TCU Basketball vs Oklahoma: Preview

Desmond Bane is playing (conceivably) his last game at Schollmaier Arena Saturday, ending the era of the winningest basketball player in TCU history. In his four year career, Bane has been a part of an NIT Championship team, an NCAA Tournament team, and a team that played in the NIT Finals. He currently stands as the Horned Frogs’ third-leading scorer all time, and has a chance to stand atop the record books before his season ends.

But not only has Des set the bar for TCU Basketball on the court, he has become the face of TCU Basketball off of it as well. In August, I wrote about his role as a leader, and how the athletics department has rallied around its star. Friday, Drew Davison posted an article showing the evolution of that, speaking with Desmond, coach Jamie Dixon, and Athletic Director Jeremiah Donati about what the senior means to TCU. Donati went so far as to say “I like to call him ‘Mr. TCU’ because he’s just been an unbelievable representative of the university.”

That he has.

While watching Des put opponents on skates before drilling a step back three, thread the needle with a precision pass, or hammer home a monster jam are all fun, what I appreciate most about Bane is the person that he is off the court. I have been fortunate to interact with Des in interviews, at press conferences, and running into him at various events. He is genuinely one of the best humans to put on the purple in the years that I have been associated with TCU. Much like the last NBA prospect to come through Fort Worth, New Orleans Pelicans forward Kenrich Williams, he is a person that we will be exceedingly proud to hear associated with the Horned Frogs throughout the draft process and beyond into his professional career.

So, while his time at TCU is coming to an end, his journey is just beginning. And he is primed for a ton of success in the future.

As Donati and Dixon both said, he’s never had a bad day.

Let’s make senior night a great one, too.

MARCH 7 | SCHOLLMAIER ARENA (6,800) | FORT WORTH, TEXAS | 5 PM

GAME INFORMATION

Broadcast: ESPN2

Play-By-Play: Chuckie Kempf

Analyst: Tim Welsh

Online: WatchESPN.com // ESPN App

Radio: KLIF 570 AM XM 375 - (375 online)

Play-By-Play: Brian Estridge

Analyst: John Denton

Online: HFTV // TuneIn

Series: Oklahoma leads 24-4

In Fort Worth: OU leads 8-2

In Norman: OU leads 13-0

Neutral: OU leads 3-2

First Meeting: OU won 91-34 (1919) in Norman

Last Meeting: OU won 83-63 (1/18/20) in Norman

Winning Streak: OU, 5

Dixon vs. OU: 2-6

NOTES

• In the final regular season game, TCU (16-14, 7-10) will host Oklahoma (18-12, 8-9) at 5 p.m. on Saturday on ESPN2. The winner will be the No. 6 seed and receive a first-round bye at next week’s Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship.
• It will be the final home game for seniors Desmond Bane, Edric Dennis and Jaire Grayer, who will be recognized at 4:45 p.m.
• Jamie Dixon has 412 career wins, tied for the third-most of any head coach through 17 seasons.
• TCU leads the Big 12 in 3-pointers made per game (8.5) and blocks (4.9). The Frogs rank 24th nationally in blocks per game.
• TCU’s three returning players from last season are senior Desmond Bane and sophomores RJ Nembhard and Kevin Samuel. Bane is the reigning Big 12 Player of the Week, while freshman PJ Fuller is the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week.
• Bane, who earned multiple preseason honors, including one of 10 finalists for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award, ranks second in the Big 12 in scoring (16.4) and leads the Big 12 in 3-point field goal percentage (43.4) and 3-point field goals made (2.9). He’s made a 3-pointer in 20 straight games.
• Samuel is shooting 65.2 percent from the field and is averaging 8.4 rebounds per game, which ranks sixth in the Big 12, and 2.7 blocks per game, which leads the Big 12 and ranks 11th in the nation. Samuel’s 11 double-doubles rank second in the Big 12. He’s had at least five blocks in a game eight times this season.
• Bane is top five all-time at TCU in career points (2nd), field goals (4th) and 3-pointers (2nd). At 1,744 career points, Bane is chasing current player development coordinator Corey Santee for second (1,832). Bane is one 3-pointer from passing Santee for the most 3-pointers in a career at TCU. Both are tied at 243.
• At 157 career blocked shots, Samuel is fifth on TCU’s all-time list. Kurt Thomas is next at 166 blocks. Samuel’s 80 blocks this season is the third-most in a season at TCU. Vladimir Brodziansky’s 82 during the 2016-17 season is No. 2.

LAST TIME OUT

Desmond Bane scored 24 points on 6-of-10 shooting from 3-point range and Edric Dennis had 18 points, also on 6-of-10 from three in a 75-66 loss at No. 1 Kansas on Wednesday. TCU held a 37-35 halftime lead. TCU was 13-of-29 (44.8 percent) from 3-point range.

ABOUT THE OPPONENT

Oklahoma is 18-12 overall and 8-9 in the Big 12 Conference following a 52-51 loss to Texas Tuesday. The Sooners are led by Kristian Doolittle and Brady Manek. Doolittle is fourth in the Big 12 with 15.8 points per game and Manek is sixth at 14.7 points per game. OU is the best in the Big 12 and 11th best in the nation at taking care of the ball with a turnover average of 11.1.

HISTORY

Oklahoma leads the all-time series 24-4 and have won the last five games. The last TCU win over OU in Fort Worth came on Jan. 3, 2017 (60-57) in Jamie Dixon’s first season with the Frogs. The meeting earlier this season was an 83-63 win by OU in Norman.

UP NEXT

TCU will play its first game in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., on either Wednesday or Thursday, depending on Saturday’s outcome.