TCU basketball aims to pick up first Big 12 win against Kansas State
After an encouraging performance on the road in its Big 12 opener at Arizona earlier this week, the TCU men’s basketball team returns to Schollmaier Arena on Saturday seeking to get its first conference win of the season against Kansas State.
Despite being without Frankie Collins and Brendan Wenzel, the Horned Frogs showed a lot of fight in the 90-81 loss to the Wildcats. The second-half offensive execution is something the Horned Frogs will look to build off of when hosting the Wildcats at 3 p.m.
This is a pivotal game for both teams as TCU and Kansas State underwhelmed in non-conference play. K-State was beaten by LSU, Drake, Wichita State and Liberty before upsetting No. 16 Cincinnati in the Wildcats’ Big 12 opener.
It’s never too early to worry about improving your NCAA Tournament resume and right now TCU needs to stack wins in a hurry. Even with the win over Cincinnati, Kansas State is still only ranked No. 108 in the NCAA Net rankings.
That means this is just a quad three game for TCU. A win won’t move the needle much, but a home loss would be another blow to the resume. Here’s three quick things to know about the Wildcats entering Saturday’s Big 12 matchup:
Big spenders
The Wildcats made waves in the off-season when they signed Illinois transfer Coleman Hawkins to a name, image and likeness deal worth $2 million according to multiple reports. It was believed to be one of the biggest NIL deals for any college basketball player at that time. Hawkins was an All-Big 10 selection last season as helped Illinois reach the Elite Eight while also helping the program win multiple Big 10 championships during his four years there.
Hawkins hasn’t quite been the difference maker the Wildcats were expecting. He’s averaging more rebounds (7.4) and assists (4.1) than last season, but his scoring is down as he’s averaging just 10.1 points per game. After shooting better than 44% three straight seasons, his field goal percentage has dropped to 39% for the Wildcats.
Despite his early season struggles, Hawkins could be turning the corner as he’s scored 16 or more in two of his last three games. His 20 points and three 3s were pivotal in the upset win over Cincinnati and he also added 10 rebounds and four steals. The matchup between Hawkins and Ernest Udeh could decide the game.
Breakout senior
The Wildcats best player this season has been forward David N’guessan. N’guessan spent his first two seasons in Manhattan as a role player, averaging 6.4 points in 2022 and 7.8 points last season. However, N’guessan has a much bigger role this year as he’s nearly doubled his scoring average with 13.6 points per game and tying a career-high with 6.8 rebounds.
The 6-foot-9 forward does much of his damage inside the paint and knocking down over 66% of his attempts. He’s more of a finisher than a shot creator, but he’s scored in double digits in every game this season except one. N’guessan doesn’t take many, but he’s capable of knocking down a 3-pointer or two if left open.
It’ll be a big test for TCU’s young forwards like David Punch and Micah Robinson.
Transfer guards lead the way
Kansas State knew it needed to rebuild its backcourt after last season and added two high impact transfer guards in the off-season. Villanona transfer Brendan Hausen is second on team with 13.0 points per game and he’s also the best shooter on the team as he’s made over 40% of his 3-point attempts. Hausen attempts eight a game and can get hot in a hurry if he’s left uncontested on the perimeter.
Hausen didn’t start in either of his two seasons at Villanova and averaged just 6.2 points per game last season, but right now he’s looking like a steal for K-State coach Jerome Tang. The other guard to know is Michigan transfer Dug McDaniel. TCU went hard after the point guard this off-season, but McDaniel ended up choosing Manhattan over Fort Worth.
McDaniel has only started two of 11 games this season, but he averages the fourth most minutes on the team and is often on the floor in the final minutes of games. McDaniel has been a steadying presence at point guard with a team-high 4.3 assists while adding 10.3 points. He does most of his scoring damage inside the paint as he’s only shooting 25.6% from 3, but he makes up for it by being a pest on the defensive end with two steals per game.
Cal-State Fullerton transfer Max Jones is another to watch and he’s also knocking down almost 40% of his 3s on a smaller volume.
Key battle
Saturday could be a battle of strengths as Kansas State is one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country while TCU has been one of the best at guarding the 3. Kansas State is just outside the top-five in the league with 3-pointers made per game at 9.1. The Wildcats are also top-five in attempts with over 300 this season.
Meanwhile, TCU is second in the league with opponents shooting just 28% from 3, which also ranks top 25 in the country. The Horned Frogs can’t allow any of K-State’s shooters to get hot like they did against Arizona when Caleb Love knocked down five 3-pointers to hold TCU off in the second half.
