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Frogs
‘shimmy’ past Fresno Shake, rattle and roll. Jerry Lee Lewis could not have done it better himself. TCU shook free of defenders, rattled the rim with dunks and rolled past No. 20 Fresno State. With 11:44 to play, sophomore forward Bingo Merriex exemplified TCU’s effort. Merriex pulled down a rebound with 11:53 left and threw the ball up to junior Greedy Daniels. When Daniels’ pull-up three-pointer rimmed off, Merriex flew in and slammed the ball home. After swinging on the rim, Merriex danced up the floor, his arms and head flailing “That’s my shimmy dance,” Merriex said. “We just went out there and had fun. That’s what it’s all about.” Head coach Billy Tubbs said the Frogs came out with intensity.
“I thought we could win the game, and our players thought that too,” Tubbs said. Leading by two at halftime, the Frogs used a 15-0 run to turn a seven point lead into a 22-point advantage with 8:04 to play. The Bulldogs would not draw within 18 until Tubbs pulled his starters off the floor. Merriex scored 9 points during the run. Fresno State coach Jerry Tarkanian said the Bulldogs played their worst game of the season. He said turnovers and poor defensive coverage sapped the Bulldogs of energy. “God, this was a nightmare,” Tarkanian said. “I’m embarrassed and hurt inside. You would think a team that accomplished what we’ve accomplished wouldn’t play like this.” Junior Melvin Ely led the Bulldogs with 25 points and nine rebounds. Senior Demeterius Porter scored 24 on eight of 14 shooting. With senior center Derrick Davenport ineffective in the post for much of the game, Merriex became a consistent force inside, both scoring and rebounding. Merriex finished second on the team in points (22) and rebounds (nine). Senior Ryan Carroll led the Frogs with 26 points and had six steals. Tubbs said Merriex, who got his second consecutive start, played more minutes than he had scheduled. Merriex said with senior Myron Anthony out with a sprained ankle, he would have to step up his game. “Myron’s job is to go out and get rebounds, so I knew my teammates would be counting on me,” Merriex said. “I got pumped up to go out and play aggressively.” Coming off a lackluster loss at Rice, the Frogs responded with their best effort of the season. They out-rebounded the Bulldogs 43-35 and forced 30 turnovers, including 21 steals. Tubbs said the Bulldogs’ open style of play energized the Frogs. “We’re a lot like Fresno: We think we’re good,” Tubbs said. “So we go out and play. We have trouble against teams that don’t think they’re good so they don’t play.” Six days removed from scoring 25 second-half points against Rice, TCU led the Bulldogs by as many as 25 points late in the second half. The Frogs will face Nevada at 7:05 p.m. Saturday at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum.
Matt Stiver |
