Basketball blows halftime lead to top-ranked Kansas

By Katherine Griffith

Published Mar 4, 2020

TCU’s Desmond Bane crosses up Kansas guard Devon Dotson with his signature move. Photo courtesy of gofrogs.com

After a big victory last Saturday over No. 2 Baylor, TCU men’s basketball was not able to get it done on the road in a 75-66 loss to the No. 1 Jayhawks.

This was the first time in TCU basketball history that the Frogs have played the top two teams in the AP poll in the same season.

The Frogs hung in the contest far longer than expected and were even clinging to a two-point lead at halftime.

“I thought we executed especially well in the first half,” head coach Jamie Dixon said. “We did what we wanted to do offensively.”

TCU held this lead through the first six minutes of the second half. Kansas would then take over, though, and lead for the rest of the game.

Bane pulls up to shoot a three-pointer. He had six made three-pointers on the night. Photo courtesy of gofrogs.com

Guard Desmond Bane did what the star player has made a habit of doing lately: scoring points and making plays. The senior had 24 points on the night, with six 3-pointers made and four assists.

The guard from Richmond, Indiana, now has 1,744 career points, ranking third on TCU’s all-time list.

Bane is one of three Power 5 players averaging at least 16 points, six rebounds and three assists per game. He was named co-Big 12 Player of the Week last week after his performance caught national attention.

Guard Edric Dennis also put up quality numbers for the Frogs. He had 18 points, all of which were made off of 3-point shots. He scored 15 of his 18 in the first half.

TCU leads the Big 12 in 3-point shooting, averaging 8.4 made per game.

First-year guard PJ Fuller, coming off of an impressive performance against Baylor and being named Big 12 Newcomer of the week, finished with just two points.

Kansas’ Udoka Azubuike proved too much for the Frogs once again. He scored 31 points and only missed one attempted field goal on his senior night.

A win for Kansas meant that they clinched at least a share of the Big 12 regular season title.

“It feels good,” Kansas head coach Bill Self said. “It is a goal every year to try to win the league, and this guarantees a share of it.”

This was Self’s 500th win at Kansas.

“It is hard to come in here [Allen Fieldhouse] and win,” Dixon said.

The Frogs are now 1-9 on the road and 16-14 overall.

“We are getting ready for Oklahoma, competing for a seed and a spot,” Dixon said. “If we beat them, we are ahead of them; if they beat us, they are ahead of us. It’s pretty simple.”

TCU heads back to Schollmaier Arena to take on the Oklahoma Sooners. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. Saturday.