The TCU men’s basketball team lost Wednesday night to the eighth-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys (15-2, 3-1 Big 12), moving them into last place in the Big 12.
The Frogs (9-7, 0-4 Big 12) are still looking for their first conference win this season. The 82-50 loss makes it four straight for TCU, with three consecutive coming by more than 18 points.
“They wore us down,” TCU head coach Trent Johnson said.
Cowboys guard Marcus Smart, the reigning Big 12 player of the week, scored 20 points to go with 8 rebounds and 5 assists in the win.
“He’s, without a question, the best player in the country in my mind,” Johnson said.
Freshman center Karviar Shepherd had a career-high 13 points as well as five rebounds on the night.
Once again, the Frogs failed to win the battle of the boards and were outrebounded 46-33. Earlier in the week, Johnson attributed injuries to being part of the problem.
“Bottom line is we’re not able to simulate the kind of physicality in practice from a rebounding standpoint that we need to,” Johnson said.
Johnson was still adamant that the Frogs have no excuse for their recent performances.
“When you have three guys sitting on the bench who can’t play [that are] 6’8” and above, it hurts,” Johnson said. “You can’t feel sorry for yourself. No one is going to feel sorry for you.”
TCU struggled on the offensive side of the ball for most of the night, making only 16-of-55 shots. They also shot 14.3 percent from behind the arc.
To make matters worse, Johnson confirmed that sophomore guard Charles Hill Jr. wouldn’t return to the team this season due to academic issues.
In only a few short months, the Frogs have lost a lot of depth due to injuries and now off-the-court problems.
Oklahoma State, on the other hand, looked like a Top 10 team. The Cowboys made eight three-pointers, shot 46.7 percent and had four players score in double figures.
The Cowboys are currently riding a three-game winning streak and hold sole possession of third place in the Big 12.
TCU returns to action on Saturday against the Texas Tech Red Raiders (8-8, 0-3 Big 12), who are coming off a surprising upset of the then twelfth-ranked Baylor Bears.
Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. from Daniel-Meyer Coliseum.
