Daniels leads Frogs to win, sets steals mark

By Matt Stiver
Skiff Staff

Following an intentional foul with 34 seconds to play, junior guard Greedy Daniels turned and shouted into the Daniel-Meyer Coliseum stands.

Daniels, who broke Mike Jones’ single-season steals record of 96, had heard enough noise from a small, but vocal, contingent of Southern Methodist fans.

“I told them the game’s over, it’s time to go,” Daniels said. “They needed to be quiet in our house.”

The SMU fans may have raised a little ruckus, but Daniels’ performance brought down the house.

Daniels scored 23 points, had two steals and dished out eight assists in leading the Frogs to an 100-91 victory over the Mustangs. The victory, TCU’s third consecutive in the series, also marked the first time in 89 games that an opponent scored 89 points against the Mustangs.

Senior forward Ryan Carroll, who led the Frogs with 24 points (7 of 13 field goals, 8 of 12 free throws), said the game was more than a cross-town rivalry.

“A lot of people just looked at it as a rivalry game, but I was looking at it as a survival game,” Carroll said. “We really needed this win to stay alive in the (Western Athletic Conference).”

Though he discounted the game’s impact Thursday, head coach Billy Tubbs said it was important the Frogs got back on track.
“This is huge,” Tubbs said. “We really needed this.”

TCU shot 56 percent (18 of 32) from the floor in the second half and 50 percent for the game. The Frogs were also able to get into their trapping defense, which the Mustangs had problems handling.

“It’s a game of spurts,” Tubbs said. “Our teams are so alike that we’ll make a run offensively, and they’ll come back and make a run.”

After watching SMU jump out to a 27-18 lead with 8:28 to play in the first half, the Frogs closed the half on a 28-13 run. Freshman guard Nucleus Smith scored 11 points during the run. A dunk by senior center Derrick Davenport with 2:33 before halftime gave the Frogs a lead they would not relinquish.

The Mustangs cut TCU’s second-half lead to one following a 17-5 run with 6:21 to play, but consecutive baskets by Daniels, who drove to the basket on both occasions, sealed the game.

When senior guard Thomas McTyer was whistled for two personal fouls early, head coach Billy Tubbs moved Daniels to point guard. Though Tubbs rotated senior Larry Allaway and McTyer in and out, Daniels was the Frogs primary point guard for much of the game.

Tubbs said Daniels’ court vision and creativity created mismatches TCU wanted to exploit.

“The thing that keeps the other team messed up is when (Daniels) had the ball in his hands, there are 6,000 people here who had no idea what he was fixing to do with it, ” Tubbs said. “Because he didn’t either. If I don’t know what he’s going to do, they don’t know what he’s going to do.”

Several TCU players said the Mustangs provided the Frogs with additional motivation. SMU senior guard Willie Davis was quoted in Friday’s Dallas Morning News as saying, “We’re not going to try. We’re going to go down there and get a win.”

Several TCU players, including Carroll and Daniels, said Davis’ words angered them.

“We took it to heart,” Carroll said. “You can’t say that and come in here.”

Daniels said Davis should leave prognostication to the professionals.

“Unless your name is Tom Landry or Jimmy Johnson, don’t make any guarantees,” Daniels said. “They’re the only people in Dallas who can make guarantees.”

Matt Stiver
m.r.stiver@student.tcu.edu