We end the position review series with the bigs.
After reviewing and grading the Horned Frogs’ best position group, the wings, we’re now on the worst group—the bigs. TCU lost 2022-23 season’s starting center, Eddie Lampkin, to the transfer portal. To remedy the position, the Horned Frogs brought in former Kansas Jayhawks’ top-30 recruit Ernest Udeh Jr. and Coastal Carolina transfer, Essam Mostafa. The only returning big man was Xavier Cork, who came from Western Carolina in 2021.
Udeh Jr. was given the starting nod, but only averaged 17.3 minutes per game. Jamie Dixon used Cork as the primary backup five once again and he played just 12.5 minutes per contest. Mostafa, arguably the most skilled of the three, played a part-time role. The Egyptian-born center appeared in 30 of 34 games and hit the hardwood for just 9.7 minutes whenever he played.
Position Review: Bigs
To kick off the reviews, we’ll start with the big man who received the most time on the court. Udeh Jr. came to the University of Kansas as a highly-touted recruit. The 6-foot-11 big man played in less than 250 minutes in a Jayhawks uniform before he decided to hit the transfer portal. Udeh Jr. found his way to Fort Worth as TCU lacked a clear option to start at the pivot. He began the season in a low-usage role as the starting five. Udeh Jr.’s role never changed throughout the season as he received 20 minutes in the first Big 12 game and 20 minutes in the last game of the season.
On the year, Udeh Jr. averaged 4.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.0 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game. The former Jayhawks connected on 60.9 percent of his field goals and 56.0 percent of his free throws. Being 6-foot-11 and 260 pounds, Udeh Jr. displayed fantastic athleticism. He’s one of the best lob threats in the country and plays with a high motor. Yet, Udeh Jr. isn’t the most coordinated and can at times be out of control. Despite the uncontrolled nature in which he plays, he’s a quick-twitch athlete who can easily get up and down the court for his size.
The former five-star is a one-dimensional offensive player at this stage in his career. Other than setting a pick and rolling to the rim, Udeh Jr.’s skillset only allows for him to wait for a shot to go up to hit the offensive glass. Of Udeh Jr.’s 39 field goals, 25 were dunks. His impressive height-athleticism combination allows guards to easily find Udeh Jr. when he’s rolling to the rim. The Orlando native has solid hands and a willingness to attempt a dunk when he’s relatively close to the rim. With the ball in his hands, Udeh Jr. typically looks to kick it back out to the perimeter. The TCU center lacks a post-game and doesn’t offer much, if any, ball-handling ability.
While not necessarily offensive or defensive, Udeh Jr.’s best skill this past season was winning jump-balls. The former Jayhawks won the opening tip in 24 of 29 contests and in each of the four overtime periods. On the defensive end, Udeh Jr. is a bit of a wildcard. Despite his measurements and elite athleticism, he wasn’t a big-time shot blocker. Udeh Jr. lacked the requisite defensive awareness and timing to rotate and rise up for blocks. His steal numbers were impressive—a credit to his motor—but blocks are most important for the big man in the middle. Far too often Udeh Jr. would get lost on defense. Whether it be a pick-and-roll or extended help, he was prone to lapses in awareness.
Ernest Udeh Jr. Grade: D+
The fifth-year senior, Cork, was held to a lesser standard than his counterpart Udeh in this review. The 6-foot-9 big man was a far less heralded recruit. After playing two seasons for the Western Carolina Catamounts, Cork took his talents West, to Fort Worth. Since his arrival on campus, Cork has fulfilled a similar role. He never played more than 15.0 minutes per game, never averaged more than 4.5 points per game, and never averaged 3.0 rebounds per game. Throughout his career at TCU, Cork averaged 4.0 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 0.5 blocks per contest. The TCU center’s fifth-year averages were nearly identical to his career output.
Similar to Udeh Jr., Cork’s offensive repertoire was limited. He isn’t near the athlete that Udeh Jr. is, but he possesses a decent understanding of positional awareness. Cork was used either as a roll-man or relegated to the dunker position. His hands were fairly good, but he never displayed much adept footwork in the post to use a hook shot or any type of post move. The Sulphur Springs product showed flashes of above-average verticality, but not much else on the offensive end. A 10-20 off-the-bench role perfectly suited Cork’s ability.
Cork was the Horned Frogs’ most consistent interior defender. He’s not the best, that’s likely Udeh Jr.’s title, but he understood positioning and verticality better than any of the other bigs. He only registered 14 blocks this season, but Cork did a fine job of contesting shots. At times, he failed to make a difference on the interior and his slow foot speed played a part, but unlike his teammates, he usually put himself in the right position to defend a guard coming off a screen or a big man positioning himself in the low post.
Xavier Cork Grade: C
Earlier, Mostafa was referred to as the most skilled Horned Frog big man. Although he saw the least amount of playing time of the three, he displayed a keen understanding of post position, footwork, and angles. Mostafa came to TCU by way of Coastal Carolina. Playing for the Chanticleers, Mostafa was a three-year starter. He finished his career at his previous stop with averages of 12.6 points and 9.4 boards per game. In his lone season at TCU, Mostafa only averaged 2.8 points and 3.2 rebounds in limited action.
Against Big 12 competition, Mostafa demonstrated his post-savviness was still relevant. There were times throughout the season when going to Mostafa in the low post was a guaranteed bucket. For instance, in TCU’s second game against the Texas Tech Raiders, Mostafa took advantage of the Red Raiders’ lack of size and scored 10 points, knocking down 5-of-6 field goal attempts. The 6-foot-9 big man works best as an old-school big man. His combination of deftness and footwork in the post allows for Mostafa to gain proper positioning. While he excelled in the post, Mostafa was relatively useless as a shooter and pick-and-roll man.
Mostafa’s offense held up in the Power 5, but his defense was subpar. The former Chanticleer was well aware of his lack of athleticism. At times, he overcompensated, getting himself out of position to attempt to get in position. For example, coach Dixon preferred to hedge when defending a pick-and-roll. Rather than a quick, “show-and-go,” Mostafa would play the ball-handler way too far out, thus allowing the roller an open lane. Rather than relying on foot speed, Mostafa would assume the direction of his opposition. Unfortunately for Mostafa, basketball is a reactive game, there are no assumptions to be made—especially on the defensive end.
Essam Mostafa Grade: C-
The remade center unit did not yield positive results for Dixon’s Horned Frogs. While the interior scoring was accounted for by the guards and forwards, the interior defense was up to the bigs. When it came to defending the interior, TCU sorely lacked any intimidators. Not one of Udeh Jr., Cork, or Mostafa could defend a solid post-player one-on-one. Additionally, none of the aforementioned players defended the pick-and-roll adequately. Luckily for the Horned Frogs, Udeh Jr. is back for another year of seasoning. Cork and Mostafa proved to be worthwhile backups, but neither of the two bigs was capable of playing more than their allotted time.