The TCU Horned Frogs entered the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals seeking revenge against the Kansas Jayhawks after blowing a 16-point second-half lead in their regular-season meeting in January.
This time the game unfolded differently, but the result remained the same. After defeating Oklahoma State in the second round, TCU fell to Kansas 78–73 in a tightly contested game where neither team led by double digits.
While neither team could pull away, the game wasn’t a back-and-forth affair but rather one defined by runs. Kansas started the trend by scoring the first nine points of the contest. TCU’s first basket came at the 14:29 mark on an Xavier Edmonds three-pointer.
The Horned Frogs then responded by scoring nine of the next 11 points to take a 12–11 lead with 12:19 remaining. After Kansas briefly retook the lead, 13–12, TCU answered with an 8–0 run to go ahead by seven.
A Liutauras Lelevicius three-pointer restored TCU’s seven-point lead after Kansas answered with a triple of its own. The Jayhawks then responded with a 12–0 run to take a 28–23 lead with 4:18 remaining.
TCU answered quickly, retaking the lead less than two minutes later, 29–28. After Kansas went back in front by one on a Melvin Council Jr. layup, the Horned Frogs closed the half by scoring five of the final six points to take a 34–31 lead into the break.
The second half opened with an 8–0 run by Kansas. Like the first half, TCU took a while to get on the board, finally ending the drought at the 16:39 mark on a David Punch hook shot.
That basket sparked a 10–2 run that gave the Horned Frogs a 47–41 lead. Kansas quickly answered with a 10–1 run of its own to move back in front, 51–48. As the game neared the 10-minute mark, a tightly officiated stretch led to frequent trips to the free-throw line for both teams.
From that point on, the teams traded baskets. Kansas took a three-point lead at the 9:33 mark, but the Horned Frogs answered moments later and briefly went ahead 57–55 at 8:18. Over the next several minutes, however, TCU turnovers and steady Kansas free-throw shooting extended the Jayhawks’ lead to seven, 70–63, with 3:22 remaining.
Two David Punch free throws cut the deficit to five, but turnovers continued to plague the Frogs. TCU turned the ball over on its next three possessions, though Kansas managed only two points during that stretch on a tough Darryn Peterson jumper. Peterson later added two free throws to push the Jayhawks’ lead to 74–65 with 18 seconds remaining.
TCU scored the next five points, but Kansas’ steady free-throw shooting sealed the game. The Jayhawks held off the Frogs’ late push to secure a 78–73 win and advance to the Big 12 Tournament semifinals.
It was TCU’s first loss since Feb. 17. The two teams combined to shoot 55 free throws, with the Jayhawks attempting 37 of them. Kansas shot just 37.9 percent from the field and 23.5 percent from beyond the arc, but a 30-of-37 performance from the free-throw line played a major role in the Jayhawks’ success.
TCU did not fare much better from the field, converting 39.1 percent of its shots, though the Frogs did knock down 36.0 percent of their three-pointers. While TCU finished with 14 turnovers, 11 came in the second half, compared to only four second-half giveaways for Kansas.
Darryn Peterson led the way for Kansas with 24 points, 13 of which came from the free-throw line. Flory Bidunga added 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Bryson Tiller recorded 13 points and eight boards. Elmarko Jackson came off the bench to score 13 points, going a perfect 10-of-10 from the line.
After scoring a career-high 26 points in the second round, David Punch followed with 24 against Kansas. He shot 8-of-15 from the field and 7-of-9 from the free-throw line. Liutauras Lelevicius added 14 points and eight rebounds off the bench, while Jayden Pierre rounded out TCU’s top scorers with 11.
TCU will now await its NCAA Tournament fate on Selection Sunday, where the Horned Frogs are projected to land as an eight or nine seed.