Three takeaways from TCU men’s basketball game against No. 11 BYU
TCU basketball endured a third straight Big 12 loss, as the Horned Frogs fell 76-70 to No. 11 BYU on Wednesday night in Provo, Utah.
It was the third straight game against a ranked opponent for the Horned Frogs (11-6, 1-3), who opened league play with a grueling four-game gauntlet against Baylor, Kansas and Arizona.
TCU led 41-33 early in the second half, but quickly saw the tone of the game change as freshman forward AJ Dybantsa took over for BYU (16-1, 4-0). Dybantsa, a projected top-three pick in the NBA draft, outscored the Horned Frogs 17-8 during one stretch to give the Cougars a 52-46 lead with 12:39 remaining.
Despite Dybantsa’s brilliance, the Horned Frogs found a way to tie the game at 63 with less than four minutes remaining, but BYU outexecuted TCU down the stretch, using a 10-2 run to put the game away.
Dybantsa led the Cougars with 25 points.
The Horned Frogs will face Utah (8-9, 0-4) at 1 p.m. Saturday in Salt Lake City.
Here are three takeaways from Wednesday’s loss:
Dealing with AJ Dybantsa
Dybantsa has been one of the most dominant players in college basketball this season and is one of the front-runners for National Player of the Year. He entered the matchup against the Horned Frogs with nine straight games with at least 20 points while shooting 50% from the field. A true matchup problem at 6-foot-9, TCU was going to have its hands full slowing Dybantsa down.
In the first half the Horned Frogs were successful in flustering the freshman. Dybantsa went just 2-of-8 from the field as TCU crowded the paint with multiple defenders and matched his physicality on his drives to the lane. The Horned Frogs limited Dybantsa to eight points, a major reason they led 36-30 at halftime.
But a determined Dybantsa came out aggressive in the second half, scoring 17 points in the opening eight minutes as BYU took a 55-49 lead with 11:39 remaining. Dybantsa showed why he’s so highly viewed by scouts as he knocked down 3-pointers, generated multiple three-point plays in the paint and showed advanced footwork when he had a defender isolated in the paint.
Dybantsa recorded his 10th straight 20-point game.
A homecoming for Xavier Edmonds
TCU’s Xavier Edmonds had arguably his best game as a Horned Frog against the Cougars. There was likely some motivation for the junior center as he was playing down the road from his alma mater Salt Lake Community College, where Edmonds developed into the No. 1-ranked junior college player in the country before joining TCU.
Edmonds scored a team-high 14 points in the first half to lead the Horned Frogs. TCU needed the extra scoring from Edmonds as sophomore forward David Punch was held in check by the Cougars’ defense. Punch was held to seven points, his first game with less than 10 points since Nov. 19 against Kansas City.
Edmonds finished with a team-high 19 points and eight rebounds, but it wasn’t enough, as the Cougars focused more of their defense on Edmonds in the second half.
It was also a homecoming for TCU forward Tanner Toolson as he scored seven points against his former team. Toolson played for BYU in 2022.
Rebounding woes
Despite the production from Edmonds, TCU struggled to control the glass against the depth of BYU. The Cougars outrebounded the Horned Frogs 51-36 and scored 24 second-chance points. TCU was forced to play with just two traditional big men with injured starting center Malick Diallio out for the season and reserve center Vianney Salatchoum taking time away from the team.
BYU’s Keba Keita was the most impactful rebounder for the Cougars as he grabbed five offensive rebounds, generating extra possessions for one of the best offenses in the Big 12. Even guards like Robert Wright and Kennard Davis contributed with timely offensive rebounds after the Horned Frogs had forced a miss.
No possession summed up the rebounding struggles more than one of BYU’s final offensive sequences with less than a minute remaining. Dybantsa missed an open 3-pointer with TCU trailing 72-65, but Wright was able to crash the lane and grab a rebound, which led to a free throw for Richie Saunders with 40 seconds remaining.
This story was originally published January 15, 2026 at 12:40 AM.
