Number of available Frogs for critical West Virginia game not enough to fill two hands
TCU coach Jamie Dixon didn’t make a definitive statement, but for all practical purposes his program may be down to a seven-man rotation for a stretch run that hopes to end with a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Dixon revealed after Saturday’s victory over Iowa State that freshman center Russell Barlow is dealing with injuries, which is why Barlow wasn’t part of the rotation. But Dixon stopped short of saying Barlow has sustained a season-ending injury.
Still, Dixon acknowledged the Frogs may just have a seven-man rotation the rest of the way.
”We’ll see,” Dixon said. “We’ll see. Seven-man sounds like a lot right now, but every day ... I don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow. Just keep going with what you have and we’ve done a pretty good job of that considering all that’s been going on.”
TCU had four players play at least 34 minutes in the Iowa State game on Saturday, including JD Miller, Desmond Bane, Alex Robinson and Kouat Noi. Freshman guard Kendric Davis played the fewest minutes (12), while fellow freshmen R.J. Nembard played 23 and Kevin Samuel played 18.
Most teams use a seven- or eight-man rotation in most games, but the issue for TCU is that this is all they’ve got. There is no real depth with five players having sustained season-ending injuries and/or entering the NCAA transfer portal (Jaylen Fisher, Yuat Alok, Angus McWilliam, Kaden Archie and Lat Mayen).
The Frogs pulled Barlow’s redshirt early on in Big 12 play, but he remains a developmental player. And Owen Aschieris is a nice story, going from walk-on to scholarship this semester, but he’s not someone an NCAA Tournament team wants to rely on down the stretch.
So TCU’s season is likely going to ride on those seven players. It’s a talented, quality corps if healthy. After all, it’s a crew that just knocked off a Top 25 opponent in Iowa State on Saturday.
But Dixon acknowledged the struggles of having limited depth, particularly when it comes to practice. The players say they are practicing hard, but the caveat is they aren’t going five on five.
”I’m glad they think they’re practicing hard,” Dixon said, with a chuckle. “They’re not playing five on five and guarding anybody, so that kind of says where we’re at right now. It’s an interesting concept. We’re going to find ways to get better without going and that’s what we have to do.”
Next up is a road trip to West Virginia for a Tuesday night matchup. TCU has never won in Morgantown, going 0-5 in its first five trips.
But this is a game TCU has to have as it looks to build a resume worthy of inclusion in March Madness. With four games remaining, TCU needs to go 2-2 to get to the eight-win mark in conference play, which has been a benchmark number in previous years to earn a bid.
With home games against Big 12 title contenders Texas Tech and K-State on the horizon, and a season-ending road trip at Texas on March 9, TCU’s best chance to get two wins is by beating lowly West Virginia and then pulling off an upset at home or winning at Texas.
As far as West Virginia is concerned, it is the league’s worst defense team; the league’s worst 3-point shooting team; the league’s worst team at defending the 3; the league’s worst field goal percentage team (40.9 percent); and the list goes on.
TCU is confident, of course. Despite the injuries and roster depletion, Saturday helped reaffirm its status as NCAA Tournament worthy.
”We’ve known we can do it all along,” Bane said. ”It’s just about putting it together and preparing the right way. It’s not really a surprise to us. We’ve just got to get the next one on Tuesday. Everybody in the league is tough.”
Dixon’s 100th
Tuesday’s game marks the 100th game in the Jamie Dixon era at TCU. The Frogs are 63-36 under Dixon, who has turned around the program in impressive fashion.
TCU won the NIT championship in Dixon’s first season, and then snapped a 20-year NCAA Tournament drought last season. If TCU gets another bid, Dixon will have led the program to consecutive postseason berths for the first time since the 1950s.
Dixon jokes that he isn’t to blame for the last 30 years of the program, but the progress remains impressive. TCU is setting firsts on a seemingly nightly basis under Dixon.
Briefly
▪ TCU is just 1-6 on the road in conference play this season.
▪ Dixon praised Nembhard after Saturday’s game. Nembhard finished with four points, two assists and two steals. Said Dixon: “He was really good for us defensively. That’s what we need out of him. I thought he did some really good things and made some good passes.”
▪ TCU missed 10 free throws on Saturday, including 0-for-3 by Samuel. Said Dixon: “Obviously we’ve been working on Kevin for a long time. You take out those three, it’s a little better. But JD [who was 4-for-7 from the line] has got to be better down the stretch for us.”
