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GoFrogs: TCU faces Syracuse in NCAA Tourney first round game
(6) TCU Horned Frogs (21-11) vs. (11)Syracuse (21-13)
March 16, 2018 | 8:40 p.m. | Detroit, Mich. | Little Caesars Arena (20,491)
CBS
Listen Live
Notes
Twitter
Tournament Central
FORT WORTH, Texas -- No. 6 seed TCU (21-11) will make its eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament when it plays No. 11 seed Syracuse (21-13) Friday at 8:40 p.m. CT in Detroit, Mich.
The game at Little Caesars Arena will be televised on CBS. The TCU IMG Sports Network will have radio coverage on stations 570 KLIF AM and 88.7 KTCU FM. The game will also be broadcast to a national radio audience on Westwood One via Sirius station 138 and XM station 202.
Storylines
- TCU last appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 1998 as a No. 5 seed.
- At 20 years, TCU's drought was the second longest among current power five conference members. Rutgers' 27 is first (1991).
- TCU is 5-7 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and last won a game in 1987, Jamie Dixon's senior season.
- TCU's best NCAA Tournament finish was in 1968 when it made the finals of the Midwest Regional.
- TCU is 8-2 in neutral site games in its two seasons with Jamie Dixon as head coach. It will be TCU's first game in Detroit.
- Jamie Dixon is making his 12th NCAA Tournament appearance in his 15th season as a head coach and is 12-11 all-time.
- Dixon's last appearance in the Big Dance was in 2016, a first round loss. His best finish was the Elite Eight in 2009.
- TCU's 21 regular season wins were its most since the 1997-98 season.
- Kenrich Williams was named All-Big 12 Second Team by the league's coaches and the Associated Press.
- Williams also earned a spot on the USBWA All-District VII team.
- Williams has recorded 13 double-doubles and is averaging 13.1 points and a team-best 9.3 rebounds this season.
- Williams ranks fourth on the TCU all-time rebounding list and No. 21 in scoring.
- Vladimir Brodziansky was named All-Big 12 Third Team by the league's coaches and honorable mention by the AP.
- Brodziansky is a finalist for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award and the Senior CLASS Award.
- Brodziansky ranks No. 11 in the Big 12 in scoring (15.1) and third in shooting percentage (57.6).
- Brodziansky ranks No. 11 all-time at TCU in scoring and is three blocks away from tying the TCU career record.
- TCU's nine conference wins were its most since the 2000-01 season when it went 9-7 in the WAC.
- TCU has won 20 games in consecutive seasons for the first time since the 1998-99 campaign.
- TCU led the Big 12 Conference and ranks among the national leaders in assists per game (2nd, 18.8), assist turnover ratio (13th, 1.5), field goal percentage (8th, 49.9), rebounding margin (19th, +6.3) and 3-point percentage (17th, 40.0).
- TCU also ranks among the national leaders in scoring (19th, 83.0).
- TCU ranks eighth in offensive efficiency at 120.6, according to KenPom.com.
- Desmond Bane leads the Big 12 and ranks 14th in the NCAA in 3-point percentage at 47.2.
- The Frogs were ranked for eight consecutive weeks. They are receiving votes in the latest AP and USA Today polls.
- TCU was ranked as high as No. 10 in the AP Top 25 on Dec. 25, which was its highest ranking in school history.
- Sophomore Jaylen Fisher (right knee) was ruled out for the season on Jan. 16. He was averaging 12.3 points and 5.4 assists.
- TCU returned its top six scorers from last season's team that went 24-15, finished tied for seventh in the Big 12 and won the NIT, including all five starters. It's the first time Jamie Dixon has had a team with every starter returning from the year before.
About the Series
- TCU is 0-4 against Syracuse.
- Jamie Dixon is 15-6 all-time against Syracuse including a 1-2 record in neutral site games. Dixon has won the last five games against Jim Boeheim and the Orange.
Who was Where?
What the current roster was up to the last time TCU made the NCAA Tournament in 1998. Staff
- Head Coach Jamie Dixon was in his final season as an assistant coach under Ben Howland at Northern Arizona University. He was 32 years old.
- Assistant Head Coach David Patrick was a junior on the basketball team at Louisiana-Lafayette.
- Assistant Coach Ryan Miller was a senior on the basketball team at Northern State in Aberdeen, S.D.
- Assistant Coach Corey Barker was a senior at Eisenhower High School in Houston, Texas. Players
- Ahmed Hamdy was four years old.
- Vladimir Brodziansky and Kenrich Williams were three years old.
- Shawn Olden and Alex Robinson were two years old.
- JD Miller was one year old.
- Kouat Noi was four months old.
