The TCU Horned Frogs’ impressive 2025–26 season came to an end after finishing above .500 in Big 12 Conference play for the first time and advancing past the opening round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in three years. TCU ran into the top-ranked Duke Blue Devils men’s basketball, which defeated the Frogs 81–58.
Although the Blue Devils pulled away for a 23-point win, the game was much closer than the final score suggests. It was a dogfight from the outset, with the Horned Frogs striking
first before the teams went back and forth through the opening nine minutes. Neither side led by more than three points until Isaiah Evans knocked down a three-pointer at the 11:04 mark to give Duke a 19–15 edge. Micah Robinson answered almost immediately with a triple, cutting TCU’s deficit to one.
From there, Xavier Edmonds finished a layup to give TCU the lead right back. Another back-and-forth stretch followed before Evans knocked down another three, this time while being fouled, to put Duke ahead 27–22 at the 8:09 mark. Patrick Ngongba II followed with a dunk after the four-point play to extend the lead to seven, but TCU responded by chipping away at its deficit. Despite trailing by as many as eight with 4:48 remaining, the Frogs cut the deficit to two within three minutes.
Tanner Toolson then drilled a three with 1:12 left to pull TCU within 36–34. A pair of free throws from Maliq Brown pushed Duke’s lead back to four in the final minute, and the Blue Devils carried that same 38–34 advantage into halftime.
To start the second half, Jamie Dixon turned to reserve big man Vianney Salatchoum instead of Xavier Edmonds, who had been dealing with foul trouble—and the move paid off. Salatchoum scored the first points of the half and added two emphatic blocks in the opening minutes. Robinson then scored four straight to put TCU back in front, 40–38, with 16:15 remaining, prompting Jon Scheyer to call a timeout.
Jon Scheyer’s timeout sparked Cameron Boozer, who had been quiet in the first half. The potential No. 1 overall pick scored four straight to give Duke a 42–40 lead. TCU answered, but the Blue Devils began to create separation around the 13-minute mark.
Duke stretched its lead to nine after a three from Nikolas Khamenia at the 11:49 mark, but TCU cut it to 53–47 when Brock Harding knocked down a triple. Frustration then mounted for Dixon, who was assessed a technical foul with 8:57 remaining. Duke converted both free throws to extend the lead to 61–50, and from there, the game slipped away.
Duke used a 13–0 run over a span of just a few minutes to build a commanding 70–50 lead with 5:15 remaining. Amid a string of missed shots, Edmonds fouling out, and mounting foul trouble, TCU couldn’t generate any consistent offense or defensive stops to answer the surge. The Blue Devils closed the game on a 22–8 run following Jamie Dixon’s technical to secure the 81–58 win and advance to the Round of 32.
Duke made just four more field goals than TCU, but the difference came at the free-throw line. The Blue Devils went 20-of-23, while the Frogs finished 5-of-10. TCU shot 33.3 percent from the field and 29.2 percent from three, compared to 55.1 percent shooting from Duke, which hit 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. The Frogs forced 17 turnovers, but offensive inefficiency ultimately proved costly in the 23-point loss.
Robinson led TCU with 18 points on 7-of-18 shooting, while Edmonds added 12 in 20 minutes. No other Frog reached double figures. David Punch finished with two points on 1-of-10 shooting, and Jayden Pierre scored four while shooting 20.0 percent from the field.
Cameron Boozer led Duke with 19 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists. Evans added 17, and Dame Sarr chipped in 14. Starting in place of the injured Ngongba II, Maliq Brown recorded 12 points and nine rebounds.
Duke advances to the Sweet 16 to face the winner of No. 4 Kansas and No. 5 St. John’s, while TCU’s season comes to an end. Though their season ends here, TCU can take pride in a program-defining year that included a winning record in the Big 12 and a return to the NCAA Tournament’s second round, setting the stage for an even brighter future.
