TCU women's basketball turns home court into a weapon again

TCU women’s basketball (15-1 overall, 3-1 Big 12) rebounded from its first loss of the season with a 69-61 win over Oklahoma State (13-4, 2-2) and extended its home winning streak to 35 games.

“Two really good teams; they got a great ball club and coach [Jacie Hoyt] does a phenomenal job,” TCU head coach Mark Campbell said. “But I am so proud of our defense tonight. That's a team that can really drive and kick, and they have the ability to shoot a lot of threes. And our last game against Utah, that's what tripped us up on the road.”

Guard Olivia Miles dropped 20 points and dished out eight assists to pace the No. 13-ranked Horned Frogs. Center Clara Silva cracked double-digit scoring for the fifth consecutive game with 12 points alongside seven rebounds and three blocked shots. Forward Marta Suarez added 11 points while playing most of the second half with four fouls.

The victory came on the heels of an overtime loss last Saturday at Utah. The Horned Frogs failed to close out the Utes in the final minutes and got outscored 20-10 in overtime.

That loss taught TCU several lessons, which helped shift the tide against Oklahoma State.

Lessons that came into focus after the loss

“The Utah game was a great example,” Campbell said. “We weren't intentional in that fourth quarter. We were loose with the ball. We were loose defensively. And, so, every timeout, we just talked about finishing, finishing, finishing and talking and communicating.”

TCU nursed a five-to-seven point lead over Oklahoma State throughout much of the game. Oklahoma State tied the game in the third quarter and eventually erased another deficit to take a 51-50 lead with 6:59 left in the fourth quarter. TCU’s offense then caught fire completing a 13-5 scoring run over a four-minute span in the fourth quarter, highlighted by a Maddie Scherr 3-pointer off a fast break and a pair of layups from Silva.

Suarez hit two free throws and guard Donovyn Hunter added a fast break layup with 44 seconds left to seal the win.

“Kind of glad we got punched in the face and we had a little reality check, so we got better,” Miles said of the Utah loss. “MC challenged us, and we got right back to practicing and right back to what we knew would work.”

From the Oklahoma State side

Guard Jadyn Wooten scored a game-high 25 points for Oklahoma State and guard Stailee Heard added 23 points.

TCU women's basketball — TCU guard Maddie Scherr scored six points in a win over Oklahoma State. | Brian McLean - On Assignment Photo/KillerFrogs.com for TCU On SI

Oklahoma State entered the game as the Big 12 leader in 3-point shooting across makes (172), attempts (457) and percentage (37.6%). The Horned Frogs held the Cowgirls to 18% (4-of-22) from 3-point range, while making 50% (9-of-18) of their three-point attempts, and allowed just seven points over the game’s final five minutes.

“We missed some shots that you just have to finish in a game like that,” Oklahoma State head coach Jacie Hoyt said. “And those are some of the ones I wish we could get back, and I know our players do as well. And then credit to TCU. I know Maddie Scherr's been struggling to shoot since conference started. She knocked down some really big threes. They made big shots in big moments.”

Maddie Scherr's return is starting to click

Scherr finished with six points on 2-of-3 shooting from 3-point range. Scherr sat out last season’s historic run to the Elite Eight with a back injury and has been averaging 5.8 points per game this season. During conference play, her scoring has taken a dip with only two points through the previous three games, but she shined in the fourth quarter against the Cowgirls.

“It means everything to me,” Scherr said. “I was watching those moments last year, and it's a bittersweet feeling, because I love every single girl from last year and was so happy for them, every dagger three that they hit. But it's also a special type of feeling to be out there with these girls.”

TCU's bench players also stepped up with timely shots to help derail Oklahoma State scoring runs. Guard Taylor Bigby had nine points off three 3-pointers while Veronica Sheffey added four points, hitting both field goals she attempted.

Postgame: TCU Head Coach Mark Campbell

Postgame: Maddie Scherr, Olivia Miles & Clara Silva

Up Next

TCU will continue its two game homestand against Arizona State on Sunday, Jan. 11. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. from Schollmaier Arena.