TCU falls in OT

TCU dropped to 10-13 overall while finishing the first half of its Mountain West Conference schedule with a 1-7 mark after losing in overtime to Air Force 66-65 on Saturday night.  The Horned Frogs tried their 11th different starting lineup this season in guards Hank Thorns, Greg Hill and J.R. Cadot and forwards Amric Fields and Nikola Cerina.  Unfortunately it wasn’t enough of a spark to lift the Frogs into the win column.

The game was measured with streaks by both teams, with TCU making a 14-5 run in the 2nd half, followed by Air Force on a 17-4 run.  TCU was down by 5 with only 2:16 to go in regulation, but was able to send the game into overtime with a jumper by Garlon Green.

It looked as if TCU would ride the momentum into overtime, jumping out to a 5 point lead to begin the session.  Air Force would rally and eventually get the winning points on a goaltending call with 11.8 seconds left in the game.  The Frogs had the ball for the last shot, but the ball would bounce off the rim on a layup attempt by Greg Hill.  Head coach Jim Christian was disappointed after the game, “This is obviously disappointing. We had that free throw miss with five seconds to go, and that’s the only one we missed all night. We played well enough to have a chance to win the game, but you have to make a play at the end to win it.”

Garlon Green led TCU in scoring with 16 points, Amric Fields was the only other Frog with double digits, scoring 10.  Hank Thorns provided 10 assists, his 6th game this season with double-digit assists.

TCU plays on the road next Saturday against San Diego State.