The Horned Frogs ended their four-game losing skid Saturday as they rolled past the Kansas State Wildcats at Schollmaier Arena on their annual “Play4Kay” day, 87-70.
“It’s awesome that the Kay Yow cancer fund gives us the platform to play this game,” TCU head coach Raegan Pebley said.
Each of the players wore the name of a breast cancer survivor on their shooting shirts in pre-game warmups.
“I believe that allowed our team to play inspired,” Pebley said. “Awesome win on an amazing day, and we are excited about the win.”
The win was TCU’s first win in five games this month.
The Horned Frogs got off to an early 23-13 lead in the first quarter as they established their dominance in the paint. Fourteen total rebounds for the Horned Frogs, including six offensive rebounds, led to 11 second-chance points. TCU held the Wildcats to 30 percent shooting and 13 points in the first frame.
The Horned Frogs made the Wildcats pay for botched coverage on the three-point line in the first quarter as they were able to shoot 43 percent from beyond the arc and separate the two teams.
“It was huge to get off to a good start, especially defensively,” Pebley said. “We were able to get the right things done and seeing the ball go through the basket early was awesome. Whether it was Syndey [Coleman] or Jordan [Moore] hitting shots, we had a great first quarter. It was really encouraging.”
TCU’s successes continued in the second quarter as the Horned Frogs continued to haul in rebounds in bunches. Pebley’s squad notched a total of 21 rebounds through two quarters, good for 16 second-chance points.
At the half, the Horned Frogs led the Wildcats by 17. The lead was just six points fewer than their largest halftime lead of the season: 23 points against Northwestern State set Dec. 17.
Forward Amy Okonkwo led the Horned Frogs with 12 points and seven rebounds off the bench and was a perfect 6-6 from the free-throw line, all in just nine minutes of action.
Offensive efficiency continued to come with ease for the Horned Frogs in the second half as everything seemed to be falling for the Frogs. TCU found holes in the Big 12’s fourth-ranked scoring defense and shot 54 percent from the field in addition to 36 percent from beyond the arc.
Okonkwo finished the night with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
“Offensive rebounding was huge today,” Okonkwo said. “Coach has really gotten after me in practice to get after rebounds more and getting second-chance points. We really did that and executed well today. It feels awesome to finally get a win.”
The Kansas State players Kayla Goth and Peyton Williams proved their worth despite a losing effort. Averaging a combined 31 points in conference play, the duo scored 44 points Saturday afternoon.
Up next, the Horned Frogs will travel to Lubbock to face Texas Tech. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m Wednesday.
