#220 TCU (8-9, 0-5) @ #106 West Virginia (8-9, 1-4)
6:30 PM CST
West Virginia Coliseum, Morgantown, WV
TV: ESPN2
Radio: 570 KLIF / 88.7 KTCU
Line: West Virginia -13 / 115.5
TCU Team Page: http://www.cbbsheets.com/20122013/TCU.html
West Virginia Team Page: http://www.cbbsheets.com/20122013/West_Virginia.html
Game Breakdown & Prediction Center Page: http://www.cbbsheets.com/20122013/20130123_TCU_West_Virginia.html
Live Blog of Kansas State game: http://cbbsheets.com/cbbblog/?p=92
Live Blog of Iowa State game: http://cbbsheets.com/cbbblog/?p=122
Team Statistical Breakdown
Player Stats
CompCompare
3 Most Similar Teams
TCU: #149 Fresno St., #256 Eastern Michigan, #216 Bowling Green
West Virginia: #175 Western Kentucky, #125 Arkansas State, #171 SMU
5 Most Similar Matchups
1. January 4 - #231 Brown 47, #127 Rhode Island 59
2. January 4 - #228 Wofford 48, #120 Tulane 62
3. November 25 - #294 St. Peter's 61, #109 Seton Hall 76
4. November 16 - #223 Manhattan 45, #95 Harvard 79
5. January 5 - #223 Hartford 77, #153 Boston University 74
Most Similar Matchup for West Virginia and TCU
TCU: TCU 49, #165 Tulsa 50
West Virginia: #111 Eastern Kentucky 67, West Virginia 74
Final Projected Records(Simple Computer):
TCU: 8-22 (0-18)
West Virginia: 13-18 (6-13)
Final Projected Records(Average of 1000 Simulations):
TCU: 9.5-20.5 (1.5-16.5)
West Virginia: 14.1-17.9 (7.1-11.9)
TCU Chance of Winless Conference Record: 16.9%
Breakdown: I actually think TCU outplayed Iowa State last Saturday. They did what they needed to do, but the downfall was not being able to finish at the free throw line. This killed the Frogs, as many points were left on the board. Apart from that, there were a lot of positives, especially execution. The officiating was sketchy at the end, but the Frogs let a winnable game slip through their fingers. They will need to take the positives with them to Morgantown to face perhaps the worst team ever fielded by Bob Huggins. I can not remember a worse team Huggy has had in his tenure. They are in somewhat of a transition, a bunch of transfers and younger players playing together and it hasn't worked to well so far. This is a game TCU can win because West Virginia is similar to TCU in terms of the type of players they have.
Style: West Virginia is classic Bob Huggins, with an emphasis on high percentage shots inside rather than outside shots. Offensive Rebounding is also a emphasis on Huggins and the Mountaineers have done well at that this year. West Virginia isn't going to overwhelm with size, and they are not a transition or fast paced team, but not a slow paced team like TCU. TCU, on the other hand, is still grinding it out on offense and have really picked it up when it comes to offensive rebounding lately.
TCU Scouting Report: The most improved player not just on TCU but in the entire conference may be Adrick McKinney. An offensive liability a year ago, he has really stepped up his game in conference play, especially when it comes to offensive rebounding. He is now inching closer to the Top 100 in offensive rebounding percentage, rebounding 13.03% of TCU's missed shots when he is on the floor. He needs to work on his foul shooting as that is his weakness. But McKinney has started to attract attention from NBA scouts and rightfully so. It will interesting to see what Trent Johnson does with Kyan Anderson tonight. Anderson was benched in the 2nd half against Iowa State, apparently because Johnson didn't think he cared enough. Clyde Smith played a good chunk of minutes in the 2nd half. Even then, Anderson has been a non factor in conference play, and TCU needs his production to take the pressure off of the bigs. Charles Hill Jr. really got the attention of Iowa State, as the Cyclones keyed on him all game and he didn't have many open looks. This is a good sign as it shows teams are starting to respect some part of the Frogs outside shooting ability.
