After a three-game winning streak at home to start off the season, the Frogs will have their first road game of the year when they face the St. Mary’s Gaels in Moraga, Calif.Last weekend, TCU pushed its record to 3-0 with a double-overtime win against the UTA Mavericks, while St. Mary’s lost to the USC Trojans, bringing its record to 3-2.
This is the first time the Frogs have started off a season at 3-0 since the 2004-2005 season, when they eventually went on to earn an NIT invite after finishing with 20 wins, according to the TCU Basketball Media handout.
Sophomore forward Kevin Langford and junior guard Ryan Wall lead the team in points with 43. They are followed by junior guard Brent Hackett and senior forward Blake Adams at 37 and 33 respectively.
Wall topped the points chart for TCU on Saturday, when he racked up 25 points, 19 of which came from the free-throw line.
Head coach Neil Dougherty said the game still left room for improvement before the Frogs head on the road.
“At the end of the day, we are 3-0, but I think what we’ll see on tape is that we are doing some nice things but not rewarding ourselves offensively and defensively like we should,” Dougherty said.
Dougherty said the rewards on both sides of the ball come from finishing up the plays or opportunities that are presented to the players. On offense, the team needs to make more of its free throws when it draws a foul, and, on defense, it needs to be able to convert after a steal or a solid rebound, he said.
“There is not much you can do when you are confident in the guys who can get the free throws with no payoff,” Dougherty said.
Dougherty said there were some positive outcomes of the last game, and it could bode well for the rest of the season.
“It is one of those wins when you look back at the end of the season, you are really glad you got it, or you wonder how did you let it go,” Dougherty said.
The Frogs will return to Daniel-Meyer Coliseum at 7 p.m. Friday to take on the Grambling State Tigers.