TCU basketball has its chance to show how ‘scary’ it can be in March Madness
Emanuel Miller is just happy that TCU basketball has a chance to play in March Madness. And he used the same word four times to describe the Horned Frogs going into the Big Dance.
“They gave us a chance, man. Now it’s on us to capitalize on it,” Miller said. “It’s going to be a scary, scary, scary, scary sight for Seton Hall and for any team we’re going up against. We know how much the fans got our back. We know how much the coaches believe in us. We know what we’re capable of. They gave us a chance. Now it’s time.”
The Horned Frogs went from being picked eighth in the Big 12’s preseason poll to a 9-seed in the NCAA Tournament. TCU learned its March Madness fate on Sunday as it’ll face 8-seed Seton Hall in a Round of 64 game on Friday night in San Diego.
Tip-off is set for 8:57 p.m. Central at Viejas Arena at Aztec Bowl. The game will be televised on truTV.
If TCU wins, it’ll advance to the second round and a likely matchup against 1-seed Arizona. The Wildcats are facing the winner of a 16-seed play-in game between Bryant and Wright State.
The Frogs (20-12) haven’t won a game in March Madness since 1987 when Jamie Dixon was a player on the team. Now Dixon is in his sixth season leading his alma mater and returns to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in his tenure.
Even though TCU and Seton Hall have never faced each other, Dixon knows plenty about the Pirates from his Big East days when he coached at Pittsburgh. Dixon is 7-4 all-time against Seton Hall.
“Obviously I have a long history with them,” Dixon said. “I saw them play recently. I think I saw them play against Creighton in one of their last games. I know coach (Kevin) Willard really well, good friend, good coach. He really runs good stuff offensively and very familiar with the school, the Big East obviously and what they’ve done. Two great conferences coming together.
“I thought we’d be seeded higher, mostly everyone I saw had us higher, but some things happen and we know we don’t have the 70-year tradition of a lot of schools. So we have to battle through some things, but we’re getting there. We’ll be ready. Looking forward to it.”
Most “bracketology” experts had the Frogs in the 8- vs 9-seed matchup, although the Frogs were usually listed on the 8-seed line. A few projected TCU as a potential 7-seed.
Regardless, TCU is a confident team going into the Big Dance despite little postseason experience on the roster. Micah Peavy is the only player who has March Madness experience, playing in the tournament as a true freshman at Texas Tech last season.
“It’s a different feeling this year just because of how we changed the culture,” Peavy said. “TCU hasn’t been to many NCAA Tournaments, so it’s a bigger feeling and a bigger accomplishment for us.”
TCU will be making its ninth appearance in the tournament. The Frogs went in 2018, Dixon’s second season, which snapped what had been a 20-year March Madness drought.
“It’s been a dream, but I never knew if I was going to achieve it or not,” TCU guard Francisco Farabello said. “I’m really, really happy that it happened.”
Added center Eddie Lampkin: “It feels good to know there’s more basketball.”
For TCU, reaching the tournament is a feat in itself but it believes it has the roster that can make a run.
The Frogs held their own by finishing fifth in the Big 12, considered the top league in the country, and are playing well down the stretch. They had consecutive victories over top-10 teams in Texas Tech and Baylor two weeks ago, and just knocked off No. 22 Texas in the Big 12 tournament.
“I feel like we’re peaking at the right time,” TCU junior guard Damion Baugh said. “We’re worried about the history (of TCU) but, at the same time, we’re here to create new history. That’s really our main focus right now.”
