TCU Men's Basketball: Frogs Return Home to Face West Virginia

TCU will return to Schollmaier Arena on Tuesday to host a West Virginia team that has no shortage of confidence. The Mountaineers (13-8, 2-6) come into the midweek conference matchup on a two-game win streak, including an impressive win over a ranked Auburn team in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

Fight ‘em on the ice 🥶#GoFrogs pic.twitter.com/j9k9AwZVfD
— TCU Men's Basketball (@TCUBasketball) January 31, 2023

The Horned Frogs, on the other hand, lost to Mississippi State in overtime, 81-74. TCU entered the game without Eddie Lampkin (ankle) and Rondel Walker (illness) and lost two more players during the game. Mike Miles exited early in the first half with a knee injury and Shahada Wells left the game with a wrist injury before eventually returning. It is more than likely that the Frogs will get Walker back for its matchup against West Virginia, but Miles and Lampkin will both remain out.

Head coach Jamie Dixon and his shorthanded group will be looking for revenge on Tuesday as the Frogs fell to West Virginia last time the two teams met. The Mountaineers jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, outplaying and out-physicalling the Horned Frogs throughout. Miles led the way for TCU with 21 points and 2 assists while Lampkin fouled out in 18 minutes, finishing with just 5 points and 3 rebounds.

With the absence of those two, the Frogs will be relying on the likes of Damion Baugh and Emanuel Miller to lead the way. In the team’s last meeting with West Virginia, Baugh and Miller each had 13 points; in last weekend’s loss at Mississippi State, Baugh scored 19 and Miller scored 13.

For the Mountaineers, Erik Stevenson is one player to watch. Stevenson is coming off a 31-point performance on 10/17 shooting, 7/10 from three-point range. He is averaging 13.9 points per game which is enough to lead his team in scoring. Another one to keep an eye on is Kedrian Johnson. Last time these two teams met, it was Johnson that hurt the Frogs. He scored 20 points on 5-8 shooting, going 10/10 from the free-throw line.

West Virginia ranks 44th nationally in turnovers forced per game with 15.33. In its previous win over TCU, the team forced 19 Horned Frogs turnovers which put TCU in a hole that it couldn't overcome. If the Frogs want to get back in the win column, they will have to take care of the ball, perhaps a tall task for a team without its starting point guard.

On the flipside, TCU leads the country in fastbreak points per game with 20.9 and its defense ranks 18th in turnovers forced per game with 16.67. The Mountaineer’s offense turns the ball over 12.9 times per game which is tied for 193rd in the country.

This game will come down to which offense can take care of the ball and which defense can force turnovers. Both defenses can cause mistakes for opposing offenses, but if TCU can do what its done all season and convert on the fastbreak, it will have the advantage.

The game will tip-off at 8pm central time on Tuesday and will be televised on ESPNU.

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