Frogs Face Air Force Saturday at DMC
1/28/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 28, 2011
GAME #23
TCU (10-12; 1-6 MWC) vs. AIR FORCE (11-8; 2-4 MWC)
TCU GAME NOTES 
| AF GAME NOTES | LISTEN LIVE 
| 
GAME DAY INFORMATION
Saturday, Jan. 29, 2011 | 5 p.m. CT | Fort Worth, Texas | Daniel-Meyer Coliseum (7,201)
Television: CBS College (DirecTV ch. 613, Dish ch. 152)
Talent: Roger Twibell (pxp), Steve Lappas (analyst)
Radio: 820 AM & 96.7 FM (WBAP), 88.7 FM (KTCU)
Talent: Brian Estridge (pxp), John Denton (analyst)
Internet: GoFrogs.com (radio, GameTracker)
Series Record: Tied, 6-6 | Last Meeting: Feb. 6, 2010 at Air Force (W, 65-51)
TCU Head Coach: Jim Christian (Rhode Island, `88)
Record at TCU: 37-48 (.435) in 3rd season | Overall: 175-106 (.623) in 9th season
AF Head Coach: Jeff Reynolds (UNC Greensboro, '78)
Record at AF: 47-64 (.423) in 4th season | Overall: 128-98 (.566) in 8th season
FORT WORTH--TCU finishes off the first half of its 2011 MWC schedule Saturday, when it plays host to Air Force at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. Tip-off for the game, which will be televised by CBS College Sports, is set for 5 p.m.
TCU, 10-12 overall this season and 1-6 in the Mountain West Conference, will look to get back on the winning track following a 71-46 loss at New Mexico on Wednesday. Returning home would appear to be a good start, as the Frogs are 8-3 this season playing at the DMC. Air Force is 11-8 overall and tied for sixth place in the MWC standings with a 2-4 league record. The Falcons suffered a close 69-66 road setback Wednesday at Colorado State. TCU has won four straight against the Falcons dating back to 2008.
Several events and promotions surround Saturday's game, highlighted by a special halftime ceremony celebrating the career of former Frog James Cash Jr., who became the first African American student-athlete to earn a scholarship to play in the Southwest Conference in 1967. The TCU coaching staff will also take part in the annual Coaches vs. Cancer Suits and Sneakers Weekend, while the game has been designated as the annual "Take A Kid to the Game Night," with a free youth ticket accompanying the purchase of any adult ticket.
Saturday's game marks TCU's 11th televised matchup this season and its first on CBS College Sports. Broadcast duties will be handled by Roger Twibell (play-by-play) and Steve Lappas (analyst). CBS College Sports is available nationwide on DirecTV channel 613 and Dish Network on channel 152.
In addition to television coverage, the contest also will be broadcast live on the radio throughout the Metroplex on both 820 AM and 96.7 FM WBAP, as well as 88.7 FM KTCU. Brian Estridge (play-by-play) and John Denton (analyst) will serve as the on-air talent. Live stats and a link to an Internet radio feed will be available via TCU's official athletics website, GoFrogs.com.
A LOOK AT THE STARTERS*
TCU Projected Starters
No. - Name - Pos. - Ht. - Wt. - Yr. - PPG, RPG, APG
10 - Hank Thorns - G - 5-8 - 165 - Jr. - 9.6, 3.2, 6.2
12 - Nikola Cerina - F - 6-9 - 245 - So. - 4.2, 2.9, 0.7#
15 - Nikola Gacesa - F - 6-9 - 245 - Sr. - 4.4, 3.7, 0.5#
25 - Greg Hill - G 6-2 - 205 - Sr. - 4.7, 1.4, 0.8
33 - Garlon Green - F - 6-7 - 210 - So. - 11.6, 4.4, 1.1
Air Force Projected Starters
No. - Name - Pos. - Ht. - Wt. - Yr. - PPG, RPG, APG
10 - Todd Fletcher - G - 6-2 - 180 - So. - 5.1, 2.3, 2.6
14 - Michael Lyons - G - 6-6 - 190 - So. - 13.3, 3.7, 2.0
20 - Tom Fow - F - 6-6 - 205 - Sr. - 12.9, 3.7, 0.9#
34 - Taylor Broekhuis - C - 6-10 - 210 - So. - 9.8, 4.4, 1.6
35 - Evan Washington - G - 6-4 - 200 - Sr. - 8.3, 4.9, 3.7
^-blocks per game; #-steals per game
*-players determined by starters from each team's previous game
FROG QUICK NOTES
- TCU is shooting 49.8% from the field at home with an average scoring margin of +11.0 ppg, compared to figures of 39.4% and -13.3 ppg away from Fort Worth.
