Jan. 26, 2010

Game 21 - TCU (10-10 | 2-3) vs. Colorado State (11-8 | 2-3)
Fort Collins, Colorado • Moby Arena
Wednesday (January 27) • 7:00 p.m. Central Time
Radio - ESPN Radio 103.3 FM | Brian Estridge (pxp) and John Denton (analyst)
TV - The Mtn. Network | Dan Gutowsky (pxp) and Larry Mangino (analyst)

Game Notes - Colorado State in PDF Format

Hey Everybody, It's Niko
• Freshman Nikola Cerina made his first collegiate start for the Frogs against SMU as part of the State Farm DFW Duel. The TCU newcomer has appeared in all 20 games where he is averaging 4.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 0.5 blocked shots per game. The 6-9 freshman is averaging 18.5 minutes per game and has seen action in at least 15 minutes on 14 occasions.

• A native of Topola Oplenac, Serbia, Cerina is the first-ever international true freshman to play for the Frogs. Every international player that has appeared on the Frogs' roster has gone to either high school, prep school or junior college in the United States.

• Cerina posted a career-high 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting in a home victory over Rice. The TCU freshman has recorded four double-digit scoring performances, including back-to-back efforts against UT Pan American (13 points) and UNLV (14 points). Over the last five games, Cerina is averaging 7.4 points and 3.8 boards while connecting on 63.6 percent (14-of-22) of his shots.

No Three for You!
• The Frogs have held nine opponents to less than 30 percent shooting from behind the three-point line this season. During one stretch, TCU held Louisiana Tech (1-of-13), SMU (0-of-13) and St. Gregory's (2-of-19) to less than 15 percent from beyond the arc.

• The Frogs are currently ranked 75th in the country in three-point field goal defense, allowing opponents to connect on 31.6 percent (117-of-370) of their field goal attempts. In addition, the Frogs are ranked fourth in the Mountain West Conference in that category and have held opponents to fewer than four three-pointers in eight of 20 games this season.

• The Frogs held SMU to zero three-point field goals in their road victory on Dec. 2, which marked the first time in 492 games that TCU held an opponent to zero three-pointers. The last time came against Louisiana Tech on Jan. 3, 1994, when the Bulldogs finished the game 0-of-4 from behind the three-point line.

Call to Duty
• This season, three walk-ons have seen action in their first-ever game donning the Purple and White in Marin Bavcevic, Tory Woods and Zach Huie. Bavcevic has appeared in four games while Woods and Huie made their collegiate debuts in a home victory over St. Gregory's. Woods has seen action in three games and scored his first career points against the Cavaliers.

Frogs Add Two Walk-ons to Roster
• Zach Huie was a standout at Montgomery High School where he was a first team All-District 18-4A and All-Region III selection during his senior campaign. A sophomore at TCU, Huie also garnered all-county accolades and Academic All-State recognition for the Bears after averaging 17.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.

• Tory Woods was a three-year lettermen at Permian High School where he averaged 10.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 3.2 steals per game for the Panthers. A second team all-district performer, Woods garnered all-tournament recognition at the Pioneer Classic during his senior campaign.

Beyond the Arc
• Edvinas Ruzgas was selected as the Mountain West Conference Player of the Week on Dec. 21 after scoring a career-high 32 points, including seven three-pointers, in a home victory over St. Gregory's. The TCU senior is averaging 12.7 points per game this season, including 12 double-digit scoring performances and five 20-plus scoring efforts.

• The TCU senior is currently ranked third in the Mountain West Conference in three-point field goal percentage (.421 | 45-of-107), fourth in three-point field goals made per game (2.3 3FGM-G), fifth in field goal percentage (.515 | 88-of-171), sixth in minutes played per game (31.6 MP-G) and 10th in scoring average (12.7 P-G).

• Ruzgas posted 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-6 from behind the three-point line, in 36 minutes of action against Wyoming. In TCU's triple-overtime victory over Texas State, Ruzgas finished with 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting, including 4-of-5 from behind the three-point line, in addition to grabbing seven rebounds in a career-high 49 minutes of action.

• Ruzgas has connected on 50.0 percent or higher of his total field goal attempts in 12 of 20 games this season and currently ranks 133rd in the country in three-point field goals made per game (2.3 3FGM-G).

• Ruzgas connected on seven three-pointers against St. Gregory's, which is the fifth-highest total in TCU single-game history. In addition, his seven three-pointers were the third-most in the Mountain West Conference (behind BYU's Jimmer Fredette • 9 at Arizona and New Mexico's Roman Martinez • 8 vs. San Diego). The TCU senior has connected on at least one three-pointer in 15 of 20 games this season and tallied at least two three-pointers in 13 of 20 games.

• The TCU senior posted a milestone against Rice on Jan. 2 as Ruzgas collected his 500th career point for the Frogs. During his TCU career, Ruzgas is averaging 11.1 points per game and has posted a double-digit scoring performance in 27 of 51 games.

TCU Milestone
• In the Frogs' 108-99 triple overtime victory over Texas State, Ronnie Moss and Kevin Butler became the first set of TCU  teammates to post their first-ever double-double in the same game. A pair of sophomores, Moss finished with 18 points and 12 assists while Butler collected 13 points and 11 rebounds.

Three-Headed Monster
• Ronnie Moss, Zvonko Buljan and Edvinas Ruzgas have combined for 790 of TCU's 1,389 points this season (56.9 percent).

Home Court Success
• The Frogs have notched 417 triumphs in the 49-year history of Daniel-Meyer Coliseum and have posted a winning percentage of .631 (417-244) on their home court. The Frogs played their 650th game at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum on Nov. 13th where TCU posted a 74-69 victory over Mid-America Christian University.

• Over the past 15 seasons, the Frogs have accumulated a 169-72 (.701) overall record at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum while posting at least 10 victories on their home court on 11 occasions.

Around the Nation
• The Frogs have five scholarship players from the State of Texas, which is the lowest number of home state scholarship players since the 1998-99 season when TCU had two players from the State of Texas. Moss (Fort Worth) and Butler (Duncanville) are natives of the Metroplex while Lancon (Houston), Roberson (Houston) and Green (Missouri City) are all from the Houston area.

Strong Family Tree
• The Frogs have three players who have family ties to professional and collegiate backgrounds in Thorns, Green and Bavcevic.

• Thorns' father, Henry, was a standout on the football field for UNLV before playing professionally in the Canadian Football League.

• Thorns' cousin, C.J. Watson, played four seasons at the University of Tennessee where he graduated ranked second in program history in assists and steals. Currently, Watson is a member of the Golden State Warriors.

• Green's brother, Gerald Jr., went directly from high school to the NBA and was drafted by the Boston Celtics with the 18th overall selection in the 2005 NBA Draft. Currently, Green is playing professionally in Russia.

• Bavcevic's father, Niksa, is the head coach for TROGIR ZP, which is one of the best teams in Croatia's A-1 League.

Horned Frog 500
• The Frogs have had three players reach their 500th career point in Zvonko Buljan (Dec. 8 vs. Texas Tech), Ronnie Moss (Dec. 23 vs. Houston) and Edvinas Ruzgas (Jan. 2 vs. Rice). Against the Air Force Academy, Buljan collected his 600th point for the Frogs. In addition, Keion Mitchem needs 16 points (484 career) to reach the 500-point milestone.

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