Emanuel Miller, Avery Anderson lead TCU basketball to huge win over No. 9 Oklahoma
It took a little longer than expected, but TCU finally secured its first marquee victory of the season with a 80-71 win over No. 9 Oklahoma on Wednesday.
It was the first Quad 1 win for TCU and should help bolster the Horned Frogs’ NCAA Tournament resume. TCU made sure not to let the pain from the controversial loss to Kansas carry over into preparation for Oklahoma.
“I think they responded (well), after the tough loss the other day we really made an concerted effort to focus on Oklahoma,” coach Jamie Dixon said. “I’m sure there were constant references back to it, but I thought it was a great message to our guys. They knew it was a trap to fall into to keep talking about the last game.”
While the game was tightly contested in the first half Emanuel Miller and Avery Anderson helped break the game open in the second half.
The key stretch started with just under 13 minutes to go as Oklahoma had just made it a two possession game, 55-50. Anderson and Miller hit back-to-back 3-pointers to stretch the lead back to double digits and force a Sooners timeout.
After a Sooners bucket, Anderson came down for another 3 at the top of the key and then converted a three-point play about a minute later. The Sooners were still hanging around and only trailed 67-57 with about seven minutes to go.
Anderson made one of the plays of the game as he blocked a shot on one end and knocked down a pull-up jumper on the other. Miller capped the surge with his third offensive putback of the game that made it 71-57 with less than five minutes remaining.
The Sooners were unable to get within double digits until the final minute when the game was already out of reach. Miller led TCU with 27 points while Anderson had 15.
“After the game at Kansas we knew we could compete with the best of them,” Miller said. “Kansas was No. 2, we feel like we can be ranked No. 1 because we can compete with anybody in the country.”
Steady Eman
After scoring 20 points against Kansas, Miller continued to put up impressive numbers against the No. 9 Sooners. Miller scored 10 points in the first half in a variety of fashions including a pull-up jumper from the post that briefly gave TCU a 21-19 lead midway through the half. Miller had another strong drive a few possessions later that made it 23-22.
When he wasn’t creating off the dribble, he was attacking the glass and keeping possessions alive. Miller stopped a 6-0 surge out of halftime by the Sooners with a strong putback. One of his biggest shots would come a few minutes later as Miller knocked down a corner 3 to give TCU a huge 61-50 lead with 10:29 to play. It was his fourth game in the last six with 20 or more points and most have come against quality competition.
“He’s evovled, he’s changed his game,” Dixon said. “He’s playing on the perimeter, he’s guarding on the perimeter. He’s a completely different player than a five man, which he was when he got here.”
Miller iced the game with his second corner 3 that made it 78-61 with just over two minutes to play. Miller is showing why he was voted preseason All-Big 12 and became the 40th player in program history to score 1,000 career points at TCU.
“I’m just blessed, I’m blessed to have a great supporting cast,” Miller said. “I’m blessed to be in this moment and I’m just blessed the whole TCU community cheered me on as I scored my 1,000th point.”
Transfer guards step up
Anderson and Nelson both had impactful moments during the Horned Frogs’ victory. Nelson came off the bench for nine points and made his first four shots including a 3-pointer. The Delaware transfer has looked more comfortable coming off the bench as the sixth man as it’s simplified his role. Nelson had 13 points.
Anderson continued his success against Oklahoma moving to 7-2 in his career dating back to his time at Oklahoma State. Anderson didn’t make a shot in the first half, going 0-for-8, but the experienced guard continued to be aggressive and was much better from an efficiency standpoint with 13 points in the second half. Anderson also had five assists and one turnover.
“I just found my rhythm throughout the game,” Anderson said. “I was sticking with it and not trying to change things up. If the right play was to find my teammate, then find my teammate. If the right play was to shoot the ball, then shoot the ball.
Nelson and Anderson also did a solid job on Oklahoma’s Javion McCollum. After hitting two 3s to start the second half, McCollum went over 17 minutes without a field goal as the lead continued to grow.
Closing strong
The first half between TCU and Oklahoma was much different than the Horned Frogs’ game against Kansas this past Saturday. That one was an up and down contest with superb shot-making on both ends, but Wednesday’s matchup against the Sooners started off as more of a grind.
Oklahoma kept the game at its pace by relying on the pick-and-roll to attack the middle of the TCU defense. Meanwhile the Horned Frogs were unable to get in transition most of the first 20 minutes. But the tenor of half began to change after the final media timeout. With TCU trailing 32-29, the Horned Frogs’ offense began to come alive
Essam Mostafa started the run with a bit of a lucky tip on an offensive putback, then Chuck O’Bannon converted a four-point play after he made a 3-pointer while being fouled. After forcing a turnover, Nelson stepped in and knocked down a 3-pointer of his own to bring the crowd to its feet. After an Oklahoma bucket, Nelson ended the half with a strong layup just before the halftime buzzer to give TCU a 40-34 advantage at the break.
This story was originally published January 10, 2024 at 10:14 PM.