- TCU is 10-0 when scoring over 70 points this season and 0-12 when scoring fewer than 70 points.
- Hank Thorns leads the MWC in assists (6.19 apg) and was No. 16 nationally as of Jan. 28. He also is No. 2 in the MWC and No. 27 in the NCAA in assist/turnover ratio (2.55).
- Thorns has five 10-assist games, three more than any other MWC player. He is on pace to finish among the top-5 players in TCU history in single-season assists.
- In MWC games only, Thorns averages 7.14 apg with a league-high 3.85 assist-turnover ratio. He owns an assist-turnover ratio of 6.3 (44-7) over the last five games.
- Garlon Green leads the MWC in 3-point percentage overall this season with a figure of 50.0%. Twenty-seven of his 41 career 3-pointers have been recorded in the last 13 games.
- TCU is shooting 51.6% from the field in its 10 wins and only 38.2% in its 10 losses. The squad owns an average rebounding edge of +4.8 in victories and is at -5.6 in losses.
- Ronnie Moss needs only three points to move into a tie for 20th place on TCU's career scoring chart with Brent Hackett and Junior Blount (1,098 points).
- Three of Nikola Cerina's four double-figure scoring efforts this season have come in the last seven games. He finished his freshman season with 10-plus points in four of his last five contests.
- TCU leads the MWC and ranks No. 53 nationally in 3-point field-goal defense (30.5%). The squad also paces the league in keeping opponents off the offensive glass with a defensive rebounding rate of 71.7% and ranks No. 3 in 3-pointers made (6.68 3pg).
HONORING JAMES CASH JR.
TCU will celebrate the career of former Horned Frog great James Cash Jr. with a special halftime ceremony during Saturday's game against Air Force. Cash became the first African American student-athlete to earn a scholarship play in the Southwest Conference while lettering for TCU from 1967 through 1969.
Cash, one of only 30 players in TCU history to reach the 1,000-point milestone, finished his career in fifth place on the Frogs' all-time scoring list. He still sits fourth on the program's career rebounding chart with 856, an average of 11.6 boards per game. A product of Terrell High School in Fort Worth, Cash helped the Frogs win the 1967-68 SWC championship and advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. He also was a standout in the classroom, earning Academic All-America honors during his stint at TCU, and was later inducted into the TCU Letterman's Hall of Fame in 1984.
In addition to his basketball accomplishments as a Frog, Cash put together an accomplished career off the court following his athletic career. After receiving his bachelor's degree in math from TCU and both a master's in computer science and a Ph.D. from Purdue, he became the first African American Full Professor at the Harvard Business School, where he helped build the school's curriculum in the area of computer-based technology. He later served as chairman of the Harvard M.B.A. program from 1992 to 1995 and senior associate dean for Harvard Business School Publishing from 1998 until his retirement in 2003.
Cash currently is a member of the board of directors of several well-known corporations, including General Electric, Wal-Mart and The Chubb Corporation. In the past he served on the boards of Alcon Labs, Tandy Corp (later renamed Radio Shack), Microsoft and Knight Ridder, the former owner of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He kept true to his basketball roots in 2003, when he joined the group that purchased the Boston Celtics.
WHAT'S WITH THE SNEAKERS?
TCU's coaching staff will take part in the annual Coaches vs. Cancer Suits and Sneakers awareness weekend during Saturday's contest against Air Force, sporting sneakers on the sideline during the contest.
