TCU wary of Arkansas State, which also has won seven in a row

TCU men’s basketball coach Jamie Dixon did not need to lean on his extensive Big East experience to grasp Saturday’s potential danger when his Horned Frogs (7-0) face another team headed to Schollmaier Arena on a seven-game winning streak.

But one entry on this year’s record for Arkansas State (7-1) clearly jumps off the page heading into the 7 p.m. tipoff.

“I know they beat Georgetown, so we made that very clear to our guys,” said Dixon, who had many memorable battles against the Hoyas, a Big East rival during most of his 13 seasons at Pittsburgh. “We’re going to be playing a good Arkansas State team.”

TCU will counter with a successful squad of its own, as evidenced by its unbeaten November start to Dixon’s debut season at his alma mater. The Horned Frogs have won their last four games against teams with winning records and NCAA Tournament hopes, including two triumphs over Washington (4-3), a road victory at UNLV (5-2) and a home win over Illinois State (3-2), a team picked to finish second to Wichita State in this year’s Missouri Valley Conference race.

Arkansas State projects as a contender in the Sun Belt Conference and boosted its postseason hopes with the Nov. 17 victory at Georgetown (4-4). The Red Wolves held on for a 78-72 triumph after building a 23-point lead in the first half. The victory is part of the team’s seven-game winning streak since dropping its opener, 76-66, to North Dakota State.

TCU has won five of its seven games by double-digit margins, including Wednesday’s 86-71 victory over Washington in which the Horned Frogs erased a 17-point deficit in the first half. But the Frogs, who typically have thrived on the boards this season, were outrebounded by the Huskies, 46-33. Dixon pointed to that as an area of concern against the Red Wolves.

“We’re built on rebounding,” Dixon said. “That’s got to be our calling card. We’ve been doing it all year long and we certainly didn’t (against Washington). It’s really unexplainable. We’ve got to get that addressed and get it done for Saturday.”

This story was originally published December 2, 2016 at 11:50 AM with the headline "TCU wary of Arkansas State, which also has won seven in a row."