West Virginia Defeats TCU 86-85 in Overtime

A pair of Jevon Carter free throws with 0:00.9 left sealed an 86-85 overtime win for the Mountaineers this afternoon in Morgantown. In what may have been the most ridiculous finish since TCU joined the Big 12, the Frogs and Mountaineers went into overtime tied at 72. The Frogs quickly jumped out to a five-point lead at 80-75. A pair of TCU fouls on back-to-back possessions allowed West Virginia to cut the deficit to 80-78.

On the ensuing TCU possession, Brandon Parrish was fouled before hitting two free throws with 37 seconds left. A breakdown in perimeter defense left Daxter Miles open for a three for the Mountaineers. With an 82-81 lead, Kenrich Williams was fouled and went 1-for-2 from the line. On the next possession, Miles hit from deep again, giving WVU its first lead in overtime at 84-83.

Trey Zeigler appeared to have the game won for TCU with a jumper in the paint with under two seconds remaining. However, on the ensuing in-bounds play, Juwan Staten threw the ball to Jevon Carter at mid-court, who immediately drove to the basket and was fouled by Kyan Anderson with nine-tenths of a second left. Carter hit both free throws to secure the victory.

Several impressive TCU performances were overshadowed in a game that was littered with fouls, 63 called in just 45 minutes of play. Kyan Anderson led all scorers with 22 points, three rebounds and three assists. Five other Frogs scored in double figures, leading to the highest scoring output for TCU in a Big 12 game since joining the conference. Perhaps the most surprising performance was that of Charles Hill, who dropped 13 points and grabbed five boards off the bench in his first Big 12 appearance this season.

Today's contest must no doubt leave TCU fans feeling excited about the strides made since last season, but also disappointed that self-inflicted mistakes led to yet another loss. The Frogs had 19 turnovers and missed 16 free throws in a game that was decided by one point. These two glaring statistics overshadow the fact that TCU out-rebounded West Virginia 47-37. A 10-board advantage and 85 points on offense should be more than enough to win a game in the Big 12.

At the end of the day, TCU proved that it can compete in these types of games. Nearly double-digit underdogs, the Frogs went to West Virginia and dropped 85 points on one of the stingiest defenses in the country, taking the Mountaineers to the brink of defeat. The Frogs will have another chance to knock off a nationally-ranked opponent on Wednesday as the Kansas Jayhawks visit Fort Worth.