TCU Falls To Tulsa
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TULSA, Okla.—Tulsa guard Pat Swilling Jr. made the front end of a one-and-one free-throw opportunity with just 3.2 seconds remaining to push the Hurricane past TCU on Saturday at the Donald W. Reynolds Center, 50-49.
The loss, the Horned Frogs’ second in a row, dropped the team’s season record to 6-4 overall. Tulsa improved to 6-3. The contest marked the Frogs’ seventh in 10 games this season decided by seven points or fewer.
TCU found itself leading by one point with just over a minute remaining, 49-48, following senior guard/forward Garlon Green’s second 3-pointer of the day, but it would prove to be the Frogs’ last score. Forward D’Andre Wright tied the game on the ensuing TU possession by sinking the first of two free-throw attempts before missing the second.
The Frogs had two chances to retake the lead in the final moments. Green first missed a jumper, but sophomore Kyan Anderson gave TCU another opportunity with a steal as Tulsa was trying to advance the ball down court. Anderson was able to push the ball toward the hoop, but he missed a contested layup attempt. Swilling grabbed the rebound for the Hurricane and was fouled, sending him to the line for the game-winning point.
Swilling missed the second free throw after putting Tulsa on top, but Hurricane guard Scottie
Haralson collected the carom as time expired.
Green led TCU in the scorebook with a game-high 16 points, his second-best performance of the season. He hit 6-of-12 field-goal attempts, including his first two 3-point baskets of the season. Green moved outside to the guard position as TCU shifted its lineup due to the absence of junior starting guard Jarvis Ray, who did not make the trip.
Junior forward Connell Crossland slid into the TCU starting lineup due to Ray’s absence and totaled 10 points for his second career double-figure performance. He made 4-of-8 attempts from the field and added six rebounds. Senior forward Adrick McKinney led the Frogs on the glass with nine boards to go along with seven points. Anderson chipped in eight points, six assists and five steals. The thefts total matched a career high for Anderson
Wright led Tulsa with 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting, while he pulled down seven rebounds to help lead the squad to a 33-27 advantage on the glass. Forward Kauri Black and guard Shaquille Harrison added nine points apiece, and Swilling and guard Scottie Haralson both totaled six.
Tulsa shot as well as any opponent has so far this season against TCU, finishing with a final overall figure of 46.3 percent to only 38.3 percent for the Frogs. The Hurricane was especially successful in the first half, hitting 57.1 percent of its shots in the period. TCU’s defense, which has been the team’s strength this season, still had a profound impact on the contest, forcing TU into 23 turnovers that resulted in a 24-12 Frog advantage in points.
TCU trailed for nearly the entire opening half following another slow start. The squad played the first three-and-a-half minutes without field goal before spitting out a 7-0 run that put the squad on top by two.
The Hurricane entered intermission with a five-point edge by scoring seven of the final nine points in the period.
The Frogs turned up their defensive intensity early in the second half. The squad held TU scoreless for nearly six minutes to open the stanza while grabbing a four-point edge. Green recorded seven straight TCU points to give his squad its largest lead of the game at five, 38-33, with 12:16 remaining. Tulsa responded with six in a row to climb within one. Neither team led by more than three points for the final 11 minutes.
TCU takes the next 10 days off from competition during finals week before returning to action at home Dec. 18 vs. Southern University. Tip-off from Daniel-Meyer Coliseum has been set for 8 p.m., and the contest will be televised live by FOX Sports Southwest.
