TCU seniors shine in spotlight, spark bounce-back victory in rout of Oklahoma

This TCU women’s basketball senior class of six that’s meant so much to the Horned Frogs’ success this year closed out their home careers in style Wednesday night against Oklahoma.

TCU coach Raegan Pebley gave each senior a curtain call, pulling them off the court one at a time in the final minutes to allow the home crowd to give them one last ovation, because there was no drama left in a 96-71 victory.

“They wouldn’t have wanted to come off the court (if the game was close),” Pebley said. “It was great that we could be in a situation that every single one of them had the opportunity to get their walk-off.”

The six seniors have helped account for 80 wins over the last four seasons and now have TCU in position to make its first NCAA tournament appearance in a decade.

After back-to-back losses for the first time all year last week knocked them out of the Top 25, the Horned Frogs responded in a big way against the Sooners (12-17, 5-12 Big 12) with a season-high 96 points. TCU broke open the game by outscoring Oklahoma 29-11 in the third quarter. TCU seniors accounted for 25 of those points.

The victory puts TCU (21-7, 12-5) in position to clinch the No. 2 seed in the Big 12 tournament if Texas loses Thursday night at No. 2 Baylor. The Horned Frogs close out their regular-season schedule Saturday at West Virginia.

Junior Lauren Heard led TCU with 23 points on 9-of-12 shooting against a Sooners team that lacks a senior. Senior guard Kianna Ray recorded her first double-double since her freshman year with 18 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists. Senior guard Jaycee Bradley added 13 points and three steals.

“We all had a little bit of extra fuel coming into this game knowing that we aren’t going to touch this court again for a game,” Ray said. “It’s surreal, but it really drove us to have that extra energy.”

The six seniors have accounted for almost two-thirds of TCU’s total points scored this season, more than half of the team’s total rebounds and 84 percent of the 3-pointers made.

Pebley took time after the win to talk about each senior. She said Ray has “made us a family.” She said guard Jayde Woods “made us tougher the day she came into this program.” Pebley called forward Adeola Akomolafe a “find-a-way and get-it-done person. She’s incredibly loyal.”

Pebley said Bradley “brought a perspective that our program is special.” She said transfer Michelle Berry “brought an element of fun and a breath of fresh air.” Pebley called Ella Hellessey “by far the best teammate I’ve ever coached. She set the standard.”

That was evident in the fourth quarter, as Hellessey’s senior teammates stood up from the bench every time she touched the ball and then celebrated wildly when she sunk a corner 3-pointer for her first points.

“I told them I’m not going to get emotional until it’s over,” Pebley said. “I’ve caught myself in practice the last week tearing up because I love coaching them and I’m just very aware that those moments are becoming fewer and that’s sad for me. I love them.”

Bradley said it was special to get pulled off the court one-by-one in the fourth quarter as the crowd rose to its feet to cheer on each senior.

“It was a very surreal moment,” Bradley said. “There’s a lot going through my head at that time.

“But there was a moment in the fourth quarter that we were in a team huddle at the free throw line and Kianna said, ‘We are playing unselfish right now.’ And we just all kind of looked at each other in the eye and said, ‘This is really fun.’”