Kansas State Wildcats vs. TCU Horned Frogs: Lineups, time, TV and a prediction
The details
When/where: 4 p.m. Saturday, Schollmaier Arena, Forth Worth, Texas
TV/radio: ESPN+ (Streaming only service, subscription required); KKGQ (92.3 FM) in Wichita, KCSP (610 AM) in Kansas City.
Projected lineups
P | No. | Kansas State | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 14 | Makol Mawien | 6-9 | Sr. | 7.4 |
F | 23 | Montavious Murphy | 6-9 | Fr. | 5.0 |
G | 20 | Xavier Sneed | 6-5 | Sr. | 14.2 |
G | 3 | DaJuan Gordon | 6-4 | Fr. | 6.5 |
G | 2 | Cartier Diarra | 6-4 | Jr. | 13.3 |
P | No. | TCU | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 10 | Diante Smith | 6-7 | Fr. | 3.1 |
C | 21 | Kevin Samuel | 6-11 | So. | 10.4 |
G | 3 | Francisco Farabello | 6-2 | Fr. | 4.2 |
G | 22 | RJ Nembhard | 6-5 | So. | 12.0 |
G | 1 | Desmond Bane | 6-6 | Sr. | 16.0 |
About Kansas State (9-15, 2-9 Big 12): The Wildcats have lost four straight games since defeating Oklahoma at home in their final game of January. Two of those losses were against strong competition like West Virginia and Baylor. The other two losses came against middling opponents Iowa State and Oklahoma State. Keeping K-State players motivated for this contest could be a challenge, as nothing they do between now and the Big 12 Tournament will radically change the course of their season. Mike McGuirl is coming off a strong game in which he scored 16 points. Cartier Diarra and Xavier Sneed were both held to single digits last time out.
About TCU (13-11, 4-7 Big 12): The Horned Frogs got off to a strong start in conference play with wins over Iowa State, K-State and Oklahoma State, but it has been tough sledding for them since. TCU has lost six straight games to fall out of NCAA Tournament contention. Jamie Dixon’s team may need a strong finish to make the NIT. Kevin Samuel led TCU past K-State in a 59-57 victory earlier this season by scoring 10 points and grabbing 15 rebounds. The Horned Frogs also made 10 three-pointers in that game. Desmond Bane is the team’s leading scorer, averaging 16 points per game.
Prediction
Only die-hard fans will passionately follow this game.
TCU has lost its past six games and hasn’t been very competitive during the month of February, losing all four of its games by double digits. That’s an even uglier run of defeats than K-State, which has lost four in a row by narrower margins.
The Horned Frogs beat the Wildcats 59-57 at Bramlage Coliseum earlier this season, so it’s natural to expect them to win the rematch on their home turf. But TCU was fortunate to hit 10 three-pointers in that game. Scoring has been a big problem for the Horned Frogs lately, as they have averaged 54.2 points during their current losing streak.
If K-State can find a little more success than usual from three-point range it will have a good chance at pulling off an upset here.
That won’t be easy, given that the Wildcats haven’t won away from home since early November. But this is their best chance to change that. Neither team is playing well at the moment. There’s a decent chance K-State wins an ugly one.
K-State 59, TCU 58.
This story was originally published February 15, 2020 at 5:00 AM.