Know Your Foe: TCU Horned Frogs
The No. 6 West Virginia Mountaineers (17-7, 10-5) host the TCU Horned Frogs (12-11, 5-9) Thursday night at 7:00 EST on ESPN+.
TCU has dropped four of its last five games, including the first meeting with West Virginia just two weeks ago. The Mountaineers held a six-point advantage at the break before extending their lead to 15 in the second half and going holding on for the 74-66 win behind a game-high 23 points from guard Taz Sherman and a double double from forward Derek Culver with 18 points and 14 rebounds.
The Horned Frogs last two wins came over Iowa State, a team yet to win a Big 12 Conference game.
Junior guard RJ Nembhard (6'5", 200-lbs) is averaging a team-leading 16.6 points per game and led the Horned Frogs with 19 points in the first meeting against the Mountaineers.
“He’s playing really well,” said West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins heading into the first meeting versus TCU. “I think the thing that we’ve got to be prepared for is how hard he runs the floor. He really runs the floor, which really stretches everything out gives the other guys a little bit more space to penetrate and kick.”
Feb 23, 2021; Fort Worth, Texas, USA; TCU Horned Frogs guard RJ Nembhard (22) dribbles against West Virginia Mountaineers guard Sean McNeil (22) during the first half at Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena.
Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Mike Miles (6'1", 195-lbs) is second on the team in scoring at 13.8 ppg, but West Virginia held the freshman to just seven points. He followed it with a 19-point performance in the win over Iowa State but only mustered up a bucket in the Horned Frogs' last outing against Texas Tech.
“They really shoot the ball at times – they’re a bit streaky, but their young guys, the guys Jamie brought in, can really get it going, and when they get it going, they just spread you so far, they’re hard to guard,” said Huggins.”
Forward Kevin Samuel (6'11", 255-lbs) recorded his fifth double double on the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds versus the Mountaineers; it was only his second double double versus a Big 12 Conference member. He’s averaging 9.1 ppg and 8.1 rebounds per game while leading the league in blocks at 1.8 per game.
West Virginia is 15-3 all-time against TCU and is 8-0 against the Horned Frogs inside the WVU Coliseum.
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