Mark Campbell new TCU women’s coach after taking Sacramento State to NCAA

Associated PressMar 22, 2023, 12:00 AM EDT

Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports

FORT WORTH, Texas – Mark Campbell was hired as TCU’s women’s basketball coach after the former Oregon assistant took Sacramento State to its first NCAA Tournament in an impressive and quick turnaround.

Sacramento State was coming off a 3-22 season when Campbell was hired two years ago. The Hornets won 14 games in Campbell’s first season, and then made another 11-win improvement this season while finishing 25-8 with Big Sky regular-season and tournament championships.

During his seven seasons on Oregon’s staff before that, the Ducks had some of the nation’s top recruiting classes. That included Campbell recruiting Sabrina Ionescu, who became the AP player of the year in 2020 before she was the first overall pick in the WNBA draft.

Campbell replaces Raegan Pebley, who stepped down after nine seasons as TCU’s coach with a 141-138 record. The Horned Frogs were 8-23 this season, including 1-17 in Big 12 play during the regular season.

TCU athletic director Jeremiah Donati described Campbell as an elite recruiter and program builder.

“Similar to his success at Sacramento State, he was instrumental in Oregon quickly becoming one of the nation’s most successful programs, reaching their first NCAA Elite Eight and then Final Four,” Donati said.

The Frogs haven’t been to the NCAA Tournament since 2010. That was their ninth NCAA appearance, all coming in a 10-season span without making it past the second round.

Coles hits late floater, TCU edges Arizona State in March Madness

Associated PressMar 18, 2023, 11:53 AM EDT

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

DENVER – Watching from the bench for most of last season, JaKobe Coles patiently waited his turn.

His reward came Friday night, a floater from the lane with 1.5 seconds left that lifted No. 6 seed TCU to a come-from-behind 72-70 win over 11th-seeded Arizona State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

“He didn’t have the role he wanted,” said Mike Miles Jr., the teammate who talked him into coming to TCU and fed him the pass that led to the winning bucket. “But this year he’s getting the minutes he wanted. He’s stepping up. In the biggest game of his life, he made the game-winning shot.”

Coles took the pass from Miles from the top of the 3-point circle, dribbled once, took two steps and let go of the game-winner.

A desperation heave by Arizona State guard Frankie Collins at the buzzer missed everything, and left coach Bobby Hurley wondering if he should have used a timeout to set up a play.

“It’s certainly something I’ll think about,” Hurley said.

While TCU (22-12) advanced to play Gonzaga on Sunday, Arizona State’s season ended in heart-breaking fashion. Nobody could say the Sun Devils (23-13) didn’t put on a show.

They took an 11-point lead early in the second half punctuated by a pair of highlight-reel dunks. One was from Collins – with a defender draped all over him – and another from Devan Cambridge, who finished a fast break with a backward power slam.

That’s when TCU started chipping away.

A pair of free throws by Damion Baugh – and another by Miles – gave the Horned Frogs a three-point lead with 24 seconds remaining.

DJ Horne, who finished with 17 points, answered with a deep 3-pointer to tie it up at 70 with 15 seconds left.

It was just setting the stage for Coles, who finished with 11 points.

“It was a good shot,” Coles said. “I’m happy for my team, happy for the win.”

Miles, playing on a hyperextended right knee, had 26 points, including 12 of 14 from the free throw line.

He was noticeably limping shortly after a dunk late in the first half. Miles was greeted by the trainer as he walked off the court for halftime, but returned after the break. The Horned Frogs needed him, too, as made big play after big play. He drew a pivotal charge late in the game.

Miles missed a stretch of games in early February with a hyperextended right knee.

As much as the last-second shot, TCU coach Jamie Dixon credited the win to his team committing only five turnovers, which matched its season low. Those turnovers led to only four ASU points.

Possibly still a little weary from their trip in from Dayton, Ohio, the Sun Devils took a moment to get acclimated. The 11 seed was down 11 before even breaking much of a sweat. But they quickly found their rhythm – just like they did two days ago, when they scored 98 points in a First Four win over Nevada.

