Game Preview: TCU vs. Oklahoma

Time/TV: 6:00 P.M. Centra/ESPNU

Note: Be sure to chime in on the GameThread when it goes up tonight, and as always, follow me as I take over our twitter handle (@FrogsOWar) just before game time.

Yes, TCU basketball came crashing back down to reality on Saturday afternoon, as they suffered a painful death at the hands of West Virginia. Large contributors to that were early turnovers and foul trouble.

The slowly increasing deficit saw the Frogs revert back to their old habits: poor ball movement on offense and bad rotations on defense.

They'll need to get it figured out again against Oklahoma tonight, as the Sooners are on a roll after beating Kansas Saturday, and they're looking to create a winning streak and continue improving their bracketology standing.

TCU will need to work hard to shut down Romero Osby, the Sooners' leading scorer this season, but he's not the only one to be concerned with.

Volume three point shooter Steven Pledger is dangerous when he's on, and he's not shy about pulling the trigger either. TCU needs to keep a hand in his face and force him off the three point line.

TCU actually won the rebounding battle against West Virginia on Saturday, but the difference was ball movement. West Virginia had 17 assists to just six for TCU. The Frogs desperately need to move the ball more, as one-on-one situations tend to create a stagnant offense and poor shots. Working the ball inside out with McKinney and Abron should be the #1 priority on offense, with slashers like Connell Crossland working his way inside.

Speaking of Crossland, he became TCU's first player to be named Big 12 Player of the Week after averaging 10.5 points and 12 rebounds last week, including a 15 rebound performance against Kansas.

Here are some quick notes, courtesy of GoFrogs.com

* TCU ranks No. 2 in the Big 12 and No. 26 in the NCAA in scoring defense (58.5 ppg). The squad is No. 24 nationally in fewest 3-pointers allowed (107).

* TCU's scoring defense average is nearly 14 points fewer per game than last season's final figure (72.1 ppg) and would be the Frogs' lowest since 1952-53 (56.0 ppg).

* TCU is tied for third in the Big 12 in turnovers forced during league action (13.3 tpg).

* TCU has attempted only 233 shots from 3-point range this year, which ranks 346th out of 347 NCAA Division I teams. Only Lamar (142) has attempted fewer treys.

* TCU is 10-1 in when outshooting the opponent and 0-12 when shooting at a lower rate. The squad is 7-1 when posting a mark of at least 45.0% overall and 7-1 when leading at the half.

* Adrick McKinney leads TCU in Big 12 scoring (9.3 ppg), while Connell Crossland tops the team in league rebounding (7.1 rpg).

* Crossland is averaging just under a double-double over the last five games (10.4 ppg, 9.4 rpg) while shooting a team-best 62.5% from the floor. His 52 points and 47 rebounds are career-best totals for a five-game stretch.

* Crossland has led TCU in rebounds in each of the last three games with at least nine boards in each contest.

* In Big 12 play, Crossland is No. 7 in the league in rebounding (7.1 rpg) and No. 5 in offensive boards (2.9 rpg).

* McKinney is ninth in the Big 12 in overall rebounding average (6.9 rpg) and tied for No. 8 since the start of league play (7.0 rpg). He ranks No. 3 in offensive rebounds in Big 12 games (3.0 rpg).

* McKinney has scored in double figures in eight of the last 15 games. He had done so only seven times in 40 career games entering the stretch.

* McKinney has led TCU in rebounding in 11 of the last 17 games, averaging 8.2 rpg. He had paced the squad only five times in 37 career games entering the current stretch.

* McKinney has pulled in at least five boards in each of the last 17 contests, the longest streak for a Frog since 2009-10 (Zvonko Buljan, 24 straight).

* Garlon Green has played in 101 straight games for TCU. He has climbed into the No. 7 spot on TCU's career charts for games played (120) and minutes (2,994). He will move into a tie for No. 5 on the games played list with Blake Adams (2004-07) and Reggie Smith (1989-92) with his next appearance.

* Green has scored 20 points or more five times this season and ranks fifth in the Big 12 with eight career performances.

* Green is averaging a team-high 12.0 ppg and shooting 41.3% from 3-point range (19-of-46) since the Dec. 8 loss at Tulsa.

* Prior to the current stretch, Green was 0-for-5 from outside the arc in the first nine contests.

* Nate Butler Lind has matched his career scoring high of 10 points twice in the last four games and has totaled a personal-best 31 points during the stretch.

* Kyan Anderson ranks among the Big 12 leaders in steals (No. 6), minutes played (No. 7), assists (No. 8), assist/turnover ratio (No. 9) and scoring (No. 18).

* Anderson's 35-point game Dec. 22 at Rice ranks as the top individual scoring performance by a Big 12 player this season.

* McKinney's 20-rebound effort Dec. 4 vs. Houston is tied for the top Big 12 effort on the glass (Isaiah Austin, Baylor).

* Charles Hill Jr. has scored 43 of his 48 points this season in Big 12 action. He is averaging 25.2 minutes in conference games after playing only 29 minutes total in non-conference.

* TCU has featured nine different starting lineups this season.

* TCU has allowed 50 points or fewer five times. Its five previous efforts allowing 50 or fewer stretched back over 127 games to 2008.

* TCU has attempted 208 free throws in Big 12 play compared to only 157 for its opponents, an average margin of +5.1 pg.

As always, I hope TCU keeps it close with grinding defense and slow, smart play on offense, but this could get ugly if they aren't careful.

Go Frogs.