West Virginia Scouting Report: It's really all about Aaric Murray this year, the 6-10 junior center and the only real piece that returns from last year's team. He is not getting much help from his team mates, as this guy is double teamed on almost every possession. His main contributions are on the defensive end of the floor with blocked shots and rebounding. Sophomore guard Juwan Staten is the point guard, who has a decent assist/turnover ratio and surprisngly has not made a 3 pointer this year. He is a slasher in the lane who tries to draw fouls. The 3 point shooting threat are guards Terry Henderson and Eron Harris. However, neither of them are that lethal from 3 and like TCU this is not a good 3 point shooting team. The other big men are 6-9 Deniz Kilcli and 6-7 Kevin Noreen, who are good at offensive rebounding so the Frogs will need to box them out. Overall, this team looks similar to TCU, though slightly more deep and bigger.
TCU keys to victory: Continue to work the ball inside and make free throws that result. Not only will teams focus on the inside game, but this will open up the outside shooters for a clean look. Penetration is the key tonight, as Kyan Anderson needs to find the men inside. But this strategy is all for nothing if the free throws can not be delivered.
West Virginia keys to victory: Get out to an early lead. Put the pressure on TCU and cause the Frogs to start forcing things and getting away from what works. If they can get TCU out of their game plan, it shouldn't be too hard to win.
What will happen: If you have watched the TCU Lady Frogs play this year, you will have noticed that in every game the Lady Frogs are winning or tied going into the last 4 minutes of the game, where in that final stretch the Lady Frogs unravel and end up losing. I think tonight we will see something similar from our Men. They will be leading or tied going into the last media timeout, and then will not make enough plays in the last 4 minutes and West Virginia will escape with the win. It will be a well played game for 35 minutes, but because we have not been there much this year we will get shaky boots in the end and not get the job done.
Prediction: West Virginia 56, TCU 52
GAMBLERS CORNER
I am surprised to see TCU getting 13.5 points with a total of 115.5. Though TCU has not covered in the last 2, they have covered in both conference road games. I do not think WVU is 13.5 points better than TCU. Take TCU +13.5 but do not play the total.
All statistics and predictions provided by www.cbbsheets.com
6:30 PM CST
West Virginia Coliseum, Morgantown, WV
TV: ESPN2
Radio: 570 KLIF / 88.7 KTCU
Line: West Virginia -13 / 115.5
TCU Team Page: http://www.cbbsheets.com/20122013/TCU.html
West Virginia Team Page: http://www.cbbsheets.com/20122013/West_Virginia.html
Game Breakdown & Prediction Center Page: http://www.cbbsheets.com/20122013/20130123_TCU_West_Virginia.html
Live Blog of Kansas State game: http://cbbsheets.com/cbbblog/?p=92
Live Blog of Iowa State game: http://cbbsheets.com/cbbblog/?p=122
Team Statistical Breakdown
Player Stats
CompCompare
3 Most Similar Teams
TCU: #149 Fresno St., #256 Eastern Michigan, #216 Bowling Green
West Virginia: #175 Western Kentucky, #125 Arkansas State, #171 SMU
5 Most Similar Matchups
1. January 4 - #231 Brown 47, #127 Rhode Island 59
2. January 4 - #228 Wofford 48, #120 Tulane 62
3. November 25 - #294 St. Peter's 61, #109 Seton Hall 76
4. November 16 - #223 Manhattan 45, #95 Harvard 79
5. January 5 - #223 Hartford 77, #153 Boston University 74
Most Similar Matchup for West Virginia and TCU
TCU: TCU 49, #165 Tulsa 50
West Virginia: #111 Eastern Kentucky 67, West Virginia 74
Final Projected Records(Simple Computer):
TCU: 8-22 (0-18)
West Virginia: 13-18 (6-13)
Final Projected Records(Average of 1000 Simulations):
TCU: 9.5-20.5 (1.5-16.5)
West Virginia: 14.1-17.9 (7.1-11.9)
TCU Chance of Winless Conference Record: 16.9%
Breakdown: I actually think TCU outplayed Iowa State last Saturday. They did what they needed to do, but the downfall was not being able to finish at the free throw line. This killed the Frogs, as many points were left on the board. Apart from that, there were a lot of positives, especially execution. The officiating was sketchy at the end, but the Frogs let a winnable game slip through their fingers. They will need to take the positives with them to Morgantown to face perhaps the worst team ever fielded by Bob Huggins. I can not remember a worse team Huggy has had in his tenure. They are in somewhat of a transition, a bunch of transfers and younger players playing together and it hasn't worked to well so far. This is a game TCU can win because West Virginia is similar to TCU in terms of the type of players they have.
