Three takeaways from TCU men’s basketball game vs. Kansas State
TCU men’s basketball shocked Kansas State with a dramatic comeback in an 84-82 win over the Wildcats on Saturday.
The last-second win was a critical one for the Horned Frogs, who were looking to avoid a three-game losing streak and a loss to the Wildcats, who were tied for last in the Big 12 entering the game.
“Just so happy to pull it out,” head coach Jamie Dixon said. “Obviously not our best performance, but they had a lot to do with it.
Despite trailing by double digits most of the game, the Horned Frogs battled back to cut Kansas State’s lead to 80-75 with just over three minutes remaining.
Xavier Edmonds made it a one-possession game as he put back a missed 3 to cut the deficit to 80-77. The Horned Frogs had a chance to tie it, but Micah Robinson missed an open 3-pointer from the corner with less than two minutes remaining.
After a K-State bucket, Edmonds again made it a one-possession game, 82-79, with two free throws with 1:10 remaining. The Horned Frogs got one more chance to tie after former TCU guard P.J. Haggerty was called for a traveling violation.
Instead of taking the 3, Brock Harding connected with Edmonds on an alley-oop to cut it to 82-81 with 35 seconds remaining.
TCU forced a Kansas State turnover with 19.7 seconds remaining and then went right back to Edmonds, who drew a foul with 6.7 seconds remaining. Edmonds hit both free throws to give TCU its first lead of the game.
“I’m not sure why my free throws weren’t falling (early),” Edmonds said. “I told myself we needed those free throws and in order to win that game we needed to make all our free throws. I just tried to go to the line and make them.”
Needing one more stop, TCU forced another turnover by Haggerty as David Punch cut him off on the sidelines, forcing Haggerty to lose possession of the ball.
Robinson knocked down another free throw with 2.5 seconds remaining and Kansas State’s final full-court weave was way off.
“I think it shows a lot of growth from the team we were last week,” Harding said. “To start we didn’t make any adjustments we came out with the same energy we had last week (at Colorado). Credit to our guys and the coaches for figuring things out on the fly and not letting a bad start turn into a bad game.”
Edmonds produced his fifth straight double-double with 26 points and 10 rebounds.
TCU will host No. 7 Iowa State at 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Here are three more takeaways from Saturday’s victory:
A familiar face
The Horned Frogs faced off against former TCU guard P.J. Haggerty for the first time since he left the program after the 2022-23 season. Since his departure, Haggerty has been well-traveled, with stints at Tulsa and Memphis before signing with the Wildcats during the offseason. The change of scenery helped Haggerty develop into one of the nation’s most prolific scorers.
The former All-American entered Saturday’s game as the No. 3 scorer nationally, averaging 23 points per game. It didn’t take long for Haggerty to get going as he scored the first basket of the game and finished with 12 points in the first half as the Wildcats led the entire period.
In the second, Haggerty elevated his game as the Horned Frogs rallied to cut the deficit to 56-53 with less than 15 minutes remaining. That’s when Haggerty proceeded to knock down four straight baskets, showcasing his full arsenal of offensive moves. He slashed to the lane, hit pull-up jumpers and clearly established himself as the best player on the floor as the Wildcats retook a 64-53 lead with 12:16 remaining.
Haggerty continued to hit timely shots as the Wildcats tried to hold off TCU, but his two turnovers late ended up being one of the biggest moments of the game.
Haggerty finished with a game-high 30 points.
Robinson, Edmonds lead the way
Were it not for Edmonds and Robinson, TCU’s comeback wouldn’t have been possible.
With Punch struggling against the Kansas State frontline at times, Edmonds picked up the slack in the paint as he bullied his way to his spots and used nice patience to avoid shot blockers. At one point, Edmonds converted a critical three-point play to cut Kansas State’s lead to five with less than 10 minutes to go.
Robinson provided a boost off the bench with 16 points and multiple 3-pointers. Robinson was TCU’s best offensive option in the first half as he scored seven points in the final five minutes to help overcome an 18-point deficit that was cut to just four at halftime.
In the second, Robinson showed off his improved slashing ability with a dunk in transition and another driving layup. Robinson and Edmonds combined to score the final 12 points for TCU.
3-point battle
TCU has prided itself on its defense all season, but the Horned Frogs’ 3-point defense has taken a major step back the last three games. Led by Marcus Johnson, the Wildcats rained down 3-pointers in the first half to lead by as many as 18 in the first. Johnson knocked down four of Kansas State’s eight 3s in the half as he had his best game of the season against TCU.
The transfer from Bowling Green had played just 38 minutes total and averaged just 0.7 points per game, but injuries forced coach Jerome Tang to lean more on the reserve. Johnson finished with five 3s and 15 points.
“We had Johnson as a shooter on the scouting report, but when a guy gets 15 and hits five of six 3s it changes things,” Dixon said. “That really put us on our heels and dug a hole for us, we just had to keep fighting and fighting.”
However, the game began to turn once Johnson picked up his third foul with 4:41 remaining in the half. TCU used a 16-4 run after Johnson’s foul to cut the deficit to just 46-42 at halftime.
Not known for its 3-point shooting, TCU made seven in the first half with three from Brock Harding and two from Robinson. TCU’s 3-point shooting returned to normal levels in the second half as the Horned Frogs went 1 of 10 from behind the arc while Kansas State knocked down three more 3-pointers.
The Horned Frogs limited Kansas State to just 25% shooting from 3 in the second, which ended up being one of the biggest reasons TCU was able to storm back.
This story was originally published February 7, 2026 at 3:58 PM.
