Field Level Media
Nov 7, 2018
Desmond Bane scored 14 points, including a basket and a pair of free throws in the final minutes, and grabbed 10 rebounds as 20th-ranked TCU roared from behind in the second half to beat CSU Bakersfield 66-61 on Wednesday at Fort Worth, Texas, in the season opener for both teams.
TCU had a uphill struggle against the determined Roadrunners and never had a handle on the game until the last minute. A short jumper by the Horned Frogs' Alex Robinson with 3:21 to play tied the game at 57. A jumper by Bane gave TCU a 59-57 lead before Jarkel Joiner made one of two free throws for CSU Bakersfield.
Yuat Alok then hit a jump shot to push the Horned Frogs' lead to 61-58 before two free throws by Kendric Davis with 27 seconds to play pushed the TCU advantage to five points.
After a timeout, the Roadrunners' Damiyne Durham poured in a 3-pointer cut the deficit to 63-61. Bane canned two free throws with 18 seconds remaining to help secure the win.
JD Miller added 13 points for the Horned Frogs, Robinson hit for 12 and Alok tallied 11 points as TCU won its season-opening game for the 13th time in 14 campaigns.
Joiner led all scorers with 18 points while Durham added 11 for the Roadrunners.
A dunk off a lob by Taze Moore gave the Roadrunners a 29-18 lead with 8:23 to play in the first half. TCU whittled down its deficit over the next 4 1/2 minutes, pulling to within 31-25 on a pair of free throws from Alok, but a 3-pointer by Durham with five seconds remaining allowed CSU Bakersfield to take a 37-28 advantage into halftime.
Durham led the Roadrunners with eight points in the first half while TCU was paced by Miller's eight points.
A reverse layup by Robinson with 11:06 to play brought the Horned Frogs to within 46-44. Three minutes later, a layup by Alok tied the game at 46, the first time since midway through the first half things were even.
TCU returns to the floor on Sunday when it hosts Oral Roberts. CSU Bakersfield returns home to host Antelope Valley on Friday.
--Field Level Media