TCU Looks To Tame Tigers Saturday Afternoon
12/30/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 30, 2011
GAME DAY INFORMATION
TCU Horned Frogs(6-6, 0-0 Mountain West)
Head Coach: Jeff Mittie
Career Record: 417-191 (6-6 season)
School Record: 266-132 (13th Season)
Texas Southern(1-8, 0-0 SWAC)
Head Coach: Yolanda Wells-Broughton
Texas Southern Career Record: 29-70 (1-8 season)
Location: Fort Worth, Texas • Arena: Daniel-Meyer Coliseum
Rankings: TCU - NR/NR • Texas Southern - NR/NR
Last Time Out: TCU lost to Oklahoma, 82-54
Television: None
Television Talent: None
Live Video: http://gofrogs.cstv.com/allaccess
Live Audio: http://gofrogs.cstv.com/allaccess
Live Stats: GoFrogs.com (Gametracker)
Radio: KTCU (88.7 FM) Jeff Williams (Play-By-Play); Jeff Lewis (Color)
Twitter Updates: http://twitter.com/TCUWbasketball
Series Record vs. Texas Southern: TCU leads, 4-0
Last Meeting vs. Texas Southern: Dec. 30, 2010 (W, 76-55)
FORT WORTH, Texas - TCU will close out 2011 Saturday with a 2:00 p.m. matchup against Texas Southern at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. The first 500 fans in attendance will receive free 2012 glasses.
In what is the first game of a men's and women's double-header, the contest will mark the fifth meeting between the two Texas schools. The Horned Frogs have never lost to the Tigers in four tries and will be going for their third-straight win at the friendly confines of the DMC.
The Opponent
Texas Southern comes into Saturday's game looking for its first win since upending Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 63-54, in late November. In their last outing, the Tigers fell at Arkansas, 86-41. Against the Razorbacks, Chasity Richardson led a balanced scoring attack for TSU with seven points, while Kayla West chipped in with six against the Hogs. Nine games into the 2011-12 season, Gianne Fleming has carried the offensive load for Texas Southern, averaging over 10 points per game and 4.1 boards. The Tigers are led by fourth year head coach Yolanda Wells-Broughton, who is a former assistant for TCU head coach Jeff Mittie.
The Series
TCU and Texas Southern will be meeting for only the fifth time in program history today. The Horned Frogs, who have won all four meeting's against the Tigers, dominated TSU last season, recording a 76-55 victory. Overall, the Frogs have outscored the Tigers in the previous four meetings a combined, 315-180, which includes limiting TSU to only 55 points in the last two outings.
Closing December Out Right
When the Horned Frogs take on Texas Southern Saturday, they will look to continue an impressive trend under head coach Jeff Mittie. In its final game during the month of December, TCU is 10-2 since the 1999-2000 season. The Frogs' only losses came during the 2000-01 and 2008-09 seasons by Alabama and SMU, respectively.
A Did You Know About New Year's Eve Games
Since 1987, TCU has only lost twice in New Year's Eve games, falling to Mississippi State and Missouri in 1989 and 1992, respectively. Under head coach Jeff Mittie, the Horned Frogs are 4-0 overall on Dec. 31 and have scored over 90 points twice. Overall, TCU is 6-2 in games on the final day of December since 1980.
Three Freshmen Starting
This past Wednesday, TCU started true freshmen Ashley Colbert, Chelsea Prince and Natalie Ventress, marking the first time in the past 10 years that three freshmen have started the same game under head coach Jeff Mittie.
Wynn Stepping Up Her Play
Sophomore Briesha Wynn has been making her presence known on the offensive end of the court since the beginning of December. The sophomore has scored in double-figures in four of the Horned Frogs six games this month, including three out of the last four. During the past two years, the Horned Frogs have been almost automatic in the win column when Wynn scores double-digit points, going a combined 8-1, with its only loss coming to the Aggies earlier this month when she scored a career-high 14 points.
Iron Unkind From Three-Point Land
Heading into Saturday's game against Texas Southern, the Frogs have held five different opponents to less than 20 percent shooting from behind the arc, including Tulsa who shot 16.7 percent and didn't make a single-three in the second half, going 0-for-5. In five of TCU's victories this winter, UTSA (10.3), Fordham (19.2), Houston (15.4), Sam Houston State (16.7) and Tulsa (16.7) have all shot under 20 percent from three. The Frogs are now 17-1 the last three seasons when holding the opposition to under 20 percent. TCU's only loss came last season against future conference opponent West Virginia when the Mountaineers shot 16.6 percent from three and won.
Holding Opponents In Check
So far this season, TCU has held six different opponents under 30 percent shooting from the field (UTSA, SMU, Fordham, Houston, Sam Houston State and Tulsa). During the last four years, the Frogs have been almost perfect record wise when holding the opposition to less than 34.9 percent from the field, going 41-4 overall since the 2008-09 season.
Causing Havoc On The Defensive End Of The Court
In five out of the last six games, the Frogs have forced 21 + turnovers on the defensive end of the court. Against Oklahoma, TCU caused the Sooners to cough the ball up 26 times, which follows outings of Texas A&M (24), Lamar (22), Houston (22) and Sam Houston State (22). During that stretch, the Frogs have turned those turnovers into points on the offensive end of the court, holding a combined 106-91 advantage in points off turnovers in the previous six contests.
Defending The RimLed by freshman Chelsea Prince's career-high four blocks, the Horned Frogs totaled eight blocks against Sam Houston State, which marks the fourth time this season the Frogs have blocked at least eight shots in a single-game. TCU's record during those four contests is 3-1, with the only loss coming to Hartford. Overall, the Purple and White have totaled 72 blocks after 12 games. In comparison, TCU tallied only 136 blocks a year ago in 33 games.
Last Time Out
Natalie Ventress and Antoinette Thompson both scored in double-figures Wednesday, but it wasn't enough as Oklahoma dropped TCU at the Lloyd Noble Center, 82-54.
Ventress, a freshman from Fort Worth, scored 14 points on 5-of-15 shooting, which included a new career-high of four triples from deep. In all, Ventress scored nine of her 14 in the second half, including going 3-of-4 from behind the arc. Fellow freshman Chelsea Prince had another all-around game for the Horned Frogs, scoring eight points, while also grabbing a team-high seven boards.
With the loss, TCU, who forced OU into a game-high 26 turnovers, moved to 6-6 on the year and saw its two-game winning streak come to an end. Oklahoma improved to 8-3 overall and won its fifth-straight contest.
Follow The Frogs
Fans not able to attend the TSU game can follow the game live via a live stream, Gametracker and radio. To access any of the above, go to the women's basketball schedule page and click on the respective links located on the right-hand side of the page.
Up Next
TCU will return to the DMC on Thursday, Jan. 5 against Texas-Pan American.
