Two years after finishing 1-17 in Big 12, TCU women stand take podium as champions in KC
From worst to first in two years for TCU.
After finishing dead last in the Big 12 in in women’s basketball in 2023, the Horned Frogs capped the greatest season in their program’s history with a 64-59 triumph in the Big 12 Tournament’s championship game before 5,084 at T-Mobile Center on Sunday.
TCU reversed its fortune this season with the addition of key players Hailey Van Lith, a guard and one of the nation’s top transfers from LSU. Van Lith, who won a bronze medal for the U.S. in 3-on-3 basketball last summer, led the Frogs with 20 points and was the Big 12 tourney’s most outstanding player.
TCU’s turnaround started last season under then-first-year head coach Mark Campbell. His prize newcomer that season was 6-foot-7 Sedona Prince. A force in the middle, she posted double-doubles in two of the three tournament games in Kansas City.
From 2020-23, TCU went 7-47 in Big 12 play, including 1-17 two years ago. And there some bumps in the road even once the turnaround was underway: The Horned Frogs forfeited two games last season because of injuries and illness.
On Sunday, the team was standing on a podium catching confetti in KC.
“We were the worst Power Four program in the country,” Campbell said. “We dug out of a deep hole and now we’re champions.”
What it means
The Horned Frogs get the Big 12’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Horned Frogs could be a second or third seed when the field is announced next week.
One of the biggest curiosities for this year’s selection show, which is set for next Sunday at 7 p.m. Central Time on ESPN, will be the placement of Kansas State. The Wildcats are a No. seed in ESPN’s latest bracketology.
Could K-State reach the No. 4 line and play host to first- and second-round games?
Other projected teams and possible seeds: Baylor (4), West Virginia (6), Oklahoma State (7), Utah (8) and Iowa State (10).