USC crashes the party at Dickies Arena, escaping with a victory over TCU
USC crashed the party Friday night.
TCU hoped to come away with a victory in the inaugural basketball game at Dickies Arena, and it almost rallied from an 18-point deficit for a stunning victory. But the Horned Frogs didn’t and instead left with a frustrating 80-78 loss.
“We just got down too much too early,” senior guard Desmond Bane said. “Happy that we fought the way we did, but unfortunately we came up short.”
TCU found itself trailing by as many as 18 early in the second half, but made it a game and had a chance to take the lead in the final seconds.
The Frogs tied it at 78 on a layup by center Kevin Samuel with 10 seconds left. Samuel was fouled in the process and had a chance to score the go-ahead point.
But Samuel, shooting just 28 percent from the free-throw line this season, missed the attempt.
USC brought it down the floor and scored the game-winning points with 0.2 seconds left. Trojans forward Nick Rakocevic tipped in a missed layup attempt by Ethan Anderson.
TCU coach Jamie Dixon wasn’t pleased that goal-tending wasn’t called on Rakocevic’s tip, saying: “The tip-in ... I’m sure if you see it on video you’ll have the same questions I have.”
As far as Samuel’s missed free throw, Dixon and Bane both defended the sophomore center. Samuel has been constantly working on his free throw stroke, despite the lack of results.
“It’s come a long way,” Dixon said. “We’ve changed the form to some degree. The main thing I want to get across is it’s not like he’s not working on it. He was in there early today. He’s working at it.”
Said Bane: “As long as he keeps putting in that work, it’s going to come for him. You can’t point the finger at Kevin. He saved us all night defensively.”
For USC, it served as a redemption game after being blown out by TCU last season at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
The Trojans were led by guard Jonah Mathews’ 20 points, and highly-touted NBA prospect Onyeka Okongwu had 13 points.
TCU, meanwhile, was led by Samuel’s 17 points and 11 rebounds.
USC jumped out to a commanding lead in the first half. The Trojans went on an 11-2 run to take a 39-25 lead with 3:40 left in the first half, had a 47-34 lead by halftime and scored the first five points of the second half for a 52-34 lead.
But TCU made it a game in the second half, fighting its way back in it.
The Frogs pulled within single digits, 59-51, on a pair of free throws by PJ Fuller with 12:05 left. A few minutes later at the 9:39 mark, they made it a one-possession game at 61-58 on a fast-break layup by senior guard Edric Dennis.
USC always seemed to answer when it got tight, though. After Dennis’ layup, Trojans guard Elijah Weaver drained a 3-pointer, and they got another 3 by Mathews to regain a 67-58 lead.
TCU eventually rallied late. The Frogs went on a 9-0 run in just over a minute to tie the game at 78 with 10 seconds left. Dennis scored the first seven points of that run, and Samuel delivered the game-tying points.
But Samuel couldn’t make the timely free throw. It was only the second free throw missed by TCU on the night (15 of 17), although the Frogs didn’t get to the line until the 15:44 mark of the second half.
In the end, TCU lost its second game by two points in a 12-day stretch.
“With a young team, with a new team, I knew we were going to hit adversity at some point,” Bane said. “It came a little earlier than I would’ve liked it to for sure, but we’ll respond and we’ll get better. I feel it’s good we’re being tested like this. We’ve lost to two good teams by a combined four points.”
An announced crowd of 5,656 attended the inaugural basketball game at Dickies Arena. The venue can seat 13,300 for basketball games.
TCU (6-2) returns to action against Winthrop on Wednesday. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Schollmaier Arena.
This story was originally published December 6, 2019 at 10:14 PM.
