TCU 70, Oklahoma State 68: JD Miller hits last-second game-winner

FORT WORTH, TX - Desmond Bane joined the 1,000 point club and Alex Robinson set a new record for most assists in TCU history, but JD Miller was the hero of the night. With the game tied at 68, JD “Big Jelly” Miller took an inbounds pass with 5.6 seconds left and took it all the way to the rim, hitting a runner falling away from the basket with 0.3 seconds remaining.

“Well, to be truly honest the play was not supposed to go to me,” Miller said afterward, “I was supposed to pass it back to [Kendric Davis] but what happened happened and it worked out great.”

Originally, the clock expired, and TCU celebrated. The entire team swarmed Miller in the corner, and ran over to the student section and band to sing the alma mater. Meanwhile, Oklahoma State walked off the court and to the locker room.

After a quick review, it was clear time needed to go back on the clock. The refs scrambled to get both teams back on the court, and Oklahoma State’s last ditch effort from 90 feet fell short.

“We haven’t had that much fun in a while,” Bane said after the game. “I was smacking the top of his little bald head.”

With the win TCU moves to 4-5 in Big 12 play and remains undefeated at home in conference.

Desmond Bane reached the 1,000 point mark early in the first half, hitting a three at the 12:16 mark to put TCU up 18-9. He reached the mark just one game after teammate Alex Robinson eclipsed the 1,000 point mark. Bane also finished with a game high 26 points on 9-17 shooting from the floor and 6-9 from three point range.

Of course, Robinson also had his moment in the sun on Wedenesday night. He passed TCU assistant coach and former player Corey Santee’s assist record with his 576th assist of his TCU career. The pass came at the 9:08 mark of the first half, as Desmond Bane hit his fourth three of the night at that point.

Robinson finished the game with a double-double, 10 points and 11 assists. Now he works to put as much distance between himself and the field. We’ll see how long his final record stands.

“He’s been doing it for years now,” Desmond Bane said about his point guard after the game. “I mean, he’s got like 500 or however many he’s got, that doesn’t happen overnight. He’s been doing it for a while now. He’s a really good point guard and we’re blessed to have him.”

TCU didn’t trail in the first half and led by as many as 13, thanks to hot early shooting from Desmond Bane. Bane hit his first four 3-point attempts, passing the 1,000 point mark for his career in the process.

As a team TCU shot the lights out from three in the first half, hitting nine on 18 attempts. Bane led the team with five and Kouat Noi hit three in the first half as well.

TCU worked out to a 37-24 lead in the waning minutes of the first half thanks to hot shooting and great defense, and carried a 39-28 lead into the half. Bane had 15 first half points to lead all scorers.

The second half was a completely different story for the Frogs, who went ice cold from the floor. Their lead, once 13 points, dwindled over the first 12 minutes of the second half, until a 3-pointer from Thomas Dziagwa put Oklahoma State ahead 49-48.

Dziagwa’s three game in the middle of a 17-2 run for the Pokes, who had only won two conference games coming into Wednesday night. The result of the run was a TCU timeout, with the Frogs trailing 57-50 with 5:28 remaining in the contest.

Kendric Davis worked his way into the lane on the next TCU possession, getting a basket and a foul to pull TCU to within four, 57-53. After one free throw from Oklahoma State, Kouat Noi drilled a three from the corner to pull TCU to within two.

The next eight points were all free throws, as the refs discovered their whistles down the stretch. With less than 2:30 to play and the Frogs trailing 65-60 Desmond Bane did his best to take over. He hit a three to pull the Frogs within two, and, after a defensive stop and a JD Miller free throw, Bane made a tough layup to push TCU ahead 66-65.

Bane wrapped up seven points in 1:57 of game time with two free throws, giving TCU a 68-65 lead with 24 seconds left. It wasn’t destined to be easy for the Frogs, though, as Thomas Dziagwa hit a three with Bane’s hand in his face to tie the game with 5.6 seconds left. Of course, Miller’s heroics gave TCU the win in the end.

The Frogs head to Ames this weekend to face off with No. 17 Iowa State. TCU still doesn’t have a road win in conference this season, and Saturday’s contest won’t be easy. But maybe just maybe a win like this can give them some new energy down the home stretch.