TCU Men's Basketball: Horned Frog Host Scorching Hot Texas Tech

TCU (14-11, 7-7 Big 12) will host Texas Tech (20-5, 11-3 Big 12) Tuesday at 7 pm CT.

The Horned Frogs are playing their best basketball of the season, riding a hot stretch in which they have come out on top in four of their last five games. TCU has won two in a row, including Saturday's gutsy road win over Arizona State, and if the Frogs want any shot at resurrecting their postseason dreams, the good play will have to continue on Tuesday against the Red Raiders.

TCU has not lost a game on its home court since Jan. 22 and the environment inside of Schollmaier Arena should be the best that its been all season on Tuesday. The crowd will be charged up as it welcomes ninth-ranked Texas Tech to town, but also because the program is retiring Desmond Bane's jersey.

Texas Tech is playing just about as well as anyone in the country over the past few weeks and are arguably the best team the Big 12 has to offer at this point. The Red Raiders have won nine of their last 10, including a win over Houston on the road.

Grant McCasland got busy during the offseason, bringing in transfers J.T. Toppin, Elijah Hawkins and Kevin Overton. In addition to his additions, he also retained Chance McMillian and Darrion Williams, both of whom were role players on last year's roster. McMillian and Williams have blossomed into stars while Toppin is playing at a true superstar level.

In his last three games, Toppin has filled up the box score, tallying 32 points, 12 rebounds, and three blocks, 41 points, 15 rebounds, two blocks, and 21 points, 13 rebounds, and one block against Oklahoma State, Arizona State, and Arizona, respectively. He is leading his team in points (17.2), rebounds (9.1), and blocks (1.2). In Texas Tech's win over TCU in January, he scored 18 points and grabbed 14 rebounds. He has to be TCU's defensive priority.

True freshman David Punch will likely draw the matchup with Toppin. Expecting Punch, who has been playing at a high level defensively as of late, to handle Toppin on his own is unfair, but the Red Raiders talent makes it so that TCU cannot focus solely on Toppin.

Williams and McMillian, averaging 15.0 and 14.9 points per game respectively, are the best second and third options in the conference and it isn't close. Williams was out with an injury in Texas Tech's last meeting with TCU, but McMillian scored 16 points in the game. In the team's road win over Houston, McMillian scored a season-high 23 points. In the recent double overtime win over Arizona State, Williams scored 27 points.

TCU's defense as a whole will have to be excellent, but it's going to need help from the offense. The Red Raiders are an elite defensive team, but the Sun Devils scored 90 points in regulation last Wednesday. The Horned Frog's offense seems to be clicking right now, thanks to the consistency of players like Noah Reynolds and Vasean Allette and the surging play of Jace Posey, Malick Diallo, and Micah Robinson. Posey scored a career-high 20 points in TCU's road win over Arizona State on Saturday, and if the Horned Frogs can get even a fraction of that production, their chances of winning rise significantly.

Working in TCU's favor is its recent history playing against Texas Tech and other highly-ranked teams at home. The Horned Frogs haven't lost to Texas Tech in Fort Worth since 2019 and have won four of their last five home games against top-10 teams. The Frogs will have a chance to keep both streaks alive tomorrow.

With a win, TCU will find itself in bubble conversations for the first time all season. A win wouldn't be enough to clinch a March Madness bid, but it would put the team in the best position they have been in all season.

How to Watch, Listen and Stream: TCU vs. Arizona State

Tipoff - 7 pm CT, Tuesday, February 17th

Television - ESPN+

Play-By-Play: Lowell Galindo
Analyst: Tom Crean

Radio - : Talk Radio 1190 AM KFXR

Play-By-Play: Brian Estridge
Analyst: Neil P Dougherty
Online: Varsity App, GoFrogs.com
SiriusXM: 385

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How to Watch, Listen and Stream: TCU vs. Arizona State

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