SMU Opens Season With Win Over TCU
DALLAS (AP) — Transfer guard Nic Moore had 13 points and eight rebounds in his SMU debut, and the Mustangs beat TCU 69-61 in the season opener for both teams Friday night.
Moore played one season for Illinois State before transferring last year when his coach, Tim Jankovich, came with 73-year-old Larry Brown as an assistant and the head coach in waiting with SMU.
After sitting out last season, Moore, a sophomore, was 4 of 11 from the field, including 3 of 8 from 3-point range, and had four assists in his return.
Brandon Parrish led TCU with 13 points.
Brown and TCU coach Trent Johnson started their second seasons at the rival schools from Dallas and Fort Worth. They were playing the middle game of a season-opening tripleheader at the downtown Dallas home of the NBA’s Mavericks.
SMU returned all five starters from last year’s 15-17 team, but Moore and center Yanick Moreira, another transfer, were newcomers in the lineup. Moreira matched Moore with eight rebounds.
The Mustangs took the lead for good on a 14-2 run that started with a layup by Crandall Head and ended with a 3-pointer by Keith Frazier, a freshman from Dallas, which put SMU up 50-43 with 11:18 to go.
TCU got within three points twice in the final 5 minutes, but turnovers and
second-chance points for SMU kept the Mustangs in front.
The Horned Frogs were within 60-57 with less than 4 minutes left but committed three turnovers as the Mustangs pushed the lead out to eight on two free throws from Moreira and three from Ryan Manuel, one of last year’s starters who finished with 12 points.
Frazier scored 11 on 3-of-5 shooting from long range.
Six TCU players scored during a 13-0 run on either side of halftime that turned a 30-23 deficit into a 36-30 lead for the Horned Frogs.
Parrish started the run with a layup and opened the second half with a 3-pointer that gave TCU its first lead at 32-30. The Horned Frogs, who shot 35 percent for the game, made five of six during the spurt.
Moore ended the TCU run with a 3-pointer for SMU’s first field goal in five minutes.
Kyan Anderson had nine points and eight assists for the Horned Frogs, and Jarvis Ray also scored nine. Karviar Shepherd had eight points and eight rebounds.
The Mustangs return to the hardwood Monday night when they host Rhode Island at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, Texas. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. CT.
