Frogs Light Up Hornets for Dixon Win #2

Jamie Dixon got his second win tonight at TCU, as the Horned Frogs were able to beat the Alabama State Hornets 98-62 in Fort Worth. TCU pulled away early and was able to head into halftime with a 47-15 lead, which allowed them to basically set the game on cruise control in the second half and come away with the win.

Not much was different in this game compared to the opening game, in which the Frogs beat St. Thomas 82-64. Dixon kept the same starting five, including freshmen Jaylen Fisher and Desmond Bane. Bane led the offensive charge for TCU, scoring 19 points and making 60 percent of his field goal attempts. Sophomore JD Miller, who also started, contributed 17 points and made 7 of his 9 field goal attempts.

The offense was electric for the Frogs tonight and was facilitated by excellent ball movement, led by the point guards. Both Fisher and A&M transfer Alex Robinson each had 8 assists and the team combined for 29 assists on the night. TCU has the potential to win a lot of games this year if they continue to find open shots like they did tonight. Finding easy looks down low for Karviar Shepherd and Miller was a big reason the Frogs were able to shoot 59.7 percent from the field against the Hornets. Five players were able to score in double-digits this game and ten of the twelve who played scored at least once.

Defensively, TCU once again was able to force numerous turnovers, which allowed the guards to run the floor and find easy fast-break opportunities. The Frogs forced the Hornets to commit 22 turnovers, 12 of which were steals. Fisher, Robinson, Brandon Parrish and Malique Trent each contributed 2 steals. TCU has played aggressive defense through the first two games and continuing to cause havoc on opponents’ offenses will be a key to success this season for the Frogs.

Alabama State was led by senior forward Tony Armstrong, who scored 18 points and grabbed 8 rebounds, including 5 on the offensive end. Junior guard Rodney Simeon, who faced the Frogs two years ago as a member of Tennessee State, also helped the Hornets, scoring 13 points.

TCU now will look forward to their home game on Friday at 6pm against Jacksonville State at Schollmaier Arena. The Gamecocks are currently 1-1 with a win at Tulsa, but must first travel to face Western Kentucky on Wednesday. TCU should not have much trouble with them or Illinois State before they get to their first real challenge, the Global Sports Classic in Las Vegas.