Notes on a Scorecard - Basketball
10/28/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Oct. 28, 2015
Men's Basketball Season Preview
Coming off a season that saw many highlights, including a top-25 national ranking, the Horned Frogs will look to build upon their recent success and make some more noise both nationally and within the conference in 2015-16.
Last season saw the program jump into the national spotlight prior to the start of conference play after beginning the year 13-0. When it was all said and done, TCU was one of only six teams in the nation to start the year 13-0, joining Final Four participant Kentucky, National Champion Duke, Colorado State, Virginia and Villanova.
To duplicate that same type of success though, the Frogs must replace three starters from a year ago in all-conference honoree Kyan Anderson, Trey Zeigler and junior Kenrich Williams, who will miss the season with an injury.
The good news is the cupboard is not bare for fourth-year head coach Trent Johnson. With the return of starters Karviar Shepherd and Chris Washburn, the Horned Frogs have a solid foundation in place to go along with other seasoned veterans and a talented crop of newcomers. The duo, who were named captains for the upcoming year, should give the Frogs plenty of firepower on both ends of the court to once again push for a postseason bid in 2015-16.
Simply put, the building blocks are in place for TCU to make a run as the program enters its new basketball home, the Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena, which underwent a $72 million renovation.
Shepherd returns following a season in which he finished 14th overall in the Big 12 Conference in rebounding, averaging 5.7 boards a contest. He was also No. 15 in offensive rebounds, while ranking in the top-20 in league games in rebounds with 5.2 per contest.
Washburn, who one national analyst has tagged as one of the top returning players in the Big 12 Conference this season, should become even more of a factor for TCU in 2015-16 after closing out last season with back-to-back double-digit outings at the conference tournament. When it was all said and done, the Grand Prairie native scored in double-figures in eight games and ranked No. 12 overall in the Big 12 Conference in rebounding and No. 7 in blocked shots.
Senior Devonta Abron should help bolster the Frogs' inside presence this season as well. Abron came off the bench for the Purple and White in 28 games a year ago and has been a key contributor during his time in Fort Worth.
Maybe an even bigger storyline heading into this season is the added additions of Vladimir Brodziansky, JD Miller, Lyrik Shreiner and Malique Trent. The quartet will play a big role in TCU's season and are expected to make a huge impact.
Brodziansky, a 6-foot-10 forward, comes to Fort Worth after shining at Pratt Community College (Kan.) this past season where he averaged 15.3 points per game and 8.8 rebounds a contest. Trent competed last season at New Mexico Junior College where he earned NJCAA All-American Honorable Mention accolades, as well as being named the NJCAA Freshman of the Year after averaging a team-leading 15.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game.
Miller will don the Purple and White after being ranked a four-star recruit and the 19th-best small forward in the nation by ESPN.com. Shreiner was a three-star prospect by both Rivals and ESPN after breaking the Arizona high school state scoring record after shooting 26-of-27 from the field en route to a 65-point outing.
Help also returns in the backcourt for TCU in Brandon Parrish, Michael Williams, Chauncey Collins and Dalton Dry. Parrish is a true scoring threat from anywhere on the court after totaling six double-digit outings throughout last season, while dropping 11 points against league foes West Virginia and Iowa State twice. A part-time starter a year ago, look for the junior's numbers to increase in 2015-16 with more touches. On the flip side, Williams, Collins and Dry should give Johnson solid depth at the guard position following the loss of four-year starter Anderson.
The Frogs are slated to open their 2015-16 campaign at home against Southeastern Louisiana. In total, the Frogs will play 18 home games this season. TCU will conclude nonconference play, hosting Tennessee in the third annual Big 12/SEC Challenge.
The squad will play 14 league games against teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament last season, including seven in Fort Worth. Five of the 13 non-conference contests will be against teams that made postseason play a year ago, while the Frogs will take part in the prestigious Cancun Challenge during the Thanksgiving holiday.
Women's Basketball Season Preview
TCU Women's Basketball continues to assemble the pieces for an emergence onto the national women's basketball scene. Having already made major progress in becoming a top-tier program in the nation's toughest women's basketball conference, the Big 12, the Horned Frogs are ready for the launch of a new arena this season and to continue the climb back in the national picture.
It was a record-breaking season for head coach Raegan Pebley and TCU in 2014-15.
Pebley became the first coach at TCU to reach the postseason in their inaugural season in Fort Worth and won 18 games - the most for a rookie head coach at TCU. She helped the squad reach the postseason for the 13th time in 15 seasons and secured the program's first postseason win since 2008 with a 85-80 win over Stephen F. Austin in the opening round of the Postseason Women's NIT.
TCU's defensive emphasis showed up in improved numbers on the offensive end. The Horned Frogs posted 69.6 points per contest in 2014-15, ranking them in the top 70 in the nation in scoring after finishing below 200 in the national standings in each of the previous four seasons. TCU's scoring improved by 6.4 points while the team's three-point percentage increased by three points and the team's free throw percentage increased to 76.3 points.
The Horned Frogs were picked to finish fifth in the league in 2015-16, but were just one vote behind the fourth place slot, which featured Iowa State. Baylor, Texas and Oklahoma are at the top of the preseason standings.
After being picked to finish seventh in the conference by the league's coaches in a preseason poll last year, the Horned Frogs finished in a tie for third in the Big 12 Conference, their best finish in three years as a league member. The Horned Frogs have finished higher in the standings in each of the last two seasons than the preseason coaches poll ranked the team.
The team returns eight letterwinners, including two All-Conference selections from a year ago. Senior Zahna Medley, a two-time first team All-Conference selection, and senior Veja Hamilton, an honorable mention All-Conference selection, were the Horned Frogs' leading scorers a year ago - posting 15.6 and 11.3 points per game, respectively. Medley earned preseason All-Conference honors again this season with Hamilton taking home an honorable mention selection.
TCU opens the 2015-16 season Nov. 13, hosting Sam Houston State, one of eight non-conference matchups that the Horned Frogs will have in Fort Worth this season. The highlight of the non-conference schedule comes Dec. 12 when the Horned Frogs face Notre Dame in the Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena.
The Fighting Irish finished 36-3 a year ago, reaching the national championship game before losing to Connecticut 63-53 in Tampa. Notre Dame returns four starters from its national runner-up finish.
The Frogs open play in the Big 12 Conference for the fifth time on Saturday, Dec. 30 when the Horned Frogs travel to Lubbock to take on Texas Tech.
