BYU Basketball Travels To TCU Looking For Coveted Road Win

BYU basketball travels to snowy Ft. Worth, Texas, to take on the TCU Horned Frogs in Big 12 action.

The Cougars flew to Cowtown on Friday afternoon, looking to end a two-game losing streak and earn their first road win of the season (0-2).

BYU basketball takes on TCU in Ft. Worth on Saturday for the first time since 2011.

The Cougars have a 17-game winning streak over TCU that spans three conferences (WAC, MWC, Big 12).

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) January 10, 2025

Both teams come into the matchup with 1-2 Big 12 records.

Last season, BYU trailed TCU by 17 points at the half in the Marriott Center before outscoring the Horned Frogs by 29 in the second half to win 87-75.

This is the first meeting between the two programs in Ft. Worth since February 19, 2011, when they were members of the Mountain West Conference and at the height of Jimmer Fredette’s “Jimmermania.”

BYU has won 17 consecutive meetings against TCU, which span three conferences (WAC, Mountain West, Big 12).

BYU vs. TCU: How To Watch, Listen

Date: Saturday, January 11, 2025

Arena: Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena

Tip-Off: Noon (MST) / 1 p.m. (CST)

TV: ESPN2

Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM – Pregame begins at 11 a.m.)

Audio Stream: KSL NewsRadio app

Shot-making is a priority

It doesn’t matter whether you’re at home or on the road. If you can’t hit shots, you won’t win many games.

In BYU’s 72-67 loss to Texas Tech earlier this week, BYU shot 43.9% from the field, 21.7% from 3-point range, and 57.1% from the foul line. BYU coach Kevin Young wants to see shots start to fall for his squad.

“It’s really a hard thing to overcome a poor shooting night. I learned this a long time ago: you make shots, you win the game,” Young said on his weekly coach’s show. “And I know that sounds like common sense, but when it doesn’t go in, it’s really hard to overcome, especially when you feel like you’re getting good looks.”

BYU starting forward Kanon Catchings is a player the Cougars need to find shot opportunities. The heralded freshman has only attempted nine field goal attempts in the two-game losing streak.

Egor Demin reached double figures in scoring for the first time since Thanksgiving in the loss to Tech but was a combined 4 of 12 from the field.

“Shot-making hides a lot of things, honestly. So, when you lose a basketball game, you want to learn from wins and losses, but obviously, it stings more when you lose, and so you’re looking at the film with a fine tooth comb, and you force yourself to get better and fix issues,” Young said. “I’m hoping the silver lining is that it’s caused us to examine things at a deeper level.”

BYU Basketball personnel notes

Egor Demin is No. 1 in the Big 12 Conference in Assist Rate at 35%. The star freshman leads BYU in assists with 6.0 per game.

BYU has four players in the top 40 of the Big 12 in assist rate with Demin, Dallin Hall (21.9%), Fousseyni Traore (19.8%), and Dawson Baker (16.8%).

Last season against TCU, Richie Saunders earned a standing ovation from BYU fans at the Marriott Center for his 11-point, seven-rebound performance in the comeback victory over the Horned Frogs.

Getting to know the TCU Horned Frogs

The new-look TCU Horned Frogs suffered a similar outcome in their last game to what BYU experienced earlier this month, a blowout loss at Houston.

TCU lost at Houston, 65-46 on Monday.

◻️ 𝗪𝗛𝗜𝗧𝗘𝗢𝗨𝗧 ◻️ pic.twitter.com/DMrI1i72TJ

— TCU Men's Basketball (@TCUBasketball) January 9, 2025

Out of the 10 players who logged minutes in TCU’s last outing, only one of those players (Ernest Udeh) was on TCU’s roster last year.

So it’s a completely new team from the one BYU faced last March in the Marriott Center.

The star for TCU this season has been Noah Reynolds. A senior guard transfer from Green Bay and Wyoming, Reynolds has scored at least 18 points in TCU’s three Big 12 games this season.

Alongside Reynolds in the backcourt is Old Dominion transfer Vasean Allette. He stepped into the lineup after former Arizona State transfer Frankie Collins suffered a season-ending injury in December.

Despite being a new-look team, TCU has done a great job protecting their home court at Schollmaier Arena. The Horned Frogs are 8-0 this season in Cowtown. They held off K-State last Saturday with a 63-62 win, in which TCU finished on a 7-0 run.

BYU vs. TCU: By The Numbers

BYU (10-4, 1-2 Big 12)

NET: 47

KenPom: 44

BPI: 36

Bart Torvik: 30

Road Record: 0-2

Leading Scorer: Richie Saunders (12.9)

Top Rebounder: Keba Keita (8.5)

Assists Leader: Egor Demin (6.0)

Scoring Offense: 81.4

Scoring Defense: 66.1

TCU (8-6, 1-2 Big 12)

NET: 74

KenPom: 72

BPI: 57

Bart Torvik: 62

Home Record: 8-0

Leading Scorer: Noah Reynolds (11.8)

Top Rebounder: Ernest Udeh Jr. (8.5)

Assists Leader: Frankie Collins (4.4)** Out for season

Scoring Offense: 70.5

Scoring Defense: 65.6

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.

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