No. 15 TCU basketball gets payback with 76-72 win over West Virginia in Big 12 game

After a disappointing showing on the road the first time TCU faced West Virginia, the Horned Frogs understood the challenge at hand Tuesday night.

Without leading scorer and Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year Mike Miles Jr., No. 15 TCU avenged its 74-65 defeat to West Virginia on Jan. 18. The Horned Frogs(17-5, 6-3) downed the Mountaineers (13-9, 2-7) 76-72.

The Horned Frogs leaned on other players to make up for Miles’ absence, suc as Shahada Wells and Damion Baugh. Wells gave TCU its first double-digit lead of the night as he picked off a pass and finished with a layup that put the Horned Frogs ahead 49-38 with less than 15 minutes remaining in the game.

West Virginia had gotten within six points on a few occasions, such as when a 3-pointer from Erik Stevenson cut TCU’s lead to 67-61 with 3 minutes, 12 seconds remaining. JaKobe Coles, though ended any chance of a desperate comeback by Wester Virginia when his reverse layup made it a 70-61 lead for TCU with 1:46 to go.

Coles finished with 17 points, and he was one of four Horned Frogs to score in double figures. Coles hit key free throws down the stretch to holad off the Mountaineers.

Baugh flirted with a triple-double: He finished with 16 points, 10 assists and six rebounds.

Not only did TCU get payback from the earlier defeat and avoid a two-game skid after Saturday’s loss to Mississippi State, the Horned Frogs also kept pace in the Big 12 race. TCU moved into a four-way tie for second place with Kansas, Kansas State and Iowa State as the four trail Texas by a half game.

Making up for Miles

Balance was the key for TCU making up for the production of Miles, who is second in the Big 12 in scoring. Baugh and Wells were the main catalysts in the first half. Baugh was maestro operating the TCU offense as he piled up six assists in the first half including a slick pass to Wells in transition that made it 28-19 with less than five minutes left in the first.

Wells, who has scored in double figures in two of the last three games, made four of his first five attempts to lead the Horned Frogs with eight points. Baugh started slow offensively in the first half, but found his flow as the game wore on. He hit a pull-up jumper before the shot clock expired to move TCU ahead 53-42.

Then with just over six minutes to play, Wells hit a baseline jumper over a defender after West Virginia made it a two possession game. Baugh scored on an inbound play where his slashing layup made it 61-51 with over five minutes to go.

The dynamic guard duo stepped up in a big way without one of the best perimeter players in the country. Wells finished with 16 points in his first start in over a month.

Inside dominance

The Horned Frogs had their way in the paint as they turned the tables on West Virginia. TCU scored 48 points in the paint on Tuesday with 42 coming off layups. The Mountaineers were unable to keep Baugh and Wells out of the lane, and TCU had plenty of easy shots right at the rim. The Horned Frogs also accomplished their primary goal of winning the rebounding battle after the Mountaineers were plus-13 in Morgantown.

Xavier Cork was a difference maker on the block with three highlight dunks. In the first half, he slammed over a West Virginia big man to make it 22-15. Then later in the second half, Cork flushed another slam down that put the Horned Frogs ahead 55-47 with just over eight minutes remaining in the game.

Cork threw down an alley-oop that made it a 10-point game as he continued to entertain the fans who braved the winter storm to check out the game. Cork finished with 15 points and four rebounds.

TCU stifled West Virginia big man Jimmy Bell Jr., who had a big game in the first matchup with 15 points and 12 rebounds. Bell spent most of the second half on the bench on Tuesday, and he was a non-factor with four points and three rebounds.

Lampkin’s surprise return

Eddie Lampkin made a surprise return to the court after initially being ruled out with an ankle injury. Lampkin made an immediate impact with a bucket, rebound and assist to Baugh in a quick two-minute burst. TCU led 16-13 midway through the first half after Lampkin’s stint.

Just before halftime, West Virginia battled back from a nine-point deficit and trailed 34-32 with less than 60 seconds to go before the break Lampkin made a crafty pass to Coles who finished with a smooth up-and-under layup just before the halftime buzzer. Lampkin limped off the court into the locker room, but made his presence felt gutting out the pain. Lampkin played eight minutes total.