we’ve defended in a really long time,” Boynton said. “We were able to schematically do some things that kept them off-balance.”
Emanuel Miller leads TCU with 16.3 points per game, followed by Jameer Nelson Jr. (10.8 ppg), Micah Peavy (10.7) and JaKobe Coles (10.4).
Javon Small is Oklahoma State’s top scorer (13.8 ppg). Bryce Thompson averages 12.7 points and Eric Dailey Jr. averages 10.0.
–Field Level Media