Three takeaways from TCU men’s basketball game at Utah

TCU men’s basketball dropped its fourth straight game as the Horned Frogs’ comeback attempt in Utah came up short in an 82-79 loss to the Utes on Saturday afternoon.

It was a disappointing showing for the Horned Frogs (11-7, 1-4) as they picked up a bad loss for their NCAA Tournament resume. The Utes (9-9, 1-4) had been winless in Big 12 play before Saturday.

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Despite trailing by as many as 14 in the first half, TCU had a chance to pull off a stunner late as a three-point play by Xavier Edmonds cut the Horned Frogs’ deficit to 69-67 with 3:23 remaining.

But the Horned Frogs made a number of mistakes down the stretch, including giving up an offensive rebound for a bucket and Jayden Pierre fouling Utah’s Don Henry while he was attempting a 3-pointer.

Henry would make all three free throws to put Utah up 76-68 with 2:12 remaining. TCU had one more chance to make a run after David Punch cut the deficit to 76-72 with 1:45 remaining.

However, after forcing a missed shot on the other end, Pierre was called for another foul while boxing out Kendyl Sanders, leading to two free throws. Sanders only made one, but the Utes got the offensive rebound and were able to work more clock.

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Despite the miscues, TCU had two final shots to send it to overtime, but Micah Robinson’s 3-point shot from the corner fell short. With 0.3 seconds remaining, Tanner Toolson was able to get off a game-tying attempt, but his shot also fell short.

The inability to get stops late proved to be the Horned Frogs’ downfall as TCU made 12 straight field goals in the final 10 minutes of the game. However, every time the Horned Frogs would get within a possession or two, the defense would give up a basket to the Utes.

TCU faces a must-win game against Oklahoma State at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Schollmaier Arena.

Here are three more takeaways from Saturday’s game:

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3-point shooting woes

It’s been a struggle offensively for Utah this season, but one thing the Utes have consistently done well is knock down their shots from 3-point range. The Utes entered Saturday making 36% of their 3s — top 80 in the nation — and that outside shooting prowess played a big part in TCU trailing most of the afternoon.

The Utes knocked down nine 3-pointers compared to just four for the Horned Frogs, with Utah guard Terrence Brown dealing most of the damage. While a prolific scorer, Brown had struggled this season from behind the arc as he shot less than 29% from 3 entering the contest. Those struggles disappeared against TCU as he made four of his first five 3-pointers while scoring 26 points.

The fourth was his biggest one as it gave Utah a 58-55 lead after TCU fought to tie the game. Utah finished shooting 37.5% (9 of 24) from 3 while TCU shot only 26.7% (4 of 15).

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Punch bounces back

Punch was motivated to have a bounce-back game against Utah after BYU held him to seven points in Wednesday night’s defeat. It was the first time since Nov. 19 that the sophomore forward was held under 10 points and was a major reason the Horned Frogs were unsuccessful in pulling off the upset.

Punch got off to another slow start with four points in the first half, but came out with an aggressive mindset in the second to help the Horned Frogs get back into the game. Punch scored TCU’s first five points in the second to cut the deficit to 38-35 with 18:32 remaining. Punch would come up with another big basket in the midst of a 6-0 run by TCU that tied the game at 53 with exactly nine minutes remaining.

Punch was dominant down the stretch, finishing with 22 points, but it wasn’t enough to snap TCU’s losing streak.

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Lackluster start

The Horned Frogs put themselves in a hole with one of their worst offensive stretches of the season in the opening six minutes against Utah. The Utes surged to a 14-0 lead as TCU missed its first nine shots from the field. While the Horned Frogs were struggling to generate clean looks, offense came easy to Utah early as the Utes thrived in transition.

Utah also was dialed in from 3-point range early with back-to-back 3s. TCU didn’t score until the 13:52 mark, when Jace Posey got in transition to deliver the Horned Frogs their first points. The Utes would take a 16-2 lead before TCU’s offense finally woke up.

The Horned Frogs spent the rest of the first half trying to whittle down a double-digit deficit and were successful as TCU only trailed 38-30 despite shooting 39% from the field. In the end, falling behind 14 points was too much to overcome.