Balanced effort aids TCU men’s basketball in bounce-back home victory over Central Florida
TCU snapped a two-game skid with a 89-78 victory over Central Florida on Saturday at Schollmaier Arena.
Five different Horned Frogs scored in double figures as TCU picked up its first win over UCF since the Knights joined the Big 12 in 2023.
TCU also avenged an 85-58 blowout defeat to UCF on Jan. 25.
TCU jumped on UCF early in Saturday’s game and built a 49-30 halftime lead. It was the Horned Frogs’ best offensive half since the season opener against Florida A&M.
“It was a great Saturday for us. I loved how we played that first half,” head coach Jamie Dixon said. “It was about as good a half as we played offensively and defensively. We had a 19-point lead, we did it on the glass, we were plus-11. We really passed it well too. Loved the first half, wish we would’ve been better in the second half.”
Everything was working as TCU surged to a 15-4 lead, sparked by Vasean Allette. Allette scored the first basket of the game and then followed that with a 3-pointer and a dunk in transition. Allette finished with a team-high 17 points for the game.
Midway through the half, Ernest Udeh began to make his own mark on the game. After the Knights cut TCU’s lead to 25-17 with 8 minutes, 56 seconds remaining before halftime, Udeh led the charge during a 8-0 run with two baskets in the paint while TCU rebuilt the lead to 34-17.
Noah Reynolds was another Horned Frog that excelled early. The senior guard knocked down three 3-pointers in the first half.
The second half was relatively stress-free until the final 10 minutes when the Knights cut TCU’s lead to 63-53. The Horned Frogs’ offense wasn’t executing to the same level it had in the first, and the Knights were slowly able to chip at the lead.
However, the Horned Frogs created some breathing room on big baskets by Punch and Allette to go back up 67-53 with less than eight minutes remaining.
Freshman Micah Robinson helped ice the game with a nice two-play sequence where he knocked down a pull-up 3-pointer and then converted a three-point play after being fouled on a tough drive to the basket.
TCU led 73-55 after Robinson’s outburst and was able to cruise to a victory in the final six minutes. Robinson finished with 12 while Punch added 14 points including a 3-pointer.
The win also marked the first start for Jace Posey at TCU. The redshirt freshman has been arguably the most improved player on the Horned Frogs’ roster since Big 12 play began.
Posey fit in nicely with the starting unit of Udeh, Reynolds, Allette and freshman forward David Punch on Saturday. Posey served as the lead defender for the group as he matched up against UCF guards Darius Johnson and Mikey Williams.
“It felt good to get my first career start,” Posey said. “Going into the game my mindset was just do what I do coming off the bench. I’m proud of my performance today, I gotta lock in on the free throws, but overall I feel like I rebounded well, I cut well and I made the right play.”
Posey’s defense on Johnson was especially valuable as Johnson had excelled in his two previous matchups against the Horned Frogs. Posey held Johnson to five points in the first half, and by the time Johnson got going in the second, TCU was already ahead by double digits.
Posey also found his offense in the second half with eight of his 10 points in the final seven minutes of the game, including a prolific an alley-oop slam on a pass from Allette. Posey’s development has been a positive storyline during an up-and-down season.
“It was a combination of things. He’s been playing better and playing more minutes,” Dixon said of the decision to start Posey. “That spot has been up for grabs and it was the matchups. We wanted him in there to guard Johnson initially. He’s working hard and getting better and that’s what you want freshmen to do.”
The defense also did a good job on Keyshawn Hall. Hall entered the day as the leading scorer in the Big 12, but the Horned Frogs held him to just 14 points on 3-of-17 shooting from the field.
Big picture wise, the win doesn’t do much for TCU’s NCAA Tournament hopes, as the Knights are a Quad 3 opponent. Ranked No. 77, UCF would need to move up into the top-75 in the final week of the regular season for this to become a Quad 2 victory for the Horned Frogs.
Even if the Knights did, it’s unlikely to drastically change TCU’s chances of an at-large bid into the tournament. However, the win does help TCU with seeding in the upcoming Big 12 Tournament.
TCU is set to face Baylor at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the final home game of the season.
This story was originally published March 1, 2025 at 5:26 PM.
