By Danny Horne staff reporter The season for the TCU Lady Horned Frogs basketball team has been marred by the inability to win on the road, coaches said. But Saturday night, the Lady Frogs came out shooting the ball and got their first road win with a 66-59 victory over the Miners. Going into Saturday night's game against Texas-El Paso, the Lady Frogs were 0-5 on the opponent's home court. The only other game they won away from Daniel-Meyer Coliseum was in a neutral-site game against Kansas State in the Women's Sports Foundation Classic in Springfield, Mo. TCU head coach Jeff Mittie said the team did not play as well as he would have liked, but he was pleased to get that first road win. "We'll definitely take it," Mittie said. "We are a struggling basketball team, especially with our confidence, so it's good to get this win." Junior guard Jill Sutton led by tying her season-high with 17 points, and freshman center Kim Walter reached double figures for the third consecutive game with 15 points. "Jill played a very strong game, and Kim has been playing big recently," Mittie said. "We feel like (Walter) will be a real consistent part of our offense." Mittie said he had been concerned with the Lady Frogs' emphasis on the outside shot. They seemed to have found the consistent inside threat in Walter to complement their outside shooting, he added. TCU shot 14 for 28 from the field in the first half, including four for eight from three-point range and led 38-26 at the break. TCU stretched the lead to 15 points at 48-33 early in the second half. The Miners (4-12, 1-3 Western Athletic Conference) got within six points late, and Mittie said he got a little uneasy. "We looked like a heavyweight fighter out there in the second half just trying to stay up," Mittie said. UTEP was on the verge of a comeback throughout the second half but could never string together a consistent offensive attack. Leading 65-59 with two minutes remaining, TCU committed two turnovers, but UTEP was unable to capitalize. The Lady Frogs played well defensively to make up for not applying the knockout blow offensively, Mittie said. Freshman Amy Pack lead the way for UTEP with 24 points and 10 rebounds. She was their only player who scored in double digits. Also reaching double figures in scoring for TCU were junior Diamond Jackson with 14 points and junior Janice Thomas with 11 points. The Lady Frogs, who are 11-9 and 2-3 in WAC play, take on cross-town rival Southern Methodist University (11-5, 4-0) Saturday in Dallas.
Danny Horne
By Matt Stiver Assistant Campus Editor Following his team's 119-74 exhibition victory over MBK-Odessa Ukraine on Dec. 6, TCU men's basketball coach Billy Tubbs focused on free-throw shooting as an area that would play an important role as the season played out. "I think we missed about four (28-32), didn't we?" Tubbs joked after the game. "I've really been working hard with (the team) on their free throws. They really couldn't shoot a lick, and I've really emphasized that in practice and really worked with these guys."
Tubbs said the Frogs' 80-79 victory was important, coming off two straight conference losses. The win moves the Frogs to 11-10, 2-3 Western Athletic Conference. "We needed a win, period," Tubbs said. "When you get in a slump like we were, you need any kind of win to get your confidence back." With the Frogs leading 80-77 with 1:09 to play, junior forward Derrick Davenport (an 80 percent free-throw shooter) drew a foul and went to the line for a one-and-one. Davenport, who had made his first two of the game, missed the front end of a one-and-one. The Miners came up the floor looking to tie the game. When forward Brian Wolfram was fouled while converting a layup, he went to the free-throw line looking to tie the score at 80. Wolfram, an 87 percent shooter, clanged the game-tying shot off the front of the rim. UTEP forward Ron Smallwood hauled in the rebound with 35 seconds left and allowed the Miners to hold the ball for a final, game-winning shot. Tubbs said Davenport's missed free throw put UTEP in a position to win the game. "We had an 80 percent free-throw shooter going to put us in that situation," Tubbs said. "We're a good free-throw shooting team. We missed some critical free throws that wouldn't have put us in that situation." Junior guard Larry Allaway ensured that UTEP would not get another chance. Allaway broke up a pass intended for Wolfram with 12 seconds left in the game, preserving TCU's victory. "I knew he was going to shoot it," Allaway said. "I wanted to stop him."
Matt Stiver
By Chris Gibson staff reporter The men's and women's swim teams split wins, defeating Old Dominion University and losing to North Carolina State University this weekend at N.C. State. The men's team swam to a 90-48 win over Old Dominion but fell 91-46 to N.C. State. The women's team defeated Old Dominion with a score of 90-48, but lost to a strong Wolfpack team, 80-58. N.C. State showed that the home-field advantage does matter by beating TCU and Old Dominion men's and women's squads. The men's team had some success taking the 200-yard backstroke and the 200-yard breaststroke. Freshman Aaron Ewert, the Western Athletic Conference Swimmer of the Week for the week ending Jan. 14, took the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 1:52:04. The next event also placed a Horned Frog in the winners' circle as sophomore Scott Adkins won the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:07:10. N.C. State (11-1) won 13 of the 16 events. Diver Andy Johnson won the one and three-meter springboard events, but N.C. State's Matt Brando took control by winning the 200-yard freestyle (1:39:89) and the 100-yard freestyle (45:69). Old Dominion lost for the first time this year, falling 7-2. "Coming into the meet we really felt like we could challenge them," Sybesma said. "You have to give (N.C. State) their credit, they really swam well." TCU took the top spot in the 200-yard medley relay event. The women also had wins in the 100-yard backstroke. Sophomore Marisa Schenke tied N.C. State's Annamaria Gazda with a time of 58:55. TCU freshman Melissa Powell took first in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:23:54). Schenke came through winning the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:10:25. The Frogs finished up the day by winning the 200-yard freestyle relay. The TCU swim team returns to action on Friday when they will face conference rival at Southern Methodist University. Sybesma said his team is looking forward to the challenge. "The program at SMU is at a level we're aspiring to be at," Sybesma said. "Our swimming, good or bad, can depend on any given day right now."
Chris Gibson |
The Frogs entered Saturday's contest against the University
of Texas-El Paso shooting 77 percent, second-best in the nation this season
and on-pace for a new TCU record.| The TCU Daily Skiff © 1998, 1999 Credits |