What TCU women’s basketball has to do to become a program like South Carolina
After losing by a combined 44 points to South Carolina and Texas last season, TCU coach Mark Campbell was determined to close the gap.
The Horned Frogs added multiple players 6-foot-3 or taller to combat the size and athleticism of the SEC juggernauts. For three quarters of Monday’s Elite Eight game, it appeared Campbell may have been successful, as No. 3-seeded TCU only trailed 49-41 against No. 1 South Carolina.
Last season, TCU’s matchup with the Gamecocks was over at halftime with the Horned Frogs trailing by 21 points at Dickies Arena in December 2024.
But coach Dawn Staley and the Gamecocks quickly reminded TCU that there are still levels to this, and the Horned Frogs are still a tier or two away from joining South Carolina, UConn, Texas and UCLA at the pinnacle of the sport. Those four teams are in the Final Four for the second straight season.
South Carolina outscored TCU 29-11 in the fourth quarter to roll to a 78-52 victory, and the Horned Frogs’ season ended in the Elite Eight for the second straight year.
The first three quarters showed that TCU had indeed made some progress. Campbell tried to take a more big-picture view when asked by the Star-Telegram if he felt the program had made strides in inching closer to South Carolina.
“You’re not comparing one year to the next in any way shape or form. I think that model’s out the window,” Campbell said. “Last year’s group had a great a battle against Texas. I think I would compare progress if I got to have that group back and you get that group for a second year, but it doesn’t work that way.”
TCU is a top-10 program now
Campbell isn’t completely wrong. TCU introduced 10 new players to the roster, and it is important to not let the blowout diminish the program making a second straight Elite Eight after finishing last in the Big 12 just three seasons ago.
Over the past two seasons, TCU has without a doubt been a top-10 program in the country.
“They won 32 games. They were Big 12 champions,” Campbell said of his roster. “They were a game away from the Final Four. I would say progress is elite as anybody in the country. I could be off on this one, but I think there’s five teams in America that have won 30 games in the last two years. And four of them are in the Final Four, and I think the other is TCU.”
There’s no doubt Campbell has TCU on the verge of being a national championship-level program, but making that last climb is going to be his biggest challenge — bigger than even having to find enough players to play a game, like he did in his first season.
So how do the Horned Frogs break through? TCU did nearly everything right from a roster construction standpoint this season.
The Horned Frogs added another All-American point guard in Olivia Miles, who lived up to all the preseason hype as she became the second straight TCU player to win Big 12 Player of the Year. Miles is a virtual lock to be a first round pick in upcoming WNBA draft.
TCU added another potential first-round pick in 6-3 forward Marta Suarez, who became a first-team All-Big 12 selection and had the best season of her career. The Horned Frogs added not just one, but two 6-7 centers with Clara Silva and Kennedy Basham.
In terms of reloading from last year’s Elite Eight squad, Campbell did about as good as any coach can do, and even still, there was a clear talent gap between TCU and South Carolina.
TCU has to recruit top high school players
The Gamecocks didn’t just have size, they also had the athleticism to match with 6-3 forward Joyce Edwards, 6-6 center Madina Okot and 6-1 freshman guard Agot Makeer.
The physicality advantage is why South Carolina outrebounded TCU by 28 and dominated in second-chance points. In three matchups with SEC programs since Campbell took over, the Horned Frogs have failed to crack 60 points.
“Your margin against South Carolina, UConn, Texas, UCLA is almost zero,” Campbell said. “It was an eight-point game headed into the fourth quarter. At this level, the South Carolinas of the world, a bad shot or turnover, a missed block, it just escalates rapidly.
“I think we called timeout when there was three minutes into the fourth quarter, and it went from eight to 20 like that. You’re playing a 40-minute game with a tiny margin of error.”
Campbell said he believes the model of comparing one group to last year’s is out the window, but that’s not necessarily true. TCU has leaned on the transfer portal for one of the fastest rebuilds in the country, but the programs like South Carolina and UConn are built through high school recruiting and roster continuity.
Raven Johnson has been with Staley for five seasons. South Carolina’s leading scorer, Edwards, was a freshman last season and now is one of the SEC’s top players. Starting shooting guard Tessa Johnson has been with the program three years.
Texas and UCLA might offer a potential blueprint for TCU to follow. The Longhorns hadn’t made a Final Four since 2003 before last season, while UCLA made its first Final Four last season.
Texas stars Madison Booker and Rori Harmon have been with the Longhorns for three years or more, and so have most of UCLA’s stars like Lauren Betts and Kiki Rice. That continuity allows each program to endure losing star players to the WNBA each season.
Meanwhile, Campbell and the Horned Frogs will need to replace six of their eight leading scorers, including Miles, Suarez and guard Taylor Bigby, through the portal.
Assuming players are retained, TCU will have a nucleus to build around with junior guard Donovyn Hunter, the sophomore Silva and freshman guard Clara Bielefeld. It would be Hunter’s third season in the program and the second for Silva and Bielefeld.
Campbell has shown that he’ll likely build another roster capable of contending for a Big 12 title, but can he build one capable of breaking through the glass ceiling hovering above programs not named UConn, Texas or South Carolina?
The final step might not occur until TCU is able to start landing the top high school prospects around the country, and the Horned Frogs’ continued success should eventually lead to signature recruiting wins outside the portal.
Landing a Miles or a Suarez-caliber player as a freshman and keeping them for multiple seasons might be the key to TCU breaking through to reach the program’s first Final Four — and beyond.
This story was originally published March 31, 2026 at 1:55 PM.
