PROVO, Utah8212;Junior guard Ronnie Moss scored a game-high 27 points, but as TCU fell to No. 9 BYU on Saturday, 83-67, at the Cougars’ Marriott Center.

The Frogs dropped to 10-10 overall and 1-4 in Mountain West Conference play. BYU improved to 18-1 overall and 4-0 in the MWC.

Moss matched a season high in points on 10-of-17 shooting, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range, while adding six rebounds.

BYU guard Jimmer Fredette, the nation’s scoring leader, scored 21 points, on 6-of-16 shooting. Seven of his points came at the free-throw line.

TCU sophomore forward Garlon Green also reached double figures with 10 points. Junior guard Hank Thorns totaled a game-high 10 assists while leading the Frogs in rebounding for the first time this season with seven boards. Thorns reached double digits in helpers for the fifth time this season. Junior guard J.R. Cadot added nine points and three assists.

Fredette led a balanced BYU offensive attack featuring five players in double figures. Guard Jackson Emery drilled 5-of-7 shots from outside the arc to help account for his 17 points, while forwards Noah Hartsock and Brandon Davies added 14 and 13 points, respectively. Guard Kyle Collinsworth totaled 10 and matched Hartsock and Davies with a game-high nine rebounds.

BYU shot lights-out in the first half to put TCU in a big hole early. After the Frogs scored the first bucket on a Moss layup, the Cougars exploded for a 25-5 run to lead by a score of 25-7 just over nine minutes into the game. The squad hit four 3-pointers in the stretch, including two by Fredette.

Despite the large early deficit, TCU responded with nine straight points over the next minute to cut the lead back to single digits, 25-16. Moss scored seven on a 3-pointer and a pair of layups.

BYU followed by scoring 16 of the game’s next 21 points to extend the lead back out to 20 points, 41-21, with just over four minutes remaining. The Cougars continued to bomb away from beyond the arc with two by Emery, and the squad finished the half 6-of-11 overall from outside. BYU finished the first half 18-of-33 from the field overall in the period, good for 54.5 percent.

Trailing by 17 at intermission, 47-30, TCU came out firing in the second half. The squad was able to trim the lead to only 12 points early in the stanza with the help of three consecutive 3-pointers by senior forward Nikola Gacesa, senior guard Greg Hill and Moss. BYU forced its way to the free throw line to keep the Frogs at bay down the stretch. The Cougars went 16-of-19 at the stripe in the period and finished the contest 21-of-26.

TCU finished the second half outscoring the Cougars by a 37-36 count in the period. After breaking the 50 percent barrier in the first half, the Frogs limited BYU to 40.9 percent in the second stanza. Despite TCU’s second-half success, the Cougars still finished the game shooting 49.1 percent from the field compared to only 38.5 percent for the Frogs.

TCU next returns to Fort Worth for a Saturday matchup against Utah at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. The contest, set to tip off at 5 p.m. CT, will be televised live by the MountainWest Sports Network (The Mtn.).

POSTGAME NOTES

Attendance: 16,170

– TCU dropped to 10-10 overall and 1-4 in Mountain West Conference play.

– Ronnie Moss led TCU with 27 points, his fifth 20-point performance this season and the 15th of his career. The total also equaled his team-season high set during the Jan. 12 win over Wyoming.

– Moss climbed into 22nd place on TCU’s career scoring chart, passing by No. 24 Ricky Hall (1,060), No. 23 Jeff Jacobs (1,081) and No. 22 Ricky Hall (1,084). Moss now has 1,085 career points.

– Hank Thorns totaled 10 assists, his fifth game this season with 10 helpers. He entered the day as the only player in the MWC with more than two double-figure assist performances.

– Thorns also matched a career high with seven rebounds. He led the Frogs in boards for the first time this season.

