Good luck, bad luck or no luck at all; no matter what the logic, the men’s basketball team is in the midst of a nine-game losing streak.Saturday night had the Frogs going head to head with the Mountain West Conference leading BYU Cougars. The results for the evening were two players setting career highs in points and a third reaching double digits, all for the valiant effort of a loss.
At one point the Frogs (10-13, 2-9 conference) were tied for the conference lead after going 2-0. Since then, a string of nine losses plagued by bad shooting, weak ball handling and unlucky timing have dropped TCU into the bottom of the conference.
Saturday, the Frogs hit nearly 50 percent of their shots from the field, while the Cougars (19-6, 9-2 conference), managed to go 62 percent from the field. The shooting improved, but the outcome stayed the same.
“It’s frustrating when you have a good game and lose,” sophomore forward Kevin Langford said. “I’d rather have a mediocre game and win.”
Langford notched a career-high 22-points, while senior center Femi Ibikunle had a career night with 13. Forward Alvardo Parker chipped in 10 points, but the guards were kept quiet when they made a collective 27 points en route to an 85-72 loss.
“They made a big emphasis on taking away 3-point shots,” guard Brent Hackett said. “They just started pressuring the perimeter.”
Hackett had been averaging 13.4 points per game during conference play until his six point performance on Saturday.
“If they take our 3-pointers away, they win,” Hackett said.
The play from the forwards raised a vote of confidence from head coach Neil Dougherty.
“They just started face-guarding Brent, so we used him as a decoy to get the ball inside,” Dougherty said. “It’s the first time we had three big guys in double figures.”
Freshman point guard Martiese Morones picked up four assists against the Cougars while helping set up the forwards for their plays in the middle.
“We put Martiese in because he can get in and out quicker and do some things even though he doesn’t understand all the plays yet,” Dougherty said.
The next chance to get off the losing streak will come against the Colorado State Rams tonight in Fort Collins.
“We have got to steal one on the road and get off this skid,” Langford said.
