TCU basketball looks to snap two-game losing streak back home against No. 18 Texas Tech
The TCU football team has long used “Protect the Carter” to emphasize the importance of winning at home.
The Horned Frogs men’s basketball team could use a similar battle cry for Schollmaier Arena.
TCU (12-5, 3-2 Big 12) hosts No. 18 Texas Tech (12-5, 3-2) at 7 p.m. Tuesday on ESPN+ after losing its past two games on the road at West Virginia and Oklahoma.
The Frogs didn’t just lose, they were trounced by a combined total of 50 points after struggling from the 3-point arc. In the two games, TCU was 15 of 59 on 3s.
The Frogs were especially cold in the first half against the Sooners, which put them in an early hole few teams could recover from, coach Jamie Dixon said.
“When you lose by 20 and lose by 30 there are a few things that go around, but it’s part of our league and it happens,” Dixon said.
“The biggest thing is responding mentally and physically. We have to make some shots. We’re relying on 3-point shooting so when you don’t make them it becomes pretty obvious and that’s what we’ve done the past two games. Especially early, that’s kind of setting the tone right now.”
Dixon wants better defense, too. The Mountaineers and Sooners shot 58 and 54% from the field against the Frogs.
“We can’t get into foul trouble, that was a big part of West Virginia. And we can’t give them 3s, that was a big part of Oklahoma,” he said.
Losing consecutive games in the Big 12 isn’t the end of the world. In fact, only No. 1 Baylor and No. 3 Kansas have yet to lose at least two conference games.
Frogs fans are encouraged to wear purple to go along with TCU’s purple uniforms against the Red Raiders.
“You’re not going to go undefeated in this league,” Dixon said. “We lost to two good teams on the road. We’ve got to win at home. We’ve taken care of home court and we’ve got to do that against a good team coming in.”
This story was originally published January 20, 2020 at 5:17 PM.