The initiative is a nationwide event sponsored each year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Coaches and their staffs throughout college basketball are encouraged by the NABC to wear sneakers with their game attire to help raise awareness about caner and promote the American Cancer Society as a place for people facing the disease.
The Frogs will continue the initiative during their Feb. 19 home contest against BYU, when team members will don special shooting shirts honoring individuals in their lives who have been affected by cancer.
SCOUTING THE AIR FORCE FALCONS
Air Force, led by fourth-year head coach Jeff Reynolds, is 11-8 overall this season and sits in a tie for sixth place in the MWC standings with a 2-4 league record. The squad opened the campaign by going 9-4 in non-conference action.
As a team, Air Force leads the MWC in 3-point shooting (39.3%) and is second in field-goal percentage (48.5%), field-goal percentage defense (39.7%) and free-throw shooting (71.9%).
Sophomore guard Michael Lyons leads the team and is No. 10 in the MWC in scoring at 13.3 ppg, while senior forward Tom Fow is 12th in the league with a 12.9-point average. Senior guard Evan Washington leads the team in both rebounding (4.9 rpg) and assists (3.7 apg).
INSIDE THE SERIES
The all-time series between TCU and Air Force is tied at 6-6. The Frogs have won four straight games with sweeps of the last two season series and are 4-2 all-time against the Falcons in Fort Worth. Each contest between the two squads has come since the 1998-99 season. Air Force took four straight decisions after TCU won the series opener.
TCU vs. Air Force - All-Time Series
Date - W/L - Score - Site
Jan. 21, 1999 - W - 114-87 - Fort Worth
Feb. 20, 1999 - L - 78-81 - Colorado Springs
Jan. 14, 2006 - L - 49-75 - Colorado Springs
Feb. 15, 2006 - L - 45-63 - Fort Worth
Jan. 23, 2007 - L - 39-72 - Colorado Springs
Feb. 24, 2007 - W - 71-66 - Fort Worth
Feb. 2, 2008 - L - 46-56 - Fort Worth
March 5, 2008 - L - 36-57 - Colorado Springs
Jan. 17, 2009 - W - 64-57 - Colorado Springs
Feb. 18, 2009 - W - 62-50 - Fort Worth
Jan. 6, 2010 - W - 59-50 - Fort Worth
Feb. 6, 2010 - W - 65-51 - Colorado Springs
LAST SEASON VS. AIR FORCE
- Jan. 6, 2010 - Fort Worth (TCU, 59-50)
Zvonko Buljan collected his 14th career double with a 14-point, 11-rebound performance to lead TCU to a 59-50 victory over Air Force Academy at the DMC.
The senior forward connected on 4-of-8 field goal attempts and 6-of-7 free throws to pace the Frogs. Kevin Butler nearly missed a double-double with 12 points and eight rebounds, while Greg Hill notched 12 points.
TCU led by as many as 13 points at intermission, but Air Force chipped away at the lead in the second half. The Falcons took their first lead of the game at the 5:54 mark, 42-40, following a pair of free throws by Mike Fitzgerald. The Frogs were able to regain the lead minutes later on a pair of free throws by Hill and finished the contest outscoring Air Force by a 19-8 margin over the final 5:54.
- Feb. 6, 2010 - USAFA, Colo. (TCU, 65-51)
Greg Hill and Ronnie Moss combined for 41 points while leading TCU to a 65-51 victory over Air Force at Clune Arena.
Hill finished with a career-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including 7-of-10 from behind the 3-point line. Moss totaled 18 points on 7-of-8 shooting, including a pair of treys, to go along with eight assists.
TCU led by double digits in the first half and by seven at the break. The Falcons cut the deficit to five points at 33-28 with 15:46 remaining in the game following a lay-in by Evan Washington, but a 15-5 run over the next eight minutes took the score to 48-33 following back-to-back 3-pointers by Hill. TCU cruised from there to improve to 11-13 overall and 3-6 in MWC play.
