TCU was held scoreless for the first nine minutes of the game against No. 1 Houston. The Frogs couldn’t make a comeback and were bumped out of the conference tournament 60-45.

The Frogs struggled to knock down shots against a dominant Houston defense that controlled much of the game.

TCU found a shooting rhythm early in the second half, attempting to stage a comeback from a 16-point deficit. However, its effort was short-lived as Houston quickly answered back, extending their lead to 50-31 with 7:42 remaining in the game.

Head coach Jamie Dixon acknowledged TCU’s challenging first half but praised the team’s strong second-half performance, during which they outscored Houston by one point and out-rebounded them 26-21.

“Thirty offensive rebounds, that is probably a school record against the number one rebound team in the country,” said Dixon. “There are some things that don’t make sense but that’s where we are at. They’re still playing and we are going home.”

Too many loose balls and missed shots resulted in Houston opening up the matchup with a 16-0 run. TCU ended the night only making 17 of 73 from the field.

TCU made its first basket of the half at the 10:32 via a Micah Peavy layup, making it 2-16. Jameer Nelson Jr. attempted a three-pointer that fell short but redeemed himself with a layup putting two more points on the board. 

Dixon said that TCU struggled early on because it’s the type of team that can’t get into a rhythm if the offense isn’t in sync.

“There were a number of missed layups and open threes,” said Dixon. “We are a team that struggles when our shot doesn’t go or when our offense isn’t clicking.”

Avery Anderson III had a steal and passed out to Trey Tennyson before a foul was called against Houston’s Sharp sending Tennyson to the line where he completed one of two free-throw attempts, 11-20 with 4:09 on the clock. 

TCU made one more scoring attempt with a layup by Chuck O’Bannon but Houston remained the leader of the board, ending the period with a three-pointer in the last nine seconds by LJ Cryer. Houston went into the locker room up 31-15. 

Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson said the Cougars were playing small with three of their players out, but was happy with their defensive efforts. Now it is time for them to focus on their next opponent: No.4 seed Texas Tech.

“Our defense was good, I thought we shared the ball well,” said Sampson. “When you win a tournament game, you don’t spend all your time trying to rehatch it, autopsy it or worry about it.”

TCU will find out its postseason destination on Sunday, while Houston prepares for the semifinals.