TCU struggles again from long range, but defense clicks for bounce-back win over Winthrop
Desmond Bane expressed confidence TCU would bounce back from Friday’s disappointing loss to USC in the inaugural basketball game at Dickies Arena.
Bane’s teammates proved him right on Wednesday night.
The Horned Frogs struggled from 3-point range once again, but defended well and found a way to pull away for a 70-60 victory over Winthrop at Schollmaier Arena.
“A good win,” coach Jamie Dixon said. “We defended well. I liked where we made some progress. We came back from a poor defensive outing the other day and made some strides and did some things.”
Sophomore guard RJ Nembhard led TCU with 15 points and six rebounds. Senior guard Jaire Grayer finished with 12 points, while Bane and sophomore forward Jaedon LeDee both scored 11 points.
TCU (7-2) finished the night by shooting 48.3% from the field, and a season-low 24% from long range (6-for-25). The Frogs shot just 26.3% from 3-point range in their loss to USC.
“I thought we got great looks,” said Bane, who finished 1-of-5 from deep. “Some days you’re going to make them and some days you’re not. It’s good to be able to win when you’re not making shots. I feel like we were able to do a lot of the little things, which is what Coach was really harping on. He said shots are going to go in sometimes, they’re not going to go in sometimes, but if you can consistently do those little things you’ll be able to win games.
“Against USC, I felt like the bright lights (were a factor) and we were worried too much about our shot. We’re getting back to doing the dirty work for sure.”
USC scored 80 points, including 47 in the opening half on Friday. TCU limited Winthrop to just 26 in the first half. This is a Winthrop team that knocked off a ranked Saint Mary’s team on the road last month.
So, despite its 4-6 record, Winthrop is a formidable Big South school from Rock Hill, South Carolina.
As Dixon said, “I think they’re a team that wins their league from what I know.”
The Eagles jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the opening 64 seconds, but the Horned Frogs responded. TCU went on a 12-0 run, highlighted by 3-pointers by Bane and Nembhard, and didn’t surrender the lead afterward.
The Eagles endured a 6-minute, 46-second scoring drought before making a couple free throws. They had a 7:52 gap between made shots from the field in the opening half.
But TCU made it interesting, failing to pull away in the first half. The Frogs led 29-18 with 1:54 left in the opening half, but the Eagles closed on an 8-2 run.
A 3-pointer by Winthrop guard Hunter Hale at the buzzer cut TCU’s lead to 31-26 at the break, and then Hale made another 3 to open the second half to make it a one-possession game at 31-29.
But the Horned Frogs started to pull away with a 9-0 run to take a 42-31 lead with 14:55 left. Grayer got it started with a 3-pointer, although TCU’s defense deserved much of the credit for the scoring runs.
“We really worked on it,” LeDee said. “Just locked in on defense.”
Winthrop didn’t get within one possession after that. The closest it got was 44-40 with 10:38 left, but TCU scored the next four points and took control of the game.
The Frogs were never threatened down the stretch. They ended up winning the rebounding battle by one, 42-41, and had one fewer turnover, 16-17.
But Dixon would like to see the Frogs finish games better. A 19-point lead with 2:02 left turned into a 10-point victory by the final buzzer. And the Frogs struggled again from the free-throw line, going 8-of-17.
“We’ve got to put teams away,” Dixon said. “It’s happened too much, but obviously problems occur with free throws and you don’t shoot it great, so that’s what we have to get better at.”
Winthrop was led by senior forward Josh Ferguson, who had 14 points, and Hale (11 points).
TCU returns to action against Lamar on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. at Schollmaier Arena.
This story was originally published December 11, 2019 at 9:07 PM.