Style: West Virginia is classic Bob Huggins, with an emphasis on high percentage shots inside rather than outside shots. Offensive Rebounding is also a emphasis on Huggins and the Mountaineers have done well at that this year. West Virginia isn't going to overwhelm with size, and they are not a transition or fast paced team, but not a slow paced team like TCU. TCU, on the other hand, is still grinding it out on offense and have really picked it up when it comes to offensive rebounding lately.
TCU Scouting Report: The most improved player not just on TCU but in the entire conference may be Adrick McKinney. An offensive liability a year ago, he has really stepped up his game in conference play, especially when it comes to offensive rebounding. He is now inching closer to the Top 100 in offensive rebounding percentage, rebounding 13.03% of TCU's missed shots when he is on the floor. He needs to work on his foul shooting as that is his weakness. But McKinney has started to attract attention from NBA scouts and rightfully so. It will interesting to see what Trent Johnson does with Kyan Anderson tonight. Anderson was benched in the 2nd half against Iowa State, apparently because Johnson didn't think he cared enough. Clyde Smith played a good chunk of minutes in the 2nd half. Even then, Anderson has been a non factor in conference play, and TCU needs his production to take the pressure off of the bigs. Charles Hill Jr. really got the attention of Iowa State, as the Cyclones keyed on him all game and he didn't have many open looks. This is a good sign as it shows teams are starting to respect some part of the Frogs outside shooting ability.
West Virginia Scouting Report: It's really all about Aaric Murray this year, the 6-10 junior center and the only real piece that returns from last year's team. He is not getting much help from his team mates, as this guy is double teamed on almost every possession. His main contributions are on the defensive end of the floor with blocked shots and rebounding. Sophomore guard Juwan Staten is the point guard, who has a decent assist/turnover ratio and surprisngly has not made a 3 pointer this year. He is a slasher in the lane who tries to draw fouls. The 3 point shooting threat are guards Terry Henderson and Eron Harris. However, neither of them are that lethal from 3 and like TCU this is not a good 3 point shooting team. The other big men are 6-9 Deniz Kilcli and 6-7 Kevin Noreen, who are good at offensive rebounding so the Frogs will need to box them out. Overall, this team looks similar to TCU, though slightly more deep and bigger.
TCU keys to victory: Continue to work the ball inside and make free throws that result. Not only will teams focus on the inside game, but this will open up the outside shooters for a clean look. Penetration is the key tonight, as Kyan Anderson needs to find the men inside. But this strategy is all for nothing if the free throws can not be delivered.
West Virginia keys to victory: Get out to an early lead. Put the pressure on TCU and cause the Frogs to start forcing things and getting away from what works. If they can get TCU out of their game plan, it shouldn't be too hard to win.
What will happen: If you have watched the TCU Lady Frogs play this year, you will have noticed that in every game the Lady Frogs are winning or tied going into the last 4 minutes of the game, where in that final stretch the Lady Frogs unravel and end up losing. I think tonight we will see something similar from our Men. They will be leading or tied going into the last media timeout, and then will not make enough plays in the last 4 minutes and West Virginia will escape with the win. It will be a well played game for 35 minutes, but because we have not been there much this year we will get shaky boots in the end and not get the job done.
Prediction: West Virginia 56, TCU 52
GAMBLERS CORNER
I am surprised to see TCU getting 13.5 points with a total of 115.5. Though TCU has not covered in the last 2, they have covered in both conference road games. I do not think WVU is 13.5 points better than TCU. Take TCU +13.5 but do not play the total.
All statistics and predictions provided by www.cbbsheets.com
