Friday, March 20, 2026

TCU Women's Basketball Defeats UC San Diego, 86-40, in 2026 NCAA Tournament First-Round Game


The third-seeded TCU women’s basketball team rolled to an 86-40 win over No. 14 seed UC San Diego on Friday, March 20, in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament, in Schollmaier Arena, on the TCU campus in Fort Worth, Texas.

TCU advances to play No. 6 seed Washington at 9 pm (Central) on Sunday, March 22, in the round of 32, in Schollmaier Arena. The winner advances to the Sweet 16, to be played in Sacramento, California.

TCU posted its largest margin of victory in a postseason game in program history. The Horned Frogs led the Big West champion Tritons (24-9) by as many as 33 points in the first half and closed the game on a 19-0 run.

With the rout, the Horned Frogs (30-5, 15-3 Big 12) secured their second straight 30-win season. TCU joined 2025 Final Four participants UConn, UCLA, Texas and South Carolina as the only Power Conference teams in the country to win 30 games in the 2024-25 and 2025-26 campaigns.

The win was TCU’s ninth all-time NCAA Tournament victory. The Frogs have won at least one game in the Big Dance in consecutive seasons for the first time in 22 years. TCU also extended its NCAA-leading home winning streak to 43 games with the result. 

The Horned Frogs benefitted from one of their best defensive efforts of the year. TCU held UC San Diego to 22 percent shooting from the field (15-of-66). The Titans made just six baskets in the second half. 

TCU snagged a season-high 56 rebounds. The Frogs also recorded 10 blocks.

In Friday’s win, TCU graduate guard Olivia Miles recorded a triple-double and broke TCU's single-game assists record.

Miles had 16 rebounds, 14 assists and 12 points, for her sixth triple-double of the season and the 12 triple-double of her career.

She became the first player in NCAA history to record at least 14 rebounds and 14 assists in an NCAA Tournament game.

Miles was one of five players to score in double figures for the Frogs and one of three to post a double-double.

Senior forward/guard Taylor Bigby tallied a career-high 27 points. Bigby connected on seven 3-pointers, which are a TCU NCAA Tournament single-game record and tied for the third-most ever by a player in March Madness.

Bigby’s 27 points broke TCU's NCAA Tournament single-game scoring record, which previously was 26 points, set by Hailey Van Lith in 2025.

Sophomore center Clara Silva scored 13 points. She also grabbed 11 rebounds, to lead all players, and she had a game-high four blocks.

Graduate forward/guard Marta Suarez had 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Senior guard Veronica Sheffy had a season-high 12 points. 

TCU became the seventh team in NCAA history to have three teammates post a double-double or a triple-double in an NCAA Tournament game. The Frogs are the first program to achieve the feat since NC State in 2019.

Miles joined Sabrina Ionescu, a former Oregon player, as one of only two players in NCAA history to record two triple-doubles in March Madness. Miles’ first triple-double came in the first round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament, when she was a freshman at Notre Dame. Her latest triple-double was the first by a Big 12 player in an NCAA Tournament game.

In addition to breaking TCU all-time leading scorer Zahna Medley's single-game assists record, Miles' 16 rebounds against UC San Diego were the most in an NCAA Tournament game by a Horned Frog.

Miles also has matched Van Lith’s 2024-25 TCU single-season record for points scored (680).

With the win, TCU improved to 11-0 in postseason games inside Schollmaier Arena. The Horned Frogs also broke the program’s single-game NCAA Tournament record for points scored (86), field goals (32), 3-pointers (13), rebounds (56) and assists (23).

Postgame press conference: here 





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