TCU Basketball vs Kansas Preview and Game Thread: Can the Frogs make history again?

Don’t get it twisted, Tuesday night was no fluke. This Horned Frog basketball team proved they are capable of competing with anyone in the country, even the No. 9 and No. 6 ranked teams.

Upsetting the Jayhawks in front of a near sell-out crowd is one thing, but marching into Allen Fieldhouse and facing a pissed-off Bill Self led Kansas squad just 48-hours later serves as a new challenge entirely.

A win tonight would not only be the Frogs’ first time in program history beating THREE ranked opponents back-to-back-to-back but also their first win in Lawrence since joining the Big 12, per TCU360 Sports Editor Colin Post.

Considering there are only two regular season games remaining, and the fact that the Frogs will be hopping on a plane hours after this one to catch their Saturday afternoon game in Morgantown, there is some debate as to how the Frogs should play this one.

Now I’m always a sucker for the “we play to win” sentiment, but there is a case to be made to rest starters tonight if things go south early. There is almost no debate at this point that the Frogs have punched their ticket to the big dance, so why risk injury in a relatively meaningless game?

I’m not saying I necessarily agree with this, because personally I think the Frogs have a solid opportunity to make even more history tonight, but it’s a realistic possibility.

Last time out, TCU dominated the boards and did an excellent job of taking care of the ball with a season-low 7 turnovers. The team also did a great job of limiting David McCormack and Ochai Agbaji, two of the best players in the conference, to a combined 24 points on 6-for-23 shooting.

As Jamie Dixon has expressed time and time again, if the Frogs rebound well and take care of the basketball, chances are they’re winning that game. That, and free throws. But Damion Baugh seemed to have the Frogs covered last time out with seven makes in the final 51 seconds of play.

Follow along in the comment section as we go play-by-play through some of the highlights and big moments from tonight’s game.

Here’s the tale of the tape for tonight’s rematch against KU:

NOTES

- Less than 48 hours after defeating No. 6 Kansas (23-6, 12-4) at home on Tuesday, TCU (19-9, 8-8) will return the trip and play in Lawrence, Kan., on Thursday at 7 p.m. The game will air on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.

- The game was originally scheduled for Jan. 1, but was postponed due to COVID health and safety protocols within the TCU program.

- TCU last played back-to-back games against the same team during the 2016-17 season when it did so twice. The Frogs swept Washington and split with Oklahoma.

- TCU is 4-4 against AP Top 25 teams this season, 3-1 at home.

- TCU has four Top 25 wins in a season for the first time ever.

- TCU has consecutive wins over Top 25 teams for the first time.

- A win would TCU its fourth 20-win season under Jamie Dixon and just its 15th in program history.

- TCU has 16 or more wins for the fifth time under Jamie Dixon. TCU had 16 wins just three times in the 14 seasons prior to his arrival.

- TCU’s eight Big 12 wins are its second-most in program history. TCU was 9-9 in the 2017-18 season.

- TCU is 6-6 in Quadrant 1 games this season. The six wins is tied for the 11th most nationally. It is the most by TCU since the NET was first used in 2018-19. Both games remaining are Q1.

- Preseason All-Big 12 guard Mike Miles Jr. is the only player that ranks in the top six in the Big 12 in scoring (fifth, 15.4) and assists (sixth, 4.1). He is one of four among Power 5 conferences that is averaging at least 15.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists.

- Miles is averaging 19.3 over his last four games.

- Eddie Lampkin Jr. has been one of the most improved players in the Big 12 and is averaging 6.3 points and 5.9 rebounds overall and even better in conference play at 7.0 points and 6.3 rebounds. His 2.9 offensive rebounds per game overall ranks second in the Big 12.

- Francisco Farabello is shooting a team-best 37.5 percent from 3-point range and 40.4 percent from three in Big 12 games.

- Emanuel Miller leads eight newcomers with 10.5 points per game and a team-leading 6.3 rebounds per game, which ranks seventh in the Big 12. Miller’s 2.6 offensive rebounds ranks fifth in the Big 12.

- Damion Baugh is third on the team with 10.4 points per game and ranks fifth in the Big 12 with 4.2 assists per game.

- Micah Peavy’s defensive points per possession is .5, which ranks in the top percentile nationally.

- TCU leads the Big 12 and ranks among the leaders nationally in offensive rebound percentage (first, 38.6%), rebounding margin (fourth, 9.0), offensive rebounds per game (9th, 13.4) and rebounds per game (22nd, 39.4).

- When outrebounding its opponent, TCU is 17-5 this season and 98-31 under Jamie Dixon. This season, TCU has been outrebounded just five times.

- TCU’s adjusted defensive efficiency rating of 94.5 ranks 24th nationally, TCU’s best number since the 1997-98 season (94.2).

LAST TIME OUT

- Mike Miles’ 19 points led TCU to a 74-64 win over No. 6 Kansas on Tuesday in Schollmaier Arena. The Frogs had just seven turnovers, their lowest in Big 12 play and outrebounded the Jayhawks, 47-35.

ABOUT THE OPPONENT

- The Big 12’s top-ranked offense is led by Ochai Agbaji, the Big 12 leader in scoring, at 20.1 points per game.

SERIES HISTORY

- Kansas leads the all-time series 22-3 and 10-0 in Lawrence.

- TCU has never had consecutive wins over Kansas with its wins coming in 2013 (vs. No. 5), 2017 (vs. No. 1) and 2022 (vs. No. 6).

UP NEXT

- TCU closes out the regular season at West Virginia on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.