TCU Opens With Win Over Prairie View A&M

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FORT WORTH, Texas – TCU went on a 22-4 run midway through the second half Friday night and never looked back, crushing Prairie View A&M at Wilkerson-Greines, 71-54.

The Horned Frogs had four players score in double-figures Friday with senior Trey Zeigler, who saw his first action in over a year, leading the way with a game-high 14 points on 6-for-8 from the floor. Sophomore Karviar Shepherd followed with his fifth career double-double, scoring 13 points, while grabbing a game-high 10 boards. Not to be outdone, senior Kyan Anderson added 12 points and four assists, while sophomore Kenrich Williams had a solid first outing, knocking down 11 points on 3-for-4 from the field. Williams, who was all over the court Friday, added eight boards, three assists and three blocks.

The Panthers were carried by Karim York’s 13-point outing. Tre Hagood also added 13 points on 4-of-10 from the field, while Montrael Scott was the only other Prairie View player in double-figures with 11 on 5-of-17 shooting.

In a game that saw every Horned Frog suited up see action, the Purple and White outrebounded Prairie View to the tune of 50-25. TCU did most of its damage down low, outscoring the Panthers in the paint, 38-16. The Frogs also held a 17-4 advantage in second-chance points Friday.

With the scoreboard reading 38-34 in favor of the Frogs in the

second stanza, Chris Washburn found Williams just outside the paint who proceeded to double clutch and power home a layup with contact to make it a 41-34 ballgame at the 14-minute mark of the period. A few plays later, Washburn got into the scoring act as the sophomore spun around his defender and connected on layup to bring the scoreboard to 43-34.

The Frogs were in the midst of a 9-0 run when Anderson scored on a run out, which gave TCU a 47-34 advantage midway through the second half. TCU increased it to 54-36 thanks to some quality defense and a fancy crossover by Anderson. When it was all said-and-done, the Purple and White had opened the game wide-open with a 22-4 run. During the stretch, the Frogs held the Panthers scoreless from the field for almost 10 minutes of action.

TCU put it on cruise control the rest of the way to move to 1-0 on the young season and 67-37 all-time in season-openers.

Shepherd got the Frogs going from the opening tip, following a miss by Washburn and powering home a layup to give TCU an early 2-0 lead. Brandon Parrish followed with a runner of his own and the Frogs were off and running early, jumping out to a 6-0 advantage.

With the Frogs up 9-1 during the opening stages, the Purple and White used relentless defensive pressure, forcing Prairie View into a 0-for-7 showing from the field to start the game. The Panthers, who had three turnovers during that span, didn’t score from the field until 13:43 showed on the clock in the period.

TCU had jumped out to a 12-5 lead midway through when Williams found pay dirt, knocking down a mid-range jumper with 9:53 showing on the scoreboard. The two teams would go back and forth the next couple of trips until Zeigler dished it off to Shepherd inside the paint to give the Frogs a 10-point cushion at the 7:36 mark of the opening frame of play.

Prairie View would continue to fight down the stretch of the first half, making it a 20-13 game, but some nifty ball handling by Zeigler stymied the Panther mini-run as the senior crossed over his defender and laid it off the glass with 5:32 showing. Back-to-back three’s by Prairie View made it a 24-19 game, but Anderson tickled the twine from deep to put TCU back up by eight at the 3:22 mark of the period.

The Frogs took a 30-23 lead into the break, outscoring the Panthers down the stretch, 6-4.

TCU returns to the hardwood Monday when it battles Pac-12 foe Washington State, beginning at 7:00 p.m. CT from Wilkerson-Greines.