“Just heartbroken for my guys,” Hurley said. “They played winning basketball all year, played unselfishly, battled and fought and it took a last-second shot to put us away.”

BIG PICTURE

Arizona State: The Sun Devils are definitely back on the right track after going 14-17 last season and 11-14 in 2020-21. Asked about the state of the program, Hurley responded: “Did you watch the game? That’s the state of the program.”

TCU: The Horned Frogs improved to 7-9 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.

UP NEXT

TCU and Gonzaga haven’t met on the basketball floor since a 90-87 Horned Frogs win on Dec. 30, 1998. But there’s plenty of respect on the part of Bulldogs coach Mark Few. “I’ve watched TCU a lot this year. I think they’re as good of team as there is in this tournament, especially when they’re at their high end,” said Few, whose team is the third seed in the West Region.

No. 22 TCU routs No. 12 Kansas State 80-67 in Big 12 tourney

Associated PressMar 10, 2023, 12:45 AM EST

Amy Kontras-USA TODAY Sports

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Everything seemed to be going against TCU entering the Big 12 Tournament. The Horned Frogs were coming off a lopsided loss to Oklahoma, they’d drawn a quarterfinal matchup against Kansas State for what felt like a road game, and some off-the-court issues threatened to become a distraction.

Mike Miles and Chuck O’Bannon made sure none of that mattered.

The duo hit four 3-pointers apiece and each had 22 points, silencing the heavily pro-Wildcats crowd and leading the No. 22 Horned Frogs to an 80-67 victory on Thursday night to reach the tournament semifinals.

TCU will face seventh-ranked Texas, which routed Oklahoma State in its quarterfinal, on Friday night.

“We all came together, knew what we needed to do,” Miles said. “When you make shots, everything is better. Chuck started to make shots. I started to make shots. And it gave us energy on the defensive end.”

TCU played without center Eddie Lampkin Jr., who posted screenshots on social media a day earlier of text messages that appeared to accuse coach Jamie Dixon of player mistreatment and “racial comments.” Dixon and the school have declined to comment on the posts other than to say Lampkin had stepped away from the team.

JaKobe Coles added eight points and Emanuel Miller seven for the sixth-seeded Horned Frogs (21-11), who had been beaten by the Wildcats in four of the past five tournaments but will now play for a spot in the title game.

“We didn’t really take any bad shots all game long. I would struggle to find one or two,” Dixon said. “We did a lot of shooting yesterday, we did a lot of shooting these last two days. The guys worked so hard, they focused, they were ready. My coaches came in after warmups and said, ‘They’re ready. They’re ready to play a good team.’”

Keyontae Johnson had 14 points and seven boards to lead the No. 3 seed Wildcats (23-9), though he fouled out with more than six minutes left in the game. Desi Sills also had 14 points and Markquis Nowell finished with 11.

“This is on me,” Kansas State coach Jerome Tang said. “I didn’t do a very good job of preparing these guys for how physical and with what force people play with in the Big 12 Tournament. And that will not happen again.”

The Wildcats got off to the the hot start, buoyed by a partisan crowd that had traveled down Interstate 70 to make its voice heard inside T-Mobile Center. But the Wildcats began to struggle with turnovers – 11 in the first half alone – and that allowed the Horned Frogs time enough to find their footing.

It was Miles who not only calmed them down but gave them a big offensive boost. The all-conference guard hit two early 3s and had 12 first-half points, helping TCU take a 37-32 lead into the locker room.

Johnson, the Wildcats’ leading scorer, took an inadvertent elbow to his right eye and went to the locker room in the closing seconds of the first half. The Florida transfer appeared to have sutures on his brow when he returned with the rest of the team for the start of the second, though they didn’t seem to bother him.

Good thing, too. Johnson’s 3-pointers were all that kept Kansas State in the game for a while.

Miles and O’Bannon simply wouldn’t miss, though. During one scorching stretch of five trips down the floor, Miles bookended a 3-pointer by O’Bannon with two 3s of his own, and after a miss by Micah Peavy, O’Bannon hit another 3 to give the Horned Frogs a 66-51 lead with just under 10 minutes left in the game.

