12-0 TCU women opening Big 12 play vs. one of few teams they lost to last season
After cruising to a 12-0 start, life is about to get more difficult for the No. 9-ranked TCU women’s basketball team.
The Horned Frogs will open defense of their Big 12 title against Kansas State (7-6) at 4 p.m. Saturday at Schollmaier Arena.
The matchup with the Wildcats is more than just the first conference game; it’s also a chance for the Horned Frogs to get a measure of payback.
Only two Big 12 teams defeated TCU last season, and Kansas State was one of them. The Wildcats shut down Hailey Van Lith and Sedona Prince in a 59-50 defeat Feb. 5 in Manhattan.
While the game wasn’t that long ago, much has changed for the two programs. For one, TCU has completely rebuilt last year’s Elite Eight team led by Van Lith, Prince and Madison Conner.
This year, the Horned Frogs have established a new big three around graduate guard Olivia Miles, graduate forward Marta Suarez and junior guard Donovyn Hunter. Hunter is one of the few returners from last season and has elevated from a defensive stopper to a true two-way threat, averaging a career-high 14.0 points and 1.8 steals while shooting 41.4% from 3.
Miles and Suarez have arguably been the two most impactful transfers in the country. They became the first teammates in NCAA history to each have a triple-double in the same game against a Division I opponent when Miles had 25 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists while Suarez had 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in TCU’s 109-54 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Tuesday.
On the season, Suarez is averaging a team-high 18.7 points with 6.4 rebounds while knocking down 44.3% of her 3-pointers. Miles, the All-American transfer from Notre Dame, is averaging 18.1 points, 7.9 assists and 7.1 rebounds.
As potent as TCU’s new trio has been, the thing that makes the Horned Frogs more dangerous than the team Kansas State faced in February is depth.
Sophomore center Clara Silva has seamlessly slid into Prince’s role as the rim protector and continues to get better offensively each game. Senior guard Taylor Bigby is another returner from last year who is playing well, and TCU also has graduate guard Maddie Scherr as another shooter and ball handler. Scherr missed the Pine Bluff game, but is expected back for Saturday.
What about the Wildcats? Kansas State returns only one of its top five scorers from last year’s Sweet 16 team, junior guard Taryn Sides, who has emerged as the lead option on offense after being a role player last year.
Sides is averaging 14.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists after she averaged 9.2 points last season. The Wildcats also have 6-foot-1 Belgian forward Nastja Claessens averaging double digits at 11.1 points and 4.3 rebounds.
Sides and Claessens are solid players, but they haven’t been able to fully replace stars like Serena Sundell, Ayoka Lee and Temira Poindexter.
The losses have resulted in Kansas State getting off to a 7-6 start. The Wildcats have endured some ugly losses, including falling to South Dakota, Green Bay, South Dakota State and San Diego State. However, Kansas State also upset No. 14 Ole Miss 61-60 on Dec. 7.
The Wildcats are still capable of pulling off an upset if TCU gets off to a sluggish start. The Horned Frogs haven’t truly been tested since their win over N.C. State on Nov. 16, and they could also be without reserve 6-7 center Kennedy Basham, who injured her ankle in the win over Pine Bluff.
While it should be a good test for the Horned Frogs, all signs point to TCU starting Big 12 play on the right note if it plays up to its usual standard.
This story was originally published December 18, 2025 at 2:24 PM.
