National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Central Florida 79, Texas Christian 77
When: 5:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 9, 2024
Where: Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena, Fort Worth, Texas
Officials: # Marques Pettigrew, # Gary Maxwell, # Steve Divine
Attendance: 7033

UCF knocked off host TCU 79-77 on Saturday afternoon in the Big 12 Conference finale in Fort Worth, Texas, leaving the Horned Frogs' NCAA Tournament hopes in limbo.

TCU (20-11, 9-9) has lost six of its last 10 games and may need a win in next week's Big 12 tournament to make the March Madness field. The Horned Frogs had a good No. 38 spot in the NCAA evaluation tool (NET) rankings going into the game.

The Knights (16-14, 7-11) shot 49.1 percent from the field in pulling off Saturday's upset after losing eight of their previous 11 games.

The game was tight throughout the second half, and UCF took a 78-74 lead when Darius Johnson hit a pair of free throws with 15 seconds left. Emanuel Miller brought TCU back to within one on a three-point play with four seconds left.

UCF's Antwann Jones made 1 of 2 free throws with three seconds left to give the Horned Frogs an opening, but Miller missed an off-balance jumper that would have tied the game as time ran out.

Johnson led all scorers with a career-high 33 points. The Knights' Jaylin Sellers had 14 before fouling out, and Ibrahima Diallo had 12.

Jameer Nelson Jr. led TCU with 15 points, Miller had 13 after a slow start, and JaKobe Coles and Chuck O'Bannon Jr. added 14 and 11 off the bench respectively. The Horned Frogs had a 34-9 advantage in bench points in the loss.

The teams battled to a 36-36 tie at halftime, with neither team leading by more than six.

Johnson did most of the damage in the first half with 13 points on 3-of-4 shooting from long range, while Miller, the Horned Frogs' leading scorer, managed just two points.

O'Bannon gave the home crowd life by scoring nine first-half points off the bench, including five in a row in a 30-second span by hitting a deep 3-pointer, then breaking away for a one-handed dunk with 3:48 left in the half.

The Big 12 tournament begins Tuesday in Kansas City, Mo.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Central Florida   Texas Christian
Darius Johnson 33 Scoring Jameer Nelson Jr. 15
Shemarri Allen 6 Assists Jameer Nelson Jr. 4
Darius Johnson 9 Rebounds Ernest Udeh Jr. 9
Darius Johnson 10 Free Throws Made Ernest Udeh Jr. 6
Shemarri Allen 3 Steals Jameer Nelson Jr. 4
Ibrahima Diallo 2 Blocks N/A
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Central Florida 79 49.1 6-14 19-24 13 33 5 6 13
Texas Christian 77 42.1 8-20 21-32 19 30 0 8 11