The Horned Frogs were never threatened the rest of the way.

“Every guy gave us good minutes and that’s hard to do against a really good team,” Dixon said, “so I’m proud of them and how they played. We did what we wanted to do. We played really unselfish and good basketball.”

THE TAKEAWAY

TCU had huge advantages in turnovers and second-chance points, and along with 11-of-25 shooting from the arc, the Wildcats simply couldn’t keep up. It was reminiscent of the Horned Frogs’ 82-68 win over Kansas State in January.

Kansas State can rarely overcome an off night from Nowell, its do-it-all guard. But he was just 1 of 9 on 3-pointers, missing several wild shots from well beyond the arc, and had an uncharacteristic five turnovers.

UP NEXT

The Horned Frogs play the second-seeded Longhorns on Friday night for a spot in the title game.

The Wildcats head home to await their NCAA Tournament seed on Sunday.

Kansas’ Jalen Wilson named AP Big 12 Player of the Year

Associated PressMar 7, 2023, 1:10 PM EST

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Big 12 scoring and rebounding leader Jalen Wilson of Kansas is the unanimous pick as The Associated Press Big 12 player of the year.

Kansas State senior forward Keyontae Johnson joined Wilson as the only unanimous first-team picks in the selections. Johnson, a transfer from Florida who has turned into a top player after a frightening collapse more than two years ago, was also selected as newcomer of the year in voting by a panel of 17 journalists who cover the league.

First-year Kansas State coach Jerome Tang was voted as coach of the year. After 19 seasons as an assistant for coach Scott Drew at Baylor, including the national championship two years ago, Tang directed the Wildcats to a 23-8 record in the regular season and third place in the Big 12 standings after being picked to finish last in a preseason poll of league coaches.

Wilson, a 6-foot-8 junior forward, goes into this week’s Big 12 tournament leading the league with 19.7 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. The 6-6 Johnson averages 17.8 points and 7.0 rebounds.

Texas graduate guard Marcus Carr, Baylor senior guard Adam Flagler and K-State junior guard Markquis Nowell round out the first-team picks. The 5-8 Nowell is the Big 12’s top free-throw shooter (88.5%), and also leads the league with 7.7 assists and 2.5 steals a game.

The second-team picks are senior Damion Baugh and junior Mike Miles Jr. from TCU, along with Kansas freshman guard Gradey Dick, Baylor freshman guard Keyonte George and Kansas senior guard Kevin McCullar Jr., a transfer from Texas Tech.

Johnson got 13 of the 17 votes for newcomer of the year, while Baylor’s George got the other four.

Tang was the overwhelming choice for top coach with 15 votes. The remaining two votes went to Texas interim coach Rodney Terry, who led the Longhorns to a second-place finish in the Big 12 following the December dismissal and eventual firing of Chris Beard.

FIRST TEAM

u-Keyontae Johnson, Kansas State, 6-6, 230, Sr., Norfolk, Virginia.

u-Jalen Wilson, Kansas, 6-8, 225, Jr., Denton, Texas.

Marcus Carr, Texas, 6-2, 175, Gr., Toronto.

Adam Flagler, Baylor, 6-3, 185, Sr., Duluth, Georgia.

Markquis Nowell, Kansas State, 5-8, 160, Sr./Jr., New York.

-“u-” denotes unanimous selection.

SECOND TEAM

Damion Baugh, TCU, 6-4, 195, Sr., Nashville, Tenneseee.

Gradey Dick, Kansas 6-8, 205, Fr., Wichita, Kansas.

Keyonte George, Baylor, 6-4, 185, Fr., Lewisville, Texas.

Kevin McCullar Jr., Kansas, 6-6, 210, Sr., San Antonio.

Mike Miles Jr., TCU, 6-2, 195, Jr., Dallas.

—

Coach of the year – Jerome Tang, Kansas State

Player of the year – Jalen Wilson, Kansas.

Newcomer of the year – Keyontae Johnson, Kansas State.

