TCU lands commitment from JC guard Olden

TCU has landed a commitment from Shawn Olden, a 6-foot-3 shooting guard at New Mexico Junior College, to join the men’s basketball team next season. Olden announced his commitment late Friday night on his Twittter account (@ShawnTH22). He wrote: “I have decided to further my education & basketball career at TCU. Much Love to all my family & friends. Thank you to everyone who has supported me & believed in my abilities.”

Olden, who played high school basketball in Tulsa, Okla. and began his college career at Pepperdine, will have two years of eligibility at TCU. He shot 38.4 percent from the field and 36.6 percent from beyond the arc while averaging 16.6 points and 4.2 rebounds per game this season at New Mexico Junior College. Among the other schools pursuing him were Kansas, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Missouri, Connecticut and UNLV.

In a phone interview Saturday, Olden said he picked TCU because he felt a connection with the staff and senses a team on the rise.

“It’s a good fit for me. On my visit, I really liked Jaylen Fisher and Alex Robinson,” Olden said of TCU’s starting backcourt tandem, both of whom will return next season. “There’s a need for me there. I think we’re going to win a lot next year.”

At Pepperdine, Olden averaged 9.2 points and led the team in 3-pointers during his freshman season before suffering a season-ending ankle injury early in his sophomore season. He transferred to junior college after the injury.

Olden joins a TCU class ranked among the nation’s Top 25 during the early signing period in November. TCU’s early signees included Keller guard R.J. Nembhard (6-foot-4, 180 pounds), who led the Indians this week’s berth in the Class 6A state basketball semifinals, as well as Australian forward Lat Mayen and Kevin Samuel, a 6-10 center from Houston’s Redemption Christian Home School Academy.

Based on early signees, TCU’s class landed a No. 23 rank nationally from 247Sports that stood third among Big 12 schools. TCU is 19-15 in its first season under coach Jamie Dixon, including Thursday’s 85-82 upset of No. 1 Kansas in the Big 12 men’s basketball tournament. The Horned Frogs, projected to play in the NIT, will learn their postseason tournament destination Sunday.

This story was originally published March 11, 2017 at 10:31 AM with the headline "TCU lands commitment from JC guard Olden."