TCU Men's Basketball Advances to Big 12 Quarterfinal with win over Oklahoma
Coming into this week, there was some doubt that TCU could be on the verge of missing the NCAA tournament after a rough stretch of basketball over the last couple of weeks. They put all those doubts to rest after defeating Oklahoma 77-70.
The depleted Sooners were without Rivaldo Soares, John Hughley, and Javian McCollum. The Horned Frogs had their number earlier in the season, but with all the injuries, this was an absolute must-win for this TCU team.
They got off to a strong start knocking down six of their first seven field goals to build a 21-9 lead. Jamie Dixon started Chuck O'Bannon for the first time this season and saw instant results as he knocked down a pair of triples to start the game.
Everything was going well in the first half, capped off by a miraculous heave by Micah Peavy from three-quarters court at the buzzer to give TCU a 45-31 lead.
That same mentality continued in the second half as TCU stretched out a 19-point lead. The inexperience of this Oklahoma team showed as they turned it over 18 times to the opposition that leads the nation in fastbreak points. The Frogs capitalized with 20 points off turnovers.
TCU was eating up the man defense run by the Sooners and things looked smooth until the Frogs looked a little complacent with their lead. Several possessions ended in bad shots at the end of the clock. They went the final 6:46 without making a field goal and the Sooners went on a 20-8 run. Luckily, the lead was so large that it was too little too late.
Emanuel Miller had a monster game scoring 26 points (the most ever by a TCU player in the Big 12 tournament) on 9-13 shooting with eight rebounds and three assists. His growth on the offensive end has been fun to watch over the course of his career, and his versatility was on full display, scoring from the low post, the elbow, and beyond the arc.
Jameer Nelson Jr. finished with 14 points and a team-high five assists. He also made all seven of his free throws. Ernest Udeh had his best game since returning from injury scoring nine points with three steals and two blocks.
TCU will play in the quarterfinal on Thursday against the number one team in the country, the Houston Cougars. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. on ESPN+.
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