TCU men’s basketball aiming to keep winning streak rolling against Notre Dame
What a difference a month makes.
In early November, many around Fort Worth wrote TCU men’s basketball off after the Horned Frogs were shocked in the season opener by New Orleans and lost starting center Malick Diallo for the rest of the season.
Would it be a second straight season without an NCAA Tournament appearance for coach Jamie Dixon and TCU? Many assumed so.
But fast forward a month later, and now the Horned Frogs look like one of the country’s most improved teams after pushing then-No. 6 Michigan to the brink and defeating defending national champion Florida and Wisconsin in the Rady Children’s Invitational over Thanksgiving weekend in San Diego.
All of a sudden TCU (5-2) has a solid NCAA Tournament resume and has a chance to add to it this weekend with games against Notre Dame (6-3) at 7 p.m. Friday at Schollmaier Arena and North Texas (7-2) at 4:30 p.m. Sunday at Dickies Arena.
It’s another massive weekend for a team that has reshaped its identity over the past month.
“We’ve been playing better and gradually getting better as the season goes along,” Dixon said Wednesday. “We had to readjust, losing a starter five minutes into a game that’s practiced every day of the summer and fall, and then he goes down. We made some adjustments and have gotten better each time out.”
David Punch, Brock Harding leading the way
The emergence of sophomore forward David Punch and junior transfer guard Brock Harding over the past month has played a big part in TCU bouncing back.
Punch leads the Horned Frogs in points (12.7), rebounds (7.0) and blocks (2.3), while Harding leads the team in assists (6.1) and steals (3.3). Harding won MVP of the Rady Children’s Invitational, while Punch averaged 18.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.5 blocks against two talented frontcourts.
Harding has “been really good early,” Dixon said. “His decision-making is elite. He wants to pass first. Teams are trying to stop him from beating them with his passing. I think [Punch] had a great week of practice, and he’s doing the things we’re asking him to do and finding opportunities in that framework. He can do so many things with the ball in that mid-post, short-roll area.”
As much progress as TCU made in November, the Horned Frogs don’t believe the work is done, especially with a much-improved Fighting Irish squad headed in Fort Worth.
Markus Burton powers Notre Dame
Notre Dame is off to a 6-3 start and just picked up a huge win over Missouri earlier this week. The three losses came to Kansas, Ohio State and Houston, which means the Fighting Irish will be just as battle-tested as TCU.
“We know they’re a good team,” Harding said. “Notre Dame’s got a lot of guys, a lot of outside shooting. They have a really good point guard, so it’ll take all five guys to try and hold him under his averages. He makes that team go. He does everything for that team.”
Harding is referring to Markus Burton, who is playing like one of the best guards in the ACC, averaging 19.9 points, 3.6 assists and 1.7 steals per game while shooting 48.8% from the field. Burton scored 19 against Houston’s tough defense and 24 against Kansas. He’ll be one of the best guards TCU will face this season.
Notre Dame also has 6-foot-7 freshman forward Jalen Haralson playing at a high level, ranking second on the team at 13.1 points. Braeden Shrewsberry, a 6-4 junior guard, averages 10.0 points while knocking down 44.4% of his 3-point attempts.
“They have good guards, I know they like to play fast on offense,” Punch said. “We’re just going to see how good their offense matches up with our defense.”
The Horned Frogs found themselves in San Diego, and if they play like that on Friday, there’s a good chance they could another marquee name to their resume.
This story was originally published December 4, 2025 at 1:58 PM.