—

AP All-Big 12 Voting Panel: Chuck Carlton, Dallas Morning News; Arne Green, Salina Journal; Jordan Guskey, Topeka Capital-Journal; Justin Jackson, The Dominion Post; Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram; Thomas Jones, Austin American-Statesman; Eric Kelly, KWKT-TV, Waco, Texas; Eli Lederman, Tulsa World; Justin Martinez, The Oklahoman; Jared MacDonald, Charleston Gazette-Mail; Randy Peterson, Des Moines Register; Kellis Robinett, Wichita Eagle; Dean Ruhl, Tulsa World; Carlos Silva Jr., Lubbock Avalanche-Journal; Matt Tait, Lawrence Journal-World; Jacob Unruh, The Oklahoman; John Werner, Waco Tribune-Herald.

No. 3 Kansas gets 5th win in a row, 63-58 over No. 24 TCU

Associated PressFeb 21, 2023, 12:59 AM EST

Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

FORT WORTH, Texas – Big 12 scoring leader Jalen Wilson was struggling with his shot for third-ranked Kansas, and standout freshman Gradey Dick didn’t score again after reaching 19 points only two minutes into the second half.

The Jayhawks, in pursuit of their 21st Big 12 regular-season title, still never trailed after halftime and extended the league’s longest active winning streak to five in a row, beating 24th-ranked TCU 63-58 on Monday night.

“I’ve said all along, we’ve got five guys that can all go out there and play and take over the game,” said Wilson, who had 13 rebounds while making only 3-of-11 shots for seven points, more than 13 below his season average. “We’re all going to have some type of effort to win. … That’s part of a championship team.

Damion Baugh missed a potential tying 3-pointer with five seconds left for TCU (18-10, 7-8 Big 12). Shahada Wells missed a follow-up layup before Kevin McCullar, who finished with 15 points, was fouled and made two free throws to seal it for the Jayhawks (23-5, 11-4).

Kansas began the night tied with idle eighth-ranked Texas for the conference lead. Coach Bill Self’s team has won seven of eight games since a three-game losing streak that included a 23-point home loss to the Horned Frogs.

“We haven’t accomplished jack, but we’ve put ourselves in a favorable position to maybe do something,” Self said. “Everybody talked about our sky’s falling when we lost three in a row. In this league, that can happen easily. But we’ve recovered pretty good since then.”

Not even an appearance from Heisman Trophy runner-up Max Duggan could get the Frogs over the hump. They were within 56-53 with 6:07 left when the four-year starting quarterback, still in his tuxedo after receiving the Davey O’Brien Award in a ceremony about four miles from campus, waved the crowd into a frenzy while going to a courtside seat.

“He looked good tonight with the tux on,” Self said. “I’m just glad he didn’t get here any earlier.”

Neither team made a field goal in the final 4:19. TCU missed its last six shots over that span, while the Jayhawks were 0-for-4 in the final 4:45.

The Frogs tied the game at 48 with 10:13 left when Jakobe Coles made a short leaner while being fouled, but missed the free throw that would have put them in the lead.

Mike Miles Jr. had 13 points for TCU, which has lost five of its last six games. The first four of those losses came when the guard was out with a hyperextended right knee. Coles added 12 points and Baugh had 11.

It was only the second game Miles and big man Eddie Lampkin played together for the Frogs since their 83-60 win at Allen Fieldhouse on Jan. 21. That was the second-worst home loss for Kansas in Self’s 20 seasons.

With both of them starting again, TCU beat Oklahoma State 100-75 at home Saturday to end a four-game losing streak while hitting the century mark in a Big 12 game for the first time. Lampkin, who missed four of six games after a high left ankle sprain in the first meeting against the Jayhawks, had two points and eight rebounds in the rematch.

“It’s disappointing how we played and how we executed and how we handled the situation,” TCU coach Jamie Dixon said. “Obviously played good in our last game, excited about having our guys back. But we just didn’t carry it over.”

BIG PICTURE

Kansas: The Jayhawks reached 11 conference wins for the 29th consecutive season, a streak that began in 1994-95 and is the longest active in Division I. They have three regular-season games left, two at home before the finale at Texas.

