A college basketball doubleheader on ESPN2 concludes at 9 PM ET in a rematch between two Big 12 teams.
TCU pulled off their best win of the season on December 16th when they upset Oklahoma State on the road, 77-76, as a 5-point underdog. The Horned Frogs were down by 8 points with under two minutes to go but completed their comeback victory when R.J. Nembhard made the winning basket with 7.6 seconds left in the game.
Head coach Jamie Dixon’s team blew a 12-point lead with under five minutes to go on Saturday in a 102-98 loss in overtime at Missouri as a 10-point underdog in their Big 12/SEC Challenge matchup. Nembhard scored 15 points in the losing effort. The junior leads the team with a 16.6 points-per-game scoring average, and he is adding 4.4 rebounds-per-game and 3.9 assists-per-game. Mike Miles scored a career-high 28 points against the Tigers. The freshman guard is the team’s second-leading scorer with a 14.6 points-per-game average, and he is contributing 3.6 rebounds-per-game and 3.2 assists-per-game.
Dixon returned two starters and six rotational players from the group that finished 16-16 last season. He also brought in former five-star recruit Chuck O’Bannon as a transfer from USC. TCU is on a five-game losing streak in the gauntlet that is the Big 12 this season. The Horned Frogs have lost to both Kansas and Oklahoma twice, and Baylor for their 2-5 record in the conference. TCU is 9-7 overall with their seventh loss against Providence. All seven of the Horned Frogs’ losses are against teams ranked in the kenpom’s top-64.
TCU ranks 89th in adjusted offensive efficiency and 112th in adjusted defensive efficiency by kenpom. The Horned Frogs are second in the Big 12 by holding their opponents to 32.2% shooting from 3-point land.
Oklahoma State raised their record to 11-4 with an 81-77 victory against Arkansas on Saturday as a 2-point favorite in their Big 12/SEC Challenge contest. Cade Cunningham returned to action in that game to score 14 of his 21 points in the second half to lead the Cowboys to win the victory. Cunningham had not played since January 4th, with Oklahoma State postponing two games because of COVID issues with him quarantining for an additional two contests. The freshman phenom is scoring 18.1 points-per-game with 6.2 rebounds-per-game and 3.8 assists-per-game. The 6’8 freshman point guard might be the number one pick in the NBA draft in June.
Last year’s leading scorer, Isaac Likekely, is the second-leading scorer on the team with an 11.2 points-per-game average while adding 7.5 rebounds-per-game and 4.0 assists-per-game.
The victory against the Razorbacks is the Cowboys’ best win against a non-conference opponent. They also have registered high-profile victories against Kansas and Texas Tech. Oklahoma State has a 4-4 record in the Big 12 with losses to Baylor, West Virginia, Texas, and their December loss to the Horned Frogs.
The Cowboys rank 50th in the nation in adjusted offensive efficiency by kenpom. Their 53.6% shooting mark inside the arc is 57th nationally and second in the Big 12. They rank 32nd at kenpom in adjusted defensive efficiency. Their opponent's effective field goal percentage of 48.6% in the Big 12 is the second-best in the conference.
BetAnySports lists Oklahoma State as a 4.5-point favorite with the total set at 141.