– TCU’s 11 turnovers marked its second-lowest total this season away from Fort Worth. The Frogs had only five during a Dec. 30 loss at Tulsa.PROVO, Utah8212;Junior guard Ronnie Moss scored a game-high 27 points, but as TCU fell to No. 9 BYU on Saturday, 83-67, at the Cougars’ Marriott Center.

The Frogs dropped to 10-10 overall and 1-4 in Mountain West Conference play. BYU improved to 18-1 overall and 4-0 in the MWC.

Moss matched a season high in points on 10-of-17 shooting, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range, while adding six rebounds.

BYU guard Jimmer Fredette, the nation’s scoring leader, scored 21 points, on 6-of-16 shooting. Seven of his points came at the free-throw line.

TCU sophomore forward Garlon Green also reached double figures with 10 points. Junior guard Hank Thorns totaled a game-high 10 assists while leading the Frogs in rebounding for the first time this season with seven boards. Thorns reached double digits in helpers for the fifth time this season. Junior guard J.R. Cadot added nine points and three assists.

Fredette led a balanced BYU offensive attack featuring five players in double figures. Guard Jackson Emery drilled 5-of-7 shots from outside the arc to help account for his 17 points, while forwards Noah Hartsock and Brandon Davies added 14 and 13 points, respectively. Guard Kyle Collinsworth totaled 10 and matched Hartsock and Davies with a game-high nine rebounds.

BYU shot lights-out in the first half to put TCU in a big hole early. After the Frogs scored the first bucket on a Moss layup, the Cougars exploded for a 25-5 run to lead by a score of 25-7 just over nine minutes into the game. The squad hit four 3-pointers in the stretch, including two by Fredette.

Despite the large early deficit, TCU responded with nine straight points over the next minute to cut the lead back to single digits, 25-16. Moss scored seven on a 3-pointer and a pair of layups.

BYU followed by scoring 16 of the game’s next 21 points to extend the lead back out to 20 points, 41-21, with just over four minutes remaining. The Cougars continued to bomb away from beyond the arc with two by Emery, and the squad finished the half 6-of-11 overall from outside. BYU finished the first half 18-of-33 from the field overall in the period, good for 54.5 percent.

Trailing by 17 at intermission, 47-30, TCU came out firing in the second half. The squad was able to trim the lead to only 12 points early in the stanza with the help of three consecutive 3-pointers by senior forward Nikola Gacesa, senior guard Greg Hill and Moss. BYU forced its way to the free throw line to keep the Frogs at bay down the stretch. The Cougars went 16-of-19 at the stripe in the period and finished the contest 21-of-26.

TCU finished the second half outscoring the Cougars by a 37-36 count in the period. After breaking the 50 percent barrier in the first half, the Frogs limited BYU to 40.9 percent in the second stanza. Despite TCU’s second-half success, the Cougars still finished the game shooting 49.1 percent from the field compared to only 38.5 percent for the Frogs.

TCU next returns to Fort Worth for a Saturday matchup against Utah at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. The contest, set to tip off at 5 p.m. CT, will be televised live by the MountainWest Sports Network (The Mtn.).

POSTGAME NOTES

Attendance: 16,170

– TCU dropped to 10-10 overall and 1-4 in Mountain West Conference play.

– Ronnie Moss led TCU with 27 points, his fifth 20-point performance this season and the 15th of his career. The total also equaled his team-season high set during the Jan. 12 win over Wyoming.

– Moss climbed into 22nd place on TCU’s career scoring chart, passing by No. 24 Ricky Hall (1,060), No. 23 Jeff Jacobs (1,081) and No. 22 Ricky Hall (1,084). Moss now has 1,085 career points.

– Hank Thorns totaled 10 assists, his fifth game this season with 10 helpers. He entered the day as the only player in the MWC with more than two double-figure assist performances.

– Thorns also matched a career high with seven rebounds. He led the Frogs in boards for the first time this season.

– TCU’s 11 turnovers marked its second-lowest total this season away from Fort Worth. The Frogs had only five during a Dec. 30 loss at Tulsa.