The last time the Horned Frogs and head coach Neil Dougherty beat a ranked opponent was Feb. 17, 2004, against the then-No. 10 Louisville Cardinals.Since that landmark win, TCU has gone 40-59 and was winless against any top-25 opponent. Saturday became another moment in Horned Frogs basketball history when the Frogs left the court after notching a 71-66 victory over the then-No. 14 Air Force Falcons. After the loss, Air Force dropped to No. 25 in the AP poll.
“The win is right up there with Louisville,” senior point guard Neil P. Dougherty said. “Both were on our home floor, and both were against nationally ranked teams that were playing their best ball,”
The last time the two teams faced each other was Jan. 23, when the Falcons had a commanding 72-39 victory, and the Horned Frogs were in the early days of the recent 11-game losing streak. Last weekend, the demons of the streak were vanquished in high fashion before an audience of 4,608 fans, the second highest attendance in Daniel-Meyer Coliseum this season.
“The difference (between this game and last) was about 36 points,” Dougherty said.
Saturday’s win brought forth a few other seasonal changes for the Horned Frogs, including a new breath of life while shooting from the field. Throughout the season, TCU had been struggling with shots from the hardwood with a conference-worst 41 percent field goal percentage, but last weekend, on the shoulders of Ryan Wall, the Frogs were able to convert a season best 55.6 percent. This was possible thanks to hot second-half shooting that saw the Frogs go 15 of 20 from the field, good for 75 percent shooting.
“We were trying to basically attack them if we had a back-cut but show patience if we didn’t,” Dougherty said, of the team’s strategy on offense.
Protecting the perimeter was a problem for the Horned Frogs throughout the skid as opposing teams had been making more than 37 percent of the shots from 3-point land, placing TCU near the bottom of the ranks in 3-point defense in the conference. With the increased intensity on defense, the Frogs were able to shut down the touted 3-point shooters from Air Force as the Falcons were held to 29.4 percent from 3-point land, 11 percent below the season average.
“They make you do different things,” Dougherty said after the game. “If you sit there and guard that motion (offense) for the entire shot clock, you’re just asking for trouble.”
Air Force had been conference frontrunners in fewest turnovers, averaging only 10.4 per game, until a quick moving defense of TCU stunned the Falcons into committing a season-high 17 turnovers.
TCU is in a position to finish tied for last in the Mountain West, but the win gave a new vote of confidence to a Horned Frogs team that is limping through to the end of the season.
“One of these days, the cloud of injuries is going to leave this place,” Dougherty said.
With the coveted NCAA Tournament just around the corner, the Falcons now reside in third place and are facing a situation that was unheard of throughout the season: a losing streak.
Meanwhile, Dougherty said he expects practices leading up to Wednesday’s game against the Wyoming Cowboys to be more intense as the end of the season draws near.
“We’re going to do more things in practice since the season becomes shorter,” Dougherty said.
Problems from the free-throw line still plagued the Frogs on Saturday as they shot 57 percent from the line, which is below the season average, but the ability to covert from inside the paint and disrupt the Falcons’ pace proved vital to success. Another key to victory was the team converting 24 points off 17 Air Force turnovers.
“When you’re playing Air Force, if you have an opportunity, you have to execute,” sophomore forward Kevin Langford said.
The win has set the tone for the final home game of the season as the team prepares for the Mountain West Conference Tournament in Las Vegas.
“This win takes the monkey off our back a little bit and opens us up to believe we can get some wins here in a row,” Neil P. Dougherty said.
