The Horned Frogs extend their winning streak to five games in their last regular season matchup at the Schollmaier Arena, defeating the Lady Red Raiders 73-52.
Sedona Prince and Agnes Emma-Nnopu both finished with double-doubles. Prince finished the night with 29 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks.
Nnopu contributed 11 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. Madison Conner ended the night with 13 points, five rebounds and six assists.
Head coach Mark Campbell expressed satisfaction with the team’s return to running a zone offense, noting that they are settling back into a strong position, which has resulted in an extension of their win streak.
“We used our zone for the first time in about seven weeks and we have been working on it,” said Campbell. “I am glad we were able to use it and be effective. I guess you could say Sedona is shaking off the rust from missing those seven weeks.”
TCU capitalized on scoring in the paint with 18 in the first half. Although Texas Tech was shooting better from the three-point range, TCU went 16-of-31 from the field compared to Tech’s 8-of-31.
TCU tied the Red Raiders at the 5:15 mark in the first half, but went on an 8-2 run to extend their lead to 21-11 going into the second quarter.
Nnopu continues to perform well on the glass giving TCU the opportunity to get second chance points with seven rebounds in 15 minutes of play. TCU also displayed great ball movement, with only two turnovers in the half.
Campbell noted that with each game, their offensive flow improves, which has been evident in the team’s ability to take care of the ball, finishing the night with only 11 turnovers.
“I thought we had a much better rhythm and flow compared to the game against Houston,” said Campbell. “We did a great job of taking care of the ball… If we can take care of the ball and defend like this, we are hard to beat.”
Tech only managed to score seven points in the second half from three contributors: Jasmi Shavers, Bailey Maupin and Kelly Mora. Shavers led the team with highs of 11 points and two rebounds, both personal highs.
At the 4:30 mark TCU took a 30-16 lead over the Red Raiders after a layup made by Aaliyah Roberson. Conner, Una Jovanovic and Prince combined for 16 points. Nnopu got the defensive rebound off a missed shot from Maupin, dishing it out to Jovanovic who closed the first half with a made layup, 42-21.
Tech managed to work themselves back from a 21-point deficit with 2:39 left to go in the third quarter. Maupin scored three consecutive times from the three point range but were still down by 18, 35-53.
Although TCU began to slow down on three-point completions, their attempts from the field and ability to score from the charity line, allowed them to maintain a dominate 22-point lead with 4:49 left in the game.
Despite the setbacks of the season, Campbell is confident the Frogs can close out the season on a high note.
“A lot of times teams, this time of the year, they’ve played together as a unit for 27 games and we are not that,” said Campbell. “We have had three seasons within a season, so now we are down to eighty minutes. We have to continue to play good basketball and we still have a long ways to go as we get this group dialed in.”
Up next
TCU will hit the road to take on No.24 West Virginia on Saturday, tip-off is set for 12 p.m.
