Pierre talked about how getting back to the NCAA Tournament was a big reason he chose the Horned Frogs in the portal.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, I was [in the NCAA Tournament] one time my freshman year, played two minutes, lost first round to Kentucky. Haven\u2019t been back since, so coming here, I mean, that\u2019s that\u2019s been the goal,\u201d said Pierre, \u201d[Our] coaching staff, I know they know what it takes.\u201d<\/p>\n
A win over the Bearcats (17-14, 9-9) provides the Horned Frogs with another quality Big 12-opponent win, and with only the Big 12 Tournament remaining, it seems very likely TCU will be back in March Madness for the first time since 2023.<\/p>\n
TCU sets new mark under Jamie Dixon<\/p>\n
Jamie Dixon has coached the Horned Frogs since the 2016 season, but this season marked the first for TCU with a winning in-conference record.<\/p>\n
That comes as the talent in the Big 12 is at an all-time high with the conference tied for the national lead with five teams in the AP Top 25 Men\u2019s Basketball poll. The Horned Frogs won eight of their past nine games against Big 12 opponents, including two wins over top-ten opponents.<\/p>\n
The Horned Frogs are getting hot at the right time and Pierre said the knowledge and experience from these wins would help the Horned Frogs as the postseason approaches.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know what it takes to win games,\u201d Pierre said. \u201cWe know what it looks like. We know what our preparation needs to be. We know when we need to focus and lock in. … We know when to let things go. I feel like all these things have really taught us a lot of lessons, a lot of valuable lessons, and we\u2019re clicking at the right time.\u201d<\/p>\n
TCU finished the season with an 11-7 conference record it\u2019s best conference mark since the team went 14-0 as a member of the WAC in 1997.<\/p>\n
Punch said the team\u2019s journey to a wining conference record was special and not easily forgotten.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt means a lot, said Punch. \u201cI think it\u2019s a testimony to who we are as a team. I mean we\u2019ve come together a lot these last couple weeks, and like I said earlier, I mean, we had some tough games, and those really built who we are today. We all know that as a team, and I don\u2019t think we\u2019ll ever let go of that. So I think that\u2019s something that fuels us going forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
TCU will play next in the Big 12 Tournament which begins on Wednesday in Kansas City, and their opponent and time are yet to be determined.<\/p>\n
Game schedule dates, times, locations Feb. 27 Memphis 124, Mavericks 105 March 1 Oklahoma City 100, Mavericks 87 March 3 Charlotte 117, Mavericks 90 March 5 Orlando 115, Mavericks 114 March 6 Boston 120, Mavericks 100 March 8 at Toronto, 5 p.m., KFAA, MavsTV March 10 at Atlanta, 6:30 p.m., KFAA, MavsTV March 12 at Memphis, 7 p.m., KFAA, MavsTV March 13 vs. Cleveland, 6:30 p.m., Amazon Prime Video, KFAA, MavsTV March 15 at Cleveland, 2:30 p.m., KFAA, MavsTV, NBATV Feb. 21 TCU 60, West Virginia 54 Feb. 24 TCU 90, Arizona State 78 Feb. 28 TCU 77, Kansas State 68 March 3 TCU 73, Texas Tech 65 March 7 TCU 73, Cincinnati 63 Big 12 Tournament (at Kansas City, Mo.) March 11 Second round vs. No. 11 Colorado\/No. 14 Oklahoma St., 8:30 p.m., ESPN2 or ESPNU March 12 (if TCU advances) Quarterfinals vs. No. 3 Kansas, 8:30 p.m., ESPN or ESPN2 Feb. 15 TCU 59, West Virginia 50 Feb. 18 TCU 72, Houston 50 Feb. 22 TCU 80, Iowa State 73 Feb. 25 TCU 83, Cincinnati 70 March 1 TCU 65, Baylor 53 Big 12 Tournament (at Kansas City, Mo.) March 6 No. 1 TCU 63, No. 9 BYU 46 (quarterfinals) March 7 No. 1 TCU 74, No. 12 Kansas State 62 (semifinals) March 8 No. 2 West Virginia 62, No. 1 TCU 53 (championship) NCAA Tournament March 20 or 21 vs. TBD (at Schollmaier Arena in Fort Worth) Feb. 27 TCU 14, New Haven 3 (7 innings) Feb. 28 TCU 12, New Haven 4 March 1 TCU 20, New Haven 1 (7 innings) March 3 TCU 7, Abilene Christian 6 March 6 TCU 10, Tulane 2 March 8 Tulane 8, TCU 4 March 8 vs. Tulane, 1 p.m., ESPN+ March 10 vs. Kansas, 6 p.m., ESPN+ March 13 at Arizona State, 8:30 p.m., ESPN+ March 14 at Arizona State, 8:30 p.m., ESPN+ March 15 at Arizona State, 3 p.m., ESPN+ Feb. 25 Stars 4, Seattle 1 Feb. 28 Stars 3, Nashville 2 (OT) March 2 Stars 6, Vancouver 1 March 3 Stars 6, Calgary 1 March 6 Colorado 5, Stars 4 (SO) March 8 vs. Chicago, 5 p.m., Victory+ March 10 vs. Vegas, 7 p.m., Fox, Victory+ March 12 vs. Edmonton, 7 p.m., ESPN+, Hulu March 14 vs. Detroit, 7 p.m., Victory+ March 16 vs. Utah, 7 p.m., Fox, Victory+ 2026 season Aug. 29 vs. North Carolina (at Dublin), TBA Sept. 12 vs. Grambling State, TBA Sept. 19 vs. Arkansas State, TBA Sept. 26 at Central Florida, TBA Oct. 3 vs. BYU, TBA Oct. 17 at Baylor, TBA Oct. 24 vs. West Virginia, TBA Oct. 31 vs. Kansas, TBA Nov. 7 at Arizona, TBA Nov. 14 vs. Kansas State, TBA Nov. 21 vs. Utah, TBA Nov. 28 at Texas Tech, TBA 2026 season TBA vs. TBA (at Rio de Janeiro), TBA 2026 opponents (dates and times TBA; one home game will be in Rio) vs. N.Y Giants vs. Philadelphia vs. Washington vs. Arizona vs. San Francisco vs. Tampa Bay vs. Jacksonville vs. Tennessee vs. Baltimore at N.Y Giants at Philadelphia at Washington at L.A. Rams at Seattle at Green Bay at Houston at Indianapolis March 12-15 Steak Cookoff Association World Championships March 14 NASCAR Racing Experience March 20-21 POWRi Racing March 28 Mopar Heaven April 11 NASCAR Racing Experience April 18 Team Texas-David Starr’s Racing School April 18 Bubble Run April 23-25 Pate Swap Meet April 25 FuelFest April 30-May 2 High Limit Racing Stockyard Stampede May 1 NASCAR Truck Series: SpeedyCash.com 250 May 2 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series: Andy’s Frozen Custard 340 May 3 NASCAR Cup Series: Wurth 400 <\/p>\n
This story was originally published March 7, 2026 at 3:22 PM.<\/p>\n
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