After losing its AP Top 25 ranking, Xavier will get its first taste of playing inside an opponent’s home venue when the Musketeers visit the TCU Horned Frogs Thursday in Fort Worth, Texas.
It’s the final edition of the Big East-Big 12 Battle as the scheduling alliance between the two conferences expires after this year. Xavier has been great in the event, compiling a 4-1 overall record.
Xavier at TCU
Tip: Thursday, 8 p.m., Schollmaier Arena (8,500)
TV/Radio: ESPN+/700 WLW
Ratings: Xavier is No. 65 in KenPom and TCU is No. 82. In the NCAA’s NET Rankings, Xavier is No. 87 and TCU is No. 104. The Musketeers are a 1.5-point favorite over the Horned Frogs, according to BetMGM.
History: Xavier leads the all-time series, 2-1. In the inaugural Big East-Big 12 Battle in Dec. 2019, Xavier pulled out a 67-59 road win over the Horned Frogs.
TCU Horned Frogs scouting report
Record: 4-3
Head coach: Jamie Dixon (164-113 at TCU, ninth season)
Offense: 72.4 PPG
Defense: 64.3 PPG
Overview: TCU has won 20-plus games and gone to the NCAA Tournament in three consecutive seasons under Dixon, but the Horned Frogs lost three November games for the first time since 2009. TCU didn’t lose its third game last season until Jan. 6.
Following a 3-0 start, TCU lost on the road to Michigan and went 0-2 with losses to Santa Clara and Colorado State last week in the Acrisure Invitational in Palm Springs, California.
TCU lost three players through the portal but added a half-dozen in a transfer class that ranked in the top 30 in the nation, according to 247Sports.
TCU’s biggest get was UNC Wilmington’s Trazarien White, but he’s gotten off to a slow start offensively at just 9.9 points per game while shooting 42.4% from the field. Leading scorer Frankie Collins (11.3 points per game) is an Arizona State transfer.
Projected lineup
(Pos., Height, Stats)
Frankie Collins (G, 6’1″, 11.3 PPG)
Noah Reynolds (G, 6’3″, 9.7 PPG)
Brendan Wenzel (G, 6’7″, 8.4 PPG)
Trazarien White (F, 6’6″, 9.9 PPG)
Ernest Udeh (C, 6’11”, 7.8 ppg)
Xavier Musketeers scouting report
Record: 7-1
Head coach: Sean Miller (170-76 at Xavier, eighth season)
Offense: 77.5 PPG
Defense: 66.6 PPG
Projected lineup
(Pos., Height, Stats)
Dayvion McKnight (G, 6’0″, 11.4 PPG)
Ryan Conwell (G, 6’4″, 16.5 PPG)
Marcus Foster (G, 6’5″, 7.5 PPG)
Dailyn Swain (G/F, 6’8″, 8 PPG)
Zach Freemantle (F, 6’9″, 15.6 PPG)
Players to watch
Jerome Hunter
Leave it to one of the most experienced Musketeers to come up big off the bench. Xavier has struggled with bench production thus far and Sean Miller had seen enough in Sunday’s win over South Carolina State.
Dante Maddox Jr. played just one minute in the second half; John Hugley played just six first-half minutes and Trey Green sat the entire second half until coming in cold to help Xavier ice the game at the free-throw line.
“I really feel like you can almost be baited into a false sense of how deep your team is because you’re around guy every day and have a good, older group, which we do,” Miller said.
Hunter was a different story as he played 27 minutes and finished with 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting and 3 rebounds.
“It was great to see him (Hunter) take that step forward,” Miller said. “I think Jerome has separated himself from the guys that don’t start. Maybe we start to look at the possibility of starting him. He’s gonna play starter’s minutes.”
Keys to a Xavier victory over TCU
Go back to Dayton
Xavier’s only experience on the road this year was a masterclass, it’s just too bad it didn’t count. Over a month ago, Xavier went to UD Arena in front of over 13,000 fans and beat Dayton in a charity exhibition, 98-74.
On that night, Xavier shot nearly 60% from the field, buried 12 three-pointers and had six players, including three off the bench, go for double figures.
Xavier can ill-afford to be fazed by the bright lights in a game that could turn into a Quadrant 1 win down the road. But it’s a tall task. TCU is 4-0 at home so far and 41-12 since the start of the 2021-22 season.
Xavier’s ball security will be tested again
If there’s one paramount concern for Xavier over the last two games, it’s been turnovers. The Musketeers have committed 35 over the last two games and it has thrown off an offense that had previously been trending in the right direction.
TCU’s offense has struggled thus far but the defense can still get stops. The Horned Frogs are No. 32 in KenPom in defensive efficiency and have thrived with takeaways, ranking No. 34 in turnover percentage. Xavier wants to play fast and free, but if they can’t do it cleanly, it throws a wrench in the offensive gameplan.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Preview: How Xavier Musketeers get road victory over TCU in Fort Worth
