No. 22 TCU blows out Oklahoma State in Mike Miles’ first game back from injury

TCU ended its four-game losing streak emphatically with a 100-75 blowout win over Oklahoma State on Saturday.

The return of Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year Mike Miles Jr. and a fully healthy Eddie Lampkin Jr. helped the Horned Frogs look like the team was that 16-4 before Miles went down with an injury at Mississippi State on Jan. 28.

“It’s nice to have some guys back,” coach Jamie Dixon said. “We saw (Miles) practice yesterday and were a different team. Having Mike and Eddie at full speed, this wasn’t too much of a surprise. When you take guys out it changes everything, when you put them back in it changes everything again. We handled it well and beat a really good team.”

Lampkin made an early impact by getting Oklahoma State star Kalib Boone into early foul trouble. Boone played just five minutes in the first half and finished with just three points after scoring 25 in the win in Stillwater on Feb. 4.

Meanwhile Miles was the catalyst for the Horned Frogs on offense as TCU picked apart one of the top defenses in the country. Miles scored six of his 15 points during the decisive 25-6 at the end of the first half and was even better in the second half.

Miles hit a circus shot to open the half followed by a transition basket by Emanuel Miller. Micah Peavy capped the 7-0 blitz with a step-back 3-pointer that made it 54-27 with 17:22 remaining. Any hopes of a comeback were quickly squashed as the Horned Frogs rolled the rest of the way.

Six players scored in double figures with Miller leading the way with 18 points while Baugh had 16 points and 11 assists. Dixon was in jovial mood as TCU had a near perfect game offensively.

“The 28 assists stand out, we were plus-12 on the glass,” Dixon said. “I thought we did a good job and the 68% shooting from the field was the third-highest in school history. The other two were when I played, I must’ve been the guy missing the shots.”

The return of Miles

With Miles back in action TCU looked like the team that was beginning to peak at the end of the last month.

Miles was patient as he picked his spots early in the game. Miles admitted he had some early nerves in his first game back before making his first shot, a 3-pointer almost six minutes into the game.

“I didn’t want to miss,” Miles said with a smile. “I was a little nervous, I thought I was going to airball, but it went in so we were good.”

With the early nerves gone Miles started to find his rhythm during the decisive run. Miles hit Cowboys shot blocker Moussa Cisse with a crafty fake pass and then hit a layup over him while being fouled for a three-point play.

Those were three of the six points he scored in about a minute of game time. His nine first-half points helped TCU hold a commanding 20-point lead at halftime. Miles kept attacking in the second half with six more points and lived at the free throw line. His ability to get downhill stressed the Oklahoma State defense and opened up scoring chances for others as well.

“I just wanted to play how I usually play before I got hurt,” Miles said. “Attacking the rim, getting foul calls. I didn’t make all my free throws so that’s something I’ve got to work on. I was just trying to push the pace, keep them honest on me and show them I still play the same way.”

Miles played 35 minutes in his first game action and was glad to finally be back out there.

“It felt good, I didn’t think I was going to play 35 minutes, but it’s cool,” Miles joked postgame. “It was good being back out there with my guys. It hurt me being on the bench watching us lose and not being able to help.”

The Cowboys has the second-best scoring defense in the Big 12 and were ranked in the top-40 nationally. In Miles’ first game back, Oklahoma State allowed the most points it has all season.

“I’ve been telling Mike to come back since he got hurt,” Baugh said. “It’s always good to have Mike, another ball handler and my backcourt mate. It just makes it easier on me.”

Long distance barrage

We know how mightily TCU has struggled with its 3-point shooting, but on Saturday all the work the Horned Frogs have been putting into improving paid off. The Horned Frogs hit 53% (8 of 15) of their attempts, well above their 28% season average.

Peavy led the charge with two 3-pointers and showed confidence on more mid-range jumpers. Five other players knocked down 3-pointers including Damion Baugh, Chuck O’Bannon and JaKobe Coles. It’s rare the Horned Frogs are the more efficient team from outside, but TCU held the Cowboys to just 33% shooting.

Expecting TCU to make half of their 3-point attempts is of course unrealistic, but it was an encouraging performance nonetheless. The Horned Frogs don’t need to be prolific from 3, they just need to be competent to have more results like Saturday’s.

Complete masterpiece

Head coach Jamie Dixon wanted TCU to get back to its defensive standard and the Horned Frogs were locked in after they adjusted to the Cowboys early offensive strategy. Oklahoma State took advantage of TCU switching every ball screen.

Those mismatch scenarios would lead to quality looks from in the paint and behind the 3-point line as the Cowboys only trailed 22-21 with just over eight minutes until halftime. Dixon turned to full court pressure to unsettle Oklahoma State and it worked to perfection. The Cowboys missed their next five shots and also turned the ball over four times while TCU used a 10-0 run to take an 11-point lead.

“We were disciplined throughout the game. We were solid, didn’t really gambled and stayed true to our principles,” Miller said. “We just competed like we do in practice and this is what happens.”

A Caleb Asberry 3 broke the Cowboys scoring drought, but it wasn’t enough to slow TCU down. Chuck O’Bannon had one of the top plays of the game as he grabbed an offensive rebound mid-air and was able to make the putback basket while being fouled. A Shahada Wells steal and Miles free throw put the Horned Frogs ahead 39-24.

Emanuel Miller capped off the half with a 3-pointer from the top of the key that made it 47-27. TCU finished the half by making 65% of their attempts. It was the best stretch of basketball the Horned Frogs have displayed in almost a month.