TCU: After shooting a season-high 68.6% against Oklahoma State two days earlier, the Frogs were a season-low 30.3% (20 of 66) from the field against Kansas. They missed their first eight shots in the first 5 1/2 minutes of the game, then missed their last six shots before the break. TCU missed nine of it last 10.

UP NEXT

Kansas is home Saturday to play West Virginia.

TCU travels to Texas Tech on Saturday.

Miles back for No. 22 TCU; Frogs score 100, end 4-game skid

Associated PressFeb 18, 2023, 11:35 PM EST

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

FORT WORTH, Texas – Mike Miles Jr. went almost six minutes into his first game in three weeks before taking a shot for TCU. He swished a 3-pointer.

Miles, the preseason Big 12 player of the year, had 15 points in his return from a knee issue, while five of his teammates also scored in double figures to help the 22nd-ranked Horned Frogs hit the century mark for the first time ever in a Big 12 game. They beat Oklahoma State 100-75 on Saturday, ending a four-game losing streak.

“It was good being back out there with my guys helping,” Miles said. “It hurt me being on the bench while we were losing, not being able to help.”

The Frogs (18-9, 7-7 Big 12) had lost five of six games, a stretch that began with a Jan. 28 loss at Mississippi State – where Miles hyperextended his right knee in the opening four minutes.

“We were very conservative with this thing coming back,” coach Jamie Dixon said of Miles’ return. “He practiced four times, so we felt pretty good that he was ready to go from the start.”

Emanuel Miller had 18 points to lead TCU, which shot a staggering season-high 68.4% (39 of 57) from the field. Damion Baugh had 16 points with 11 assists. Shahada Wells had 15 points, Chuck O’Bannon 12 and Micah Peavy 10.

Bryce Thompson scored 18 points and John-Michael White 15 for the Cowboys (16-11, 7-7). Before a home loss Tuesday to fifth-ranked Kansas, they had a five-game winning streak that included a win over TCU without Miles or big man Eddie Lampkin.

“The only statement that was made today was by TCU,” Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton said. “They played like a team that had a tremendous amount of purpose and it didn’t help having a preseason player of the year back. I think it helped lift up those other guys.”

Miles and Lampkin hadn’t shared the floor since a 23-point win at Kansas on Jan. 21. Lampkin, the team’s emotional leader, sustained a left high ankle sprain in that game and missed four of six games after that.

“It was good to have some guys back, obviously. I saw it in practice yesterday, we are a different team,” Dixon said. “Eddie at full speed, and then obviously Mike. So, I mean, not too much of a surprise.”

CENTURY SHOOTING

It was only the third time in Dixon’s seven seasons that TCU scored at least 100 points, and second this season. The Frogs beat Central Arkansas 103-57 on Dec. 28.

Their 68.4% shooting was the third-best in school history. Dixon was a guard for the Frogs when they had their top two shooting games: 69.9% against Howard Payne on Nov. 26, 1985, and 69.1% against Oklahoma State on Dec. 26, 1986.

TAKING THE LEAD

The Cowboys led 19-16 on a 3-pointer by White with 11:13 left in the first half. TCU then went on a 17-2 run in just over seven minutes – going ahead for good with back-to-back inside baskets by Xavier Cork – and outscored Oklahoma State 31-8 the rest of the half for a 47-27 lead.

BIG PICTURE

Oklahoma State: The Cowboys were undone by 11 turnovers in the first half that led to 15 points for TCU. They were also outscored 20-2 in the paint before halftime – and 50-20 in the game.

TCU: Miles, who played 35 minutes, was clearly a boost. While the Frogs returned pretty much their entire team from last season, when they won an NCAA Tournament game for the first time in 35 years, there is a different energy with Miles and Lampkin on the court together.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

TCU managed to stay ranked through their slump without Miles, including an 11-point loss at 19th-ranked Iowa State on Wednesday night. The Frogs currently have a school-record streak of being ranked in 11 consecutive polls – and that’ll likely extend that when the new AP Top 25 is released Monday.

UP NEXT

Oklahoma State: On the road Monday night with a chance for a regular-season sweep of West Virginia.

TCU: Goes for a regular-season series sweep of Kansas on Monday night at home.