TCU’s men’s basketball team feasted on Thanksgiving Day, and on Thanksgiving leftovers on Black Friday.
On Thursday, November 27, the Frogs stunned defending national champion and No. 10 Florida 84-80 in the opening game of the Rady Children's Invitational, played in the Jenny Craig Pavilion on the University of San Diego campus.
On Friday, November 28, TCU won the Invitational by defeating Big 10 juggernaut Wisconsin 74-63.
With the two wins, TCU improved to 5-2 on the season.
Harding, Punch Honored
TCU’s Brock Harding was named the Invitational’s Most Valuable Player and he and David Punch were named to the All-Invitational team.
For the two games, Harding averaged 17.5 points, four rebounds, 8.5 assists and three steals. Punch averaged 18 points, nine rebounds, two assists and 2.5 blocks.
Frogs Upset Gators
TCU, which was an 11.5-point underdog to Florida, improved to 2-2 all-time against Florida. The Frogs have won two straight against the Gators.
TCU knocked off an NCAA defending national champions for the first time since 2023 when the Horned Frogs defeated Kansas after its 2022 national title.
It was TCU's 10th top-10 win in its history and the first non-conference win over a top-10 team since beating No. 6 Oklahoma, 95-82, on December 27, 1986, in head coach Jamie Dixon’s senior season at TCU.
It was the first road or neutral site top-10 win since the Frogs beat No. 1 Kansas in the 2017 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship. It was also the highest ranked road or neutral site game since then.
TCU improved to 1-1 against AP Top 25 teams this season. TCU lost to sixth-ranked Michigan, 67-63, on November 14, in Schollmaier Arena, on the TCU campus.
Against Florida, Harding had a double-double, with a season-high 19 points and 12 assists, which tied a career high.
It was Harding’s first double-double of the season and the fourth of his career.
Harding tied a career high with five steals. He's had multiple steals in all six games this season.
Harding was 7-of-8 from the free throw line which were both career highs.
Against Florida, Punch tied a career high with 19 points. He led TCU with a career-high nine rebounds.
Jace Posey scored a career-high 21 points off the bench.
Jayden Pierre scored 10 points. He was 2-of-3 from the 3-point line. It was his sixth-straight game with a made three.
Going against the taller Gators, who are the best rebounding team in the country, TCU scored 44 points in the paint and was only out-rebounded 31-28.
Frogs Upset Badgers
In TCU’s win over Wisconsin, which was a preseason top 15 team and favored by as many as 6.5 points over the Frogs, five Horned Frogs scored in double figures.
Punch led TCU with 17 points and nine rebounds. Harding had 16 points, Xavier Edmonds had 12 points, Pierre had 11 points and Liutauras Lelevicius had 11 points.
Against the Badgers, the Frogs scored 36 points in the paint and led in rebounding, 37-35.
This was the first meeting ever between TCU’s and Wisconsin’s men’s basketball teams.
Rady Children’s Invitational
The Rady Children’s Invitational was founded in 2023. It was held at LionTree Arena originally. It moved to the Jenny Craig Pavilion in 2025.
Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego is dedicated to improving the lives of children and families, in the San Diego community, throughout the nation and around the world.
As the largest children’s hospital on the West Coast and one of the nation’s top pediatric healthcare systems, Rady Children’s has than 1,000 physicians, nearly 1,500 nurses, more than 5,100 employees, and about 500 active volunteers.
As a nonprofit organization, Rady Children’s relies on donations to support its mission.
As San Diego’s sports commission, Sports San Diego produces the Holiday Bowl, Rady Children’s Invitation and the California State games and strives to deliver exceptional sports events and experiences for visitors and local fans.
Jamie and Maggie Dixon
Playing in and winning the Invitational was emotional for Jamie Dixon, whose late sister, Maggie, played at University of San Diego.
Maggie became a women’s collegiate basketball coach. When she was head coach of Army’s collegiate women’s basketball team, she suffered an "arrhythmic episode to her heart" on April 5, 2006. She died on April 6, a little over a month shy of her 29th birthday. An autopsy revealed that Maggie had an enlarged heart and a problem with a heart valve.
Earlier in 2006, Jamie and Maggie had become the first brother-sister pair to take teams to the NCAA basketball tournaments the same year, with Jamie at Pittsburgh and Maggie at Army, which was the first NCAA tournament appearance for any Army basketball team.
Notre Dame, North Texas Next on Schedule
TCU will host Notre Dame at Schollmaier Arena on Friday, December 5, at 7 pm (Central). The game will be broadcast on TV by ESPN+ and on radio by KFXR 1190 AM.
On Sunday, December 7, TCU will battle North Texas at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, at 4:30 pm (Central). The game will be broadcast on TV by ESPN+ and on radio by KFXR 1190 AM.
The Frogs open Big 12 Conference play at home, against Baylor, at 1 pm (Central), on Saturday, January 3. The game will be broadcast on TV by TNT and on radio by KFXR 1190 AM.
Complete schedule: here
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