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TCU Basketball will be taking the court for the first time under Jamie Dixon a week from Friday at Schollmaier Arena. The team this year should have more depth, due to a wealth of returning experience and some talented newcomers. Here is a brief overview of the players Dixon and staff will be working with this season.
#0 Jaylen Fisher
Freshman, Guard
The 6’2” native of Arlington, Tennessee joins the Frogs after initially being committed to UNLV, following new assistant coach Ryan Miller from the Rebels. Fisher was ranked as the #34 overall recruit in the nation by ESPN and the #2 overall recruit in Tennessee. He is the highest ranked player to ever sign with TCU and he is expected to come in and instantly make an impact. He chose the Frogs over Arkansas, Indiana, UNLV, and most importantly, Baylor. Fisher is a pure playmaker and is the most likely of the freshman to step in and really have a huge impact for TCU this season.
#1 Desmond Bane
Freshman, Guard
The 6’5” guard from Richmond, Indiana comes to TCU after averaging 30 points and 11.5 rebounds per game at Seton Catholic High School as a senior. Bane was named a Mr. Basketball (state’s best player) candidate in Indiana, a state famous for high school basketball. He should be able to help provide the Frogs with a scoring punch off the bench and chose TCU after being recruited by numerous Big Ten programs.
#2 Michael Williams
Senior, Guard
The 6’2” point guard returns as one of the four seniors hoping to make this season something special for the Frogs. Williams started 15 games at point guard for TCU last season and was named to the Academic All-Big 12 Second Team for the second consecutive year. He was also named a nominee for Allstate’s 2016 NABC Good Works Team. On the court, Williams averaged 4.2 points per game and led the team in assists in 10 games.
#3 Malique Trent
Junior, Guard
The 6’2” guard is the team’s leading scorer among all returners and will be critical to the team’s success this year. Trent played in 30 games for the Frogs last year and averaged 11.6 points per game. He also led the Big 12 in steals and was able to cause problems for opposing offenses. A projected starter, Trent will need to continue to provide scoring for the team and should be able to get the ball in better spots with improved point guard play
#4 Gabe Adzich
Freshman, Guard
The 6’4” guard is a first-year walk-on from Cupertino, California. He played for Saint Francis High School in Mountain View, California and helped his team to a 25-3 record and a berth in the CIF Open Division Championship, the highest level of high school basketball in the state. Their team finished 24th ranked in the nation according to the MaxPreps computer rankings.
#5 Josh Parrish
Freshman, Guard
The 6’5” guard comes to TCU from Seguin High School in Arlington, Texas and is the younger brother of senior Frog Brandon Parrish. Josh will be out to make a name for himself as a Horned Frog and should be able to. He is an athletic scorer and is coming off a senior season in high school that saw him average 20.7 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. He was also named the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Super Team Player of the Year.
#10 Vladimir Brodziansky
Junior, Forward
The 6’11” forward from Slovakia is entering his second season in Fort Worth and should be in for a big year. Brodziansky played in all 33 games last season, and had double-digit scoring in 17 of them. He is second in scoring among returners, behind only Trent. He averaged 9.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game and posted two double-doubles, one of which came in a Big 12 Tournament victory over Texas Tech.
#11 Brandon Parrish
Senior, Guard
The 6’6” native of Arlington, Texas is the team’s top sharpshooter from outside. He led the team last season in 3-point shooting, making 41.5% from behind the arc. He was also the lone Horned Frog last season to start in all 33 games, scoring in double-digits 13 times. As a senior with so much experience, he will likely be leaned on by the new staff to be a key leader for the Frogs this season.
#12 Kouat Noi
Freshman, Forward
The 6’7” forward native of Australia joins the Frogs from Montverde Academy (Florida), one of the premier high school basketball programs in the United States. Noi was ranked as the #7 best overall recruit in the Australian Class rankings and has played for the Australia U17 national team. He will be a wild card for the Frogs this season though because he reclassified late and did not join the team until August.
#15 JD Miller
Sophomore, Forward
The 6’8” wing from Seagoville High School in Dallas, Texas is another Frog who saw action in all 33 games last season and often was able to provide a spark for the team off the bench. Miller averaged 6.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, despite playing less than 20 minutes per game. He was also the team’s best free throw shooter last season, converting on 70.9% from the line. Miller showed flashes of brilliance last season and may end up being a crucial part of what the Frogs will need to do in order to make a postseason tournament.
#20 Dalton Dry
Junior, Guard
The 6’3” Fort Worth native hails from a long line of Horned Frogs (grandson of former head football coach F.A. Dry, dad played football at TCU) and is entering his third season with the program. He came off the bench for the Frogs in 16 games last season and is one of the team’s top hustlers. Dalton should be able to get more opportunities this season to show Frog fans what he’s capable of.
#25 Alex Robinson
Sophomore, Guard
The 6’2” guard is another local (Timberview High School) and joins TCU as a transfer from Texas A&M. Coming out of high school, Robinson was a four-star prospect according to ESPN and was ranked as the 8th best prospect in Texas. He had an offer from Jamie Dixon and Pitt out of high school and I’m sure Dixon is excited to finally have him on his roster. He played in 32 games for A&M as a freshman and shot an impressive 41.9% from the field. With Robinson, Fisher, and Williams at point guard, there should be some good in-practice competition.
#32 Karviar Shepherd
Senior, Forward
The 6’11” forward had been TCU’s highest rated recruit ever until the signing of Fisher. Over the past few years, Shepherd has been an important part of the rotation but missed some time last season dealing with a lingering back injury. Last season, he started in 23 of the 29 games he played in and led the team in rebounding six times. Over his three years as a Frog, he has averaged 7.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. As one of the four seniors on the team, it’ll be important for Shepherd to step up for the team and establish himself as a post presence and a rebounding force.
#33 Chris Washburn
Senior, Forward
The 6’8” forward played in the final 22 games of last season after missing the first 11 with a hand injury. This will be Washburn’s third season for the Frogs after transferring from UTEP. Last season, Washburn averaged 6.6 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, but also showed that he is the strongest post player we have. Another senior, it’ll be important for Washburn to show leadership on this team if they want to make a serious postseason run, which they are capable of.
#34 Kenrich Williams
Junior, Guard
The 6’7” wing returns after missing all of last season due to a knee injury. Two years ago, Williams led the team in rebounding with 6.7 per game and also scored 8.6 per game. His ability to attack and finish at the rim and his efforts on the boards were a big reason that TCU was able to put together a winning season that year and started off an impressive 13-0. If he can get back to the same production he had a couple years ago, Williams could be the team’s X-factor.
#45 Austin Sottile
Junior, Forward
The 6’6” forward is a first-year walk-on from Saint Louis, Missouri. He played for Saint Louis University High School and scored over 1,000 career points there. It’ll be interesting to see where he and Adzich fit in to Dixon’s plans and how much they will contribute.
Source: http://www.gofrogs.com/sports/m-baskbl/tcu-m-baskbl-body.html