- Desmond Bane was about three months from being born.
TCU'S NCAA Experience
Jamie Dixon
TCU's second-year head coach is back in the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time in his 15 seasons as a head coach. Including his 13 seasons as the head coach at Pittsburgh, Dixon is 12-11 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and 22-13 overall in postseason tournaments. He has qualified for a postseason tournament in all 15 seasons he's been a head coach. Dixon's postseason championships are the 2012 College Basketball Invitational and the 2017 National Invitation Tournament.
As a senior at TCU, Dixon helped TCU qualify for the 1987 NCAA Tournament. The No. 4 seeded Frogs defeated No. 13 seed Marshall, 76-60, in the first round on March 12 in Charlotte. He had 11 points, four rebounds and four assists. Dixon had 10 points, six assists and one rebound in a 58-57 loss to No. 5 seed Notre Dame in the second round on March 14. Dixon was coached by Jim Killingsworth.
Ahmed Hamdy
The graduate transfer from VCU played in the NCAA Tournament in both seasons, a total of three games, with the Rams. In his sophomore season, Hamdy scored five points against Oregon State in a first round win on March 18, 2016. The Rams fell to Oklahoma, 85-81, on March 20, 2016 in the second round when Hamdy went scoreless. As a junior, Hamdy scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field in his last NCAA Tournament game, an 85-77 loss to St. Mary's in the first round on March 16, 2017.
TCU'S All-Around Player
Kenrich Williams is one of 11 active players with 1,000 career points, 800 career rebounds and 200 career assists. Joining Williams on that list are Peyton Aldridge (Davidson), Bogdan Bliznyuk (Eastern Wash.), Gary Clark (Cincinnati), Xavier Cooks (Winthrop), Angel Delgado (Seton Hall), Ethan Happ (Wisconsin), Kevin Hervey (UT Arlington), John Konchar (Fort Wayne), Jahad Thomas (UMass Lowell) and Bryce Washington (Louisiana). Only Aldridge, Clark, Delgado and Williams are on teams that made the NCAA Tournament.
Three-point Threats
TCU has been one of the best shooting teams in the nation all season. Part of the reason the Frogs are so good is because of the number of weapons from 3-point range. TCU has eight players who have made 17 or more 3-pointers this season. The Frogs have made 271 3-pointers this season, the third-most in school history behind 280 last season and 284 in 2004-05.
GoFrogs: TCU faces Syracuse in NCAA Tourney first round game
(6) TCU Horned Frogs (21-11) vs. (11)Syracuse (21-13)
March 16, 2018 | 8:40 p.m. | Detroit, Mich. | Little Caesars Arena (20,491)
CBS
Listen Live
Notes
TwitterTournament Central
FORT WORTH, Texas -- No. 6 seed TCU (21-11) will make its eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament when it plays No. 11 seed Syracuse (21-13) Friday at 8:40 p.m. CT in Detroit, Mich.
The game at Little Caesars Arena will be televised on CBS. The TCU IMG Sports Network will have radio coverage on stations 570 KLIF AM and 88.7 KTCU FM. The game will also be broadcast to a national radio audience on Westwood One via Sirius station 138 and XM station 202.
Storylines
- TCU last appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 1998 as a No. 5 seed.
- At 20 years, TCU's drought was the second longest among current power five conference members. Rutgers' 27 is first (1991).
- TCU is 5-7 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and last won a game in 1987, Jamie Dixon's senior season.
- TCU's best NCAA Tournament finish was in 1968 when it made the finals of the Midwest Regional.
- TCU is 8-2 in neutral site games in its two seasons with Jamie Dixon as head coach. It will be TCU's first game in Detroit.
- Jamie Dixon is making his 12th NCAA Tournament appearance in his 15th season as a head coach and is 12-11 all-time.
- Dixon's last appearance in the Big Dance was in 2016, a first round loss. His best finish was the Elite Eight in 2009.
- TCU's 21 regular season wins were its most since the 1997-98 season.
- Kenrich Williams was named All-Big 12 Second Team by the league's coaches and the Associated Press.
- Williams also earned a spot on the USBWA All-District VII team.
- Williams has recorded 13 double-doubles and is averaging 13.1 points and a team-best 9.3 rebounds this season.
- Williams ranks fourth on the TCU all-time rebounding list and No. 21 in scoring.
- Vladimir Brodziansky was named All-Big 12 Third Team by the league's coaches and honorable mention by the AP.
- Brodziansky is a finalist for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award and the Senior CLASS Award.
- Brodziansky ranks No. 11 in the Big 12 in scoring (15.1) and third in shooting percentage (57.6).
- Brodziansky ranks No. 11 all-time at TCU in scoring and is three blocks away from tying the TCU career record.
