Indiana native Desmond Bane shines in TCU’s 90-70 victory over Indiana State

Jamie Dixon smiled at the thought TCU guard Desmond Bane had more motivation than usual on Sunday.

“Desmond is one guy we don’t have to worry about motivation,” Dixon said. “He’s in the gym endlessly.”

But make no mistake, Sunday’s game carried a little something extra for Bane, an Indiana native who wasn’t recruited by Indiana State.

So Bane put on his best shooting performance of the season in TCU’s 90-70 victory over Indiana State. The Frogs improved to 8-1 on the season, and are now on a five-game winning streak.

Asked if he had a little extra motivation, Bane said: “Oh for sure. That’s kind of been something that has stuck with me throughout my whole career, just schools that are in Indiana that didn’t offer me or take me. I really want to make a point any chance I get to play one.”

Basketball to Indiana is what football is to Texas, after all.

Bane remembers shoveling the driveway of his childhood home just so he could play basketball in the winter months.

“Cornfields everywhere, but basketball, basketball, basketball,” said Bane, who grew up in Richmond, Indiana, a town an hour east of Indianapolis.

“In the winter time, I’d shovel the driveway, put some gloves on and me and my friends would go out and shoot. It’s basically all you do out there.”

Bane didn’t get much in-state love coming out of high school, though.

Not even from Indiana State, a program far removed from its days of being coached by John Wooden and producing a player such as Larry Bird that carried it to the 1979 NCAA championship game.

The Sycamores have reached the NCAA Tournament just three times since they were runners-up with Bird in 1979. Did they show any interest in Bane?

“It wasn’t until after my whole high school season,” Bane said. “They texted and a couple of calls, but never an offer or a visit.”

Indiana State may regret that now.

Bane scored 17 points on 7 of 9 shooting from the floor, and also played a significant role in holding the best 3-point shooting team in the country – Indiana State entered by making 48.2 percent from long range – to its worst night.

The Sycamores were just 3 for 16 (18.8 percent) from 3-point range.

“We were just keying in on running them off the line,” junior point guard Jaylen Fisher said of the perimeter defense. “Not giving them clean catches and making them put the ball on the floor.”

Added Dixon: “We wanted to guard the perimeter. We wanted to take away the 3. We held them to 18 percent, so certainly a good sign. A lot of it was on those guys [guards Bane, Fisher and Alex Robinson] as well as JD [Miller] and Kouat (Noi).”

The Frogs never trailed in the game.

Bane scored the first points on a fast-break layup, and TCU pulled away midway through the first half with a 16-2 run. That run featured 3-pointers by Fisher and freshman Kaden Archie.

Bane and Robinson each scored nine points in the first half. Bane started the game 4 for 4 from the field, while Robinson finished with a team-high 20 points.

Fisher, who underwent a root canal and dealt with a calf injury this week, finished with 14 points, including four 3-pointers. Fisher has made at least four 3-pointers in five consecutive games.

“We got the all-time assist leader [Robinson] and another good shooter [Bane],” Fisher said. “It just feels easy right now because the floor is so spaced. You’ve just got to be ready when it’s your time.”