TCU Finds Its Footing, Buries Tarleton State
Updated: 2 hours ago
FORT WORTH, TX — For the opening 10 minutes, Tarleton State kept TCU within reach. Over the next 10, the Horned Frogs took the game apart.
A 28-7 second quarter turned a competitive start into a comfortable afternoon for TCU, which cruised to an 89-42 victory on Nov. 8 at Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena. Five Horned Frogs scored in double figures as TCU improved to 3-0 in front of an announced crowd of 2,855.
Clara Silva led the way with 15 points, all scored after halftime, while Lanie Grant added 14. Lara Somfai and Jadyn Wooten finished with 12 apiece, and Jessie-May Hall supplied 11 off the bench.
The scoring balance reflected how TCU built its advantage. The Horned Frogs finished with 25 assists on 33 made field goals, repeatedly finding production inside and getting contributions throughout the rotation. All 11 TCU players who entered the game scored.
They got there after working through an uneven opening quarter.
TCU missed all six of its first-quarter 3-point attempts, and Somfai picked up her second foul less than two minutes in. Tarleton State capitalized on the slow start, with Lucia Navarro and Caroline Lyles accounting for all 11 of the Texans’ first-quarter points.
Navarro’s free throws gave Tarleton State a 9-7 lead with 4:02 remaining. The teams were still tied at 11 inside the final two minutes before baskets from Hall and Clara Bielefeld put TCU ahead 15-11 at the break.
Then the Horned Frogs created separation.
Somfai opened the second quarter with a jumper, Grant followed with a 3-pointer, and Bella Hines added a driving layup. TCU kept extending possessions on the offensive glass, with Somfai converting a putback before adding a three-point play that pushed the lead to 27-11.
The 12-0 start to the quarter left Tarleton State scoreless until Stephany Goncalves made a layup with 4:31 remaining. By then, TCU had established control through defensive stops and repeated opportunities around the basket.
Somfai was central to that stretch. After playing just 1:45 in the opening quarter because of foul trouble, she scored seven points in the second. She finished the afternoon with nine rebounds, including four on the offensive end, and three assists.
TCU continued to build its lead late in the half. Hall and Camille Williams converted turnovers into fast-break baskets, with Williams completing a three-point play. Wooten then knocked down two 3-pointers to help send the Horned Frogs into halftime ahead 43-18.
Tarleton State shot 6-for-24 and committed 11 turnovers in the first half.
Silva took over a larger share of the scoring after the break. Scoreless through two quarters, she made two layups in the opening 63 seconds of the third and finished with 15 points on 6-for-11 shooting. She also collected five rebounds without committing a turnover.
The Texans found more offense in the third quarter, making seven of their 13 shots, but TCU still outscored them
23-15 to carry a 66-33 lead into the fourth.
Grant provided efficiency on the perimeter, making five of seven shots overall and three of five from beyond the arc. She added four assists without a turnover. Wooten finished with a team-high six assists, five rebounds, and two steals alongside her 12 points.
The bench maintained that production. Hall paired her 11 points with four assists and two steals, Bielefeld contributed eight points and four rebounds, and Laura Vilcinskas added seven points and four rebounds. TCU’s reserves outscored Tarleton State 34-11.
Across the final box score, the interior advantage was decisive. TCU outrebounded the Texans 43-24, collected 18 offensive boards and finished with a 48-16 edge in points in the paint. The Horned Frogs also turned 22 Tarleton State turnovers into 26 points.
Lyles led the Texans with 10 points and five rebounds. Olivia Medford added seven points, while Navarro finished with six points and seven rebounds as Tarleton State fell to 1-1.
TCU shot 50% from the field despite going 7-for-25 from the 3-point range. Its ability to score inside, share the ball, and generate extra possessions carried an offense that put up 74 points over the final three quarters.
What began as a four-point game after one quarter ended as a 47-point victory, with TCU’s depth and control of the paint leaving Tarleton State little room to recover.
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