- TCU's nine conference wins were its most since the 2000-01 season when it went 9-7 in the WAC.
- TCU has won 20 games in consecutive seasons for the first time since the 1998-99 campaign.
- TCU led the Big 12 Conference and ranks among the national leaders in assists per game (2nd, 18.8), assist turnover ratio (13th, 1.5), field goal percentage (8th, 49.9), rebounding margin (19th, +6.3) and 3-point percentage (17th, 40.0).
- TCU also ranks among the national leaders in scoring (19th, 83.0).
- TCU ranks eighth in offensive efficiency at 120.6, according to KenPom.com.
- Desmond Bane leads the Big 12 and ranks 14th in the NCAA in 3-point percentage at 47.2.
- The Frogs were ranked for eight consecutive weeks. They are receiving votes in the latest AP and USA Today polls.
- TCU was ranked as high as No. 10 in the AP Top 25 on Dec. 25, which was its highest ranking in school history.
- Sophomore Jaylen Fisher (right knee) was ruled out for the season on Jan. 16. He was averaging 12.3 points and 5.4 assists.
- TCU returned its top six scorers from last season's team that went 24-15, finished tied for seventh in the Big 12 and won the NIT, including all five starters. It's the first time Jamie Dixon has had a team with every starter returning from the year before.
About the Series
- TCU is 0-4 against Syracuse.
- Jamie Dixon is 15-6 all-time against Syracuse including a 1-2 record in neutral site games. Dixon has won the last five games against Jim Boeheim and the Orange.
Who was Where?
What the current roster was up to the last time TCU made the NCAA Tournament in 1998. Staff
- Head Coach Jamie Dixon was in his final season as an assistant coach under Ben Howland at Northern Arizona University. He was 32 years old.
- Assistant Head Coach David Patrick was a junior on the basketball team at Louisiana-Lafayette.
- Assistant Coach Ryan Miller was a senior on the basketball team at Northern State in Aberdeen, S.D.
- Assistant Coach Corey Barker was a senior at Eisenhower High School in Houston, Texas. Players
- Ahmed Hamdy was four years old.
- Vladimir Brodziansky and Kenrich Williams were three years old.
- Shawn Olden and Alex Robinson were two years old.
- JD Miller was one year old.
- Kouat Noi was four months old.
- Desmond Bane was about three months from being born.
TCU'S NCAA Experience
Jamie Dixon
TCU's second-year head coach is back in the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time in his 15 seasons as a head coach. Including his 13 seasons as the head coach at Pittsburgh, Dixon is 12-11 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and 22-13 overall in postseason tournaments. He has qualified for a postseason tournament in all 15 seasons he's been a head coach. Dixon's postseason championships are the 2012 College Basketball Invitational and the 2017 National Invitation Tournament.
As a senior at TCU, Dixon helped TCU qualify for the 1987 NCAA Tournament. The No. 4 seeded Frogs defeated No. 13 seed Marshall, 76-60, in the first round on March 12 in Charlotte. He had 11 points, four rebounds and four assists. Dixon had 10 points, six assists and one rebound in a 58-57 loss to No. 5 seed Notre Dame in the second round on March 14. Dixon was coached by Jim Killingsworth.
Ahmed Hamdy
The graduate transfer from VCU played in the NCAA Tournament in both seasons, a total of three games, with the Rams. In his sophomore season, Hamdy scored five points against Oregon State in a first round win on March 18, 2016. The Rams fell to Oklahoma, 85-81, on March 20, 2016 in the second round when Hamdy went scoreless. As a junior, Hamdy scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field in his last NCAA Tournament game, an 85-77 loss to St. Mary's in the first round on March 16, 2017.
TCU'S All-Around Player
Kenrich Williams is one of 11 active players with 1,000 career points, 800 career rebounds and 200 career assists. Joining Williams on that list are Peyton Aldridge (Davidson), Bogdan Bliznyuk (Eastern Wash.), Gary Clark (Cincinnati), Xavier Cooks (Winthrop), Angel Delgado (Seton Hall), Ethan Happ (Wisconsin), Kevin Hervey (UT Arlington), John Konchar (Fort Wayne), Jahad Thomas (UMass Lowell) and Bryce Washington (Louisiana). Only Aldridge, Clark, Delgado and Williams are on teams that made the NCAA Tournament.
Three-point Threats
TCU has been one of the best shooting teams in the nation all season. Part of the reason the Frogs are so good is because of the number of weapons from 3-point range. TCU has eight players who have made 17 or more 3-pointers this season. The Frogs have made 271 3-pointers this season, the third-most in school history behind 280 last season and 284 in 2004-05.
