6. TCU Horned Frogs (5-1)
Previous rankings: 6
As weak as West Virginia’s schedule looks compared to the other Big 12 schools, it’s in fact TCU who has played an even softer opening slate. Up to this point, Fresno State is the best win for the Horned Frogs. They’re the only team to have yet to participate in a non-conference tournament, as the annual Diamond Head Classic comes around Christmas time.
Like the other teams, TCU benefitted last week by the return of key players Kouat Noi and Jaylen Fisher, both who were dealing with injuries to start the season. They both came back against Lipscomb, bringing the team to full strength. That was the good news. The bad news was that they lost that game to the Bison, which dropped them out of the top-25 polls.
Fisher has continued where he left out last season, shooting over 40% from three-point range on over six attempts a game. Noi has been very impressive in his first three games, averaging 15.7 ppg including a career-high 27 in the win over Eastern Michigan. He and leading scorer Desmond Bane provide the Horned Frogs consistent offense, along with the NCAA’s assist leader Alex Robinson.
TCU could very well be better than the sixth best team in the Big 12. However, the lack of true competition to start the season stops them from moving up in the rankings. Games against SMU and USC will provide the needed test to see how good they really are.