Oklahoma State @ Texas Christian preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 13, 2019 ) Oklahoma State 70, Texas Christian 73

TCU has survived a pair of nail-biters to begin Big 12 play and will try to stay unbeaten in conference action when it hosts Oklahoma State on Saturday. After a dramatic 81-79 overtime win against Iowa State that featured a buzzer beater to force the extra session, the Horned Frogs earned a 59-57 decision at Kansas State on Tuesday.

Sophomore guard RJ Nembhard was the hero against the Cyclones with the OT-forcing 3-pointer as part of a 31-point effort, and sophomore center Kevin Samuel came through versus the Wildcats with a tip-in in the final seconds as TCU opened 2-0 in conference play for the first time since 2006-07 when it was in the Mountain West. "Big thing for us - and it's always been - offensive rebounding is a big part of everywhere I've been," TCU coach Jamie Dixon told reporters after his team recorded 15 offensive rebounds, Samuel's the biggest. While the Horned Frogs have been in some tight contests, the Cowboys began Big 12 play with losses of 35 points and 14 points to Texas Tech and West Virginia, although coach Mike Boynton remains encouraged. "I am also really excited about what I saw from our team in terms of their competitive fight for 40 minutes," he told reporters after Monday's 55-41 loss to the Mountaineers. "At some point, we're going to shoot better."

TIME: 2 p.m. ET. TV: ESPN2

ABOUT OKLAHOMA STATE (9-5, 0-2 Big 12): The Cowboys shot under 30 percent from the floor in the two straight losses and went a woeful 1-for-20 from 3-point range against West Virginia. Leading scorer Lindy Waters III (12.9 points per game) was the primary culprit with eight misses and he has zero assists in 65 minutes during the losing streak. Sophomore guard Isaac Likekele is the only other player averaging in double figures in points at 11.2, but he's been held to single digits in each of three games since returning from an illness.

ABOUT TCU (11-3, 2-0): Senior guard Desmond Bane recorded a team-high 16 points in the win over Kansas State and he tops the squad in scoring (16.9) along with steals (1.6) while shooting 43.7 percent from beyond the arc. Nembhard followed up his 31-point performance with 15 against the Wildcats to push his scoring average to 13.7. Samuel chips in 11.6 points per contest, leads the Big 12 in blocks (2.9) and is tied for fourth in rebounds (9.0).

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Cowboys senior G Thomas Dziagwa, who leads the team with 32 3-pointers, missed the West Virginia game due to the flu.

2. Samuel has missed all six of his foul shots over the last two games and is shooting 30 percent at the line on the season.

3. The teams split two meetings in the regular season in 2018-19 before the Horned Frogs won 73-70 in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament.

PREDICTION: TCU 74, Oklahoma State 60