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TCU
needs one win for C-USA tourney bid After winning a season-high three consecutive conference games, head coach Billy Tubbs said his team got a bit content with their playing.
That complacency, Tubbs said, was the main factor for last Saturday’s home loss against South Florida, 88-74. Tubbs wants TCU (14-13, 4-9 Conference USA) to come out aggressively and back at “being mad and ready to play” Saturday night against Southern Miss on the road. Tubbs said that attitude will be the determining factor for the Frogs’ future. “We need to get back to playing like we have nothing to lose,” Tubbs said. “Hopefully we can bounce back and get ready to play the final three games. We were playing pretty good, but I think we got a little too self-satisfied with ourselves. “Southern Miss will be tough especially on the road for us,” Tubbs said. “There are not any easy games left for us on the schedule. The next three are going to determine if we are sitting at home watching the C-USA tournament on television or playing in it.” TCU currently stands No. 11 in the C-USA standing. For the Frogs to earn a bid in the tournament in Cincinnati, TCU needs to win at least one of the three games (at Southern Miss, at Tulane and at home versus East Carolina). The Frogs loss against the Bulls came in a style that TCU has not been accustomed to all season long. TCU was defeated from strong performance by South Florida’s backcourt, instead of the much-anticipated frontcourt players. South Florida junior Reggie Kohn scored a career-high 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Kohn shot 11 for 14 (78 percent) from the field and 8 for 11 (72 percent) from behind the three-point arc. “We were more concerned to try to stop them on the inside because you don’t go into the game expecting (Kohn) to get 30 points on us. He was the difference, even if he didn’t shoot like that we still would have troubles on the inside.” Kohn has not practiced since December because of a stress fracture in his right leg and tendinitis in both of his ankles. Tubbs said TCU’s early conference schedule was gruesome, but the final three games puts the Frogs in a good spot to make the C-USA tournament. “We are going against some teams that are struggling a little bit than some of the teams that we have been playing,” Tubbs said. TCU shot 40.3 percent from the field, but that was inflated after the Frogs made seven shots in a row in the final three minutes of the game. South Florida shot 54. 2 percent from the field and 50 percent (11 of 22) from the three-point line. “They are a good shooting team,” Tubbs said. “Their good shooting had a to do with our lack of defense. We were really struggling offensively. They created a lot of match-up problems for us.” The Frogs found themselves trailing for the entire game. TCU never led in the contest and were tied only once after the game tipped off. The closest TCU got in the second half was a nine-point margin after guard Junior Blount hit two free throws with 32 seconds left in the game. “Earlier in the game they got a lead and never looked back,” Tubbs said. “(South Florida) was beating us down the floor. Off of our missed shots they were coming down and beating (our defense) down the floor.” Junior Rebel Paulk scored in double digits (11 points) for the second time this season against the Bulls. He also grabbed three rebounds and notched a steal and a block in 23 minutes of action. “I was just trying to make something happen on defense and I tried to be more aggressive on the offensive end,” Paulk said. “We need to focus on continuing to scratch, claw and fight for wins for the rest of the season.” Ram
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