Three takeaways from TCU basketball’s Big 12 quarterfinal against Kansas
TCU men’s basketball’s six-game winning streak was snapped as No. 14-ranked Kansas defeated the Horned Frogs 78-73 Thursday night in the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals.
“Proud of our guys, proud of how we’ve improved as the year’s gone on. We’ve gotten better,” TCU coach Jamie Dixon said. “I thought we would win this game, but we didn’t. We’ll learn from it, learn from the loss and find ways to get better here as we go into the NCAA Tournament. Proud of our effort.”
The matchup in Kansas City felt like a road environment for sixth-seeded TCU (22-11), as the T-Mobile Center was full of fans of the No. 3 seed Jayhawks (23-9) who made the short trip over from Lawrence.
Like the first matchup, a 104-100 overtime win for Kansas on Jan. 6, Thursday’s game was tightly contested. The Horned Frogs trailed 70-65 with 3:02 remaining after a pair of free throws by sophomore forward David Punch.
The Horned Frogs had a chance to cut it to a one-possession game, but had multiple turnovers in a span of two minutes that made the comeback more difficult.
The Jayhawks made TCU pay for the mistakes with a dagger bucket by Darryn Peterson, as the star freshman hit a spinning, fadeaway jumper with 41 seconds left.
Punch and sophomore forward Micah Robinson hit desperation 3s in the final 15 seconds that made it 76-73 with three seconds remaining, but Elmarko Jackson hit two free throws to clinch the game with 2.9 seconds remaining.
Kansas was set to face No. 2 seed Houston (27-5) in the semifinals at 8:30 p.m. Friday. No. 1 Arizona (30-2) and No. 5 Iowa State (27-6) meet in the first semifinal at 6 p.m.
The Horned Frogs will wait to see their seeding in the NCAA Tournament with the bracket being revealed at 5 p.m. Sunday on CBS. The Horned Frogs are projected to be a No. 8 or No. 9 seed by most analysts.
Here are three more takeaways from the quarterfinal:
Slowing down Darryn Peterson
After averaging 19.9 points per game in the regular season despite injuries, Peterson has remained at the top of many NBA mock drafts as the next No. 1 overall pick. The second-team All-Big 12 selection got off to a slow start as he had just two points in the opening 14:53 of the game.
TCU’s smaller guards Brock Harding and Tanner Toolson did a solid job on Peterson early, but Peterson came alive just before halftime to change the game. After hitting a tough floater, Peterson knocked down a step back 3-pointer to push Kansas ahead 28-23 and force a Dixon timeout with 4:16 remaining in the first half.
After finishing with eight points in the first half, Peterson did most of his damage from the free-throw line in the second with Kansas being in the bonus for a majority of the half. Peterson was just 5-of-17 from the field, but went 13-of-16 from the free throw line to finish with 24 points.
“Doesn’t take a genius to look at the stat sheet and see where the game was won,” Dixon said. Kansas shot 30-of-37 on free throws compared to 14-of-18 for TCU.
The war inside
The game was ultimately decided by the battle inside the paint as TCU’s frontline of Punch and junior center Xavier Edmonds scrapped and clawed with Kansas’ talented big men Flory Bidunga and Bryson Tiller. It was difficult for either side to secure a rebound, as both teams emphasized crashing the offensive glass.
Bidunga and Edmonds dealt with foul trouble, leaving Punch and Tiller to battle one-on-one most of the night. Both players had strong stretches, like when Punch scored all six of his first-half points in the final four minutes to lift TCU a 34-31 halftime lead. Tiller also made an impact as a rim protector and grabbed four offensive rebounds.
When Edmonds picked up his fourth foul with 10:05 remaining in the game, Punch took his game to another level as the Horned Frogs began to feed him every time a smaller Kansas player switched onto him. Punch made multiple tough baskets and got to the free-throw line as the Jayhawks struggled with his physicality.
“I look forward to these type of games,” Punch said. “Playing against a frontcourt like that, you’re going to get that in the Big 12. I’m blessed to be here and look forward to it.”
Punch was the best big man on the floor with 24 points and 10 rebounds, but Edmonds’ inability to make an impact with just five points played a big role in TCU falling. Bidunga and Tiller combined for 26 points, 18 rebounds and four blocks.
Liutaurus Lelevicius provides a spark
TCU junior forward Liutaurus Lelevicius has played some of his best basketball this season against the Jayhawks. Lelevicius scored a season-high 23 points in the first matchup in January and was just as impactful this time. Lelevicius provided an early spark off the bench with 11 points in the first half, including knocking down two 3-pointers.
In the second half, Kansas devoted much more attention to the shooter. After converting a three-point play with 16:06 remaining, Lelevicius was held scoreless for the rest of the way as Kansas denied him opportunities to get his hands on the ball. Lelevicius attempted just one field goal in the final 16 minutes, and the Horned Frogs missed his scoring presence in the second half.
Despite slowing down in the second, it’s a performance that can continue to build confidence for Lelevicius. He finished with 14 points and eight rebounds.
This story was originally published March 12, 2026 at 11:19 PM.
