TCU 77, Oklahoma State 73: Team effort paces Frogs to victory

Emanuel Miller hung from the rim and yelled to the heavens as Schollmaier Arena erupted around him, having just thrown down the victory-sealing dunk on Tuesday night.

“We run that play every day in practice,” Damion Baugh said afterward. Baugh contributed 15 points and eight assists on the night, with his final dime being the court-long inbounds heave to a wide open Miller.

“The refs were taking too long, so I kind of made a little side gesture at Eman. Once I did it, Eman knew to go long.”

The result? “Touchdown.”

Miller’s dunk sealed TCU’s 77-73 victory over Oklahoma State, moving the Frogs to 16-5 on the season and 5-4 in Big 12 play. TCU has yet to lose back-to-back games this season, a feat that hasn’t gone unnoticed by the team.

“That’s big, man.” Mike Miles said after the game. “That proves that we can bounce back from anything. That’s the kind of team we are this year and I’m proud of them.”

Miles crashed the postgame press conferences despite missing his second consecutive game with a wrist injury. When asked about a timeline for his return, the sophomore guard replied, “Hopefully Saturday.”

TCU needed a team-effort without their leading scorer on the court, and they got exactly that on Tuesday night.

Chuck O’Bannon matched a career high with 19 points, 12 of which came in the second half. Miller finished with 16 points, and Eddie Lampkin recorded a ten point, 12 rebound double double.

O’Bannon, Miller, Lampkin, Baugh, and Miles were all a part of the postgame press conference (you can watch the full video below), and their energy was on another level after the victory.

TCU opened the game exactly how they needed to after a poor showing against Kansas State, with a strong showing on both ends of the court.

The defense swarmed OSU for the first six minutes of the game, while threes from Emanuel Miller and JaKobe Coles helped TCU open up a 14-4 lead.

The Pokes wouldn’t go away though, as they went on an 11-2 run over the next three minutes. Avery Anderson drilled two threes, and Bryce Thompson made one of his own, as Oklahoma State roared right back into the game.

The Pokes played great defense during that stretch as well, forcing the Frogs to miss five consecutive shots and turn it over twice.

With the Frogs trailing 20-18 at the 8:11 mark, Rondel Walker hit Oklahoma State’s fourth three of the half, giving them a 23-18 lead and forcing Dixon to call a timeout. The game had the feel of slipping away from the Horned Frogs.

The last eight minutes of the half belonged to TCU, though. The Frogs responded out of the timeout with a three from Damion Baugh, who had nine first half points. Four straight points from Micah Peavy pushed TCU back in front, and then Baugh made an impressive cut to the rim, getting fouled and converting the three-point play.

Oklahoma State’s next time down the court resulted in a missed dunk. The ball ricocheted high off the rim, Farabello pulled down the rebound, and he kicked it down court to Chuck O’Bannon.

O’Bannon drilled the three from the right wing, sending the Scholly into a frenzy.

The Frogs closed the half on an extended 21-9 run, pulling out to a 39-32 halftime lead.

The second half had a bumpy start, with the Frogs turning it over three times in the first 1:24 of the half. Oklahoma State used that to claw back to within three, but unlike the first half when the Pokes took the lead, TCU wouldn’t fall behind again.

That didn’t mean things would be easy, though. TCU, just like the first half, worked their way out to a 69-56 lead at the 7:00 mark of the second half. And, just like the first half, Oklahoma State refused to go away.

The Pokes used six straight points from senior Issac Likekele and a ton of defensive hustle to pull off a 13-1 run, clawing back to within one point of the Frogs. With 2:04 left in the contest and TCU leading 70-69, Dixon called timeout.

Out of the break Damion Baugh hit a tough floater from the free throw line to give TCU some cushion. The Frogs got a stop on the other end and Baugh kicked it out to Miller on the fast break. Miller was fouled, and went 1-for-2 from the line to give the Frogs a two possession lead with 1:17 remaining.

Oklahoma State continued to fight, making two free throws to pull to within two, 73-71, with just 24 seconds remaining. Oklahoma State’s Avery Anderson missed the second of his two free throw attempts and Eddie Lampkin pulled down the rebound, and was immediately fouled.

Lampkin headed to the line, and his first free throw bounced on every part of the rim before falling through. He drilled the second one. Miller’s dunk a few seconds later sealed the victory.

“I wasn’t even worrying about it,” Lampkin said on going to the line in such a high-pressure situation. “I just had to step up.”

Lampkin, O’Bannon, Baugh, and Miller all stepped up at different times throughout the night to help TCU pull off the win. Now, TCU prepares to head to Lubbock this Saturday, where they'll face #9 Texas Tech.

Watch the full postgame presser right here: