TCU Drills Last-Second Three-Pointer To Beat Oklahoma State 73-72

Oklahoma State’s comeback bid in Fort Worth comes up short as TCU’s Vasean Allette drilled a deep 3-point basket with less than a second left on the clock to beat the Pokes by one-point, 73-72.

The loss marked the Pokes’ seventh-straight in Fort Worth and they haven’t won a road game in the Big 12 since Feb. 12, 2024.

With the loss, the Cowboys fell to 12-12 on the season and 4-9 in Big 12 play.

The Cowboys shot just 41% from the floor, 27% from 3-point range and 75% from the free throw line. 

Bryce Thompson led the way in scoring for the Pokes with 17 points on 5-of-11 shooting from the floor with six rebounds and three assists. Abou Ousmane finished with 15 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the floor with seven rebounds.

They were outrebounded 35-34 but forced 17 turnovers leading to 25 points on the other end. But the Horned Frogs dominated the paint, outscoring the Pokes 36-28. 

It was a slow start to the game for the Cowboys as they felling into an 11-2 hole in the first four minutes of the game, which featured two quick turnovers by Ousmane. 

Turnovers continued to be an issue as they recorded seven but were lucky enough to only give up four points on the other end. 

After trailing by nine early, the Cowboys were able to cut it to just four points, 22-18, following the under-six timeout. The Cowboys were able to cut it three just a few minutes later, 28-25, following a couple of missed baskets from the Horned Frogs. 

But it was a difficult end to the half for the Pokes as TCU hit two of their three made 3-pointers in the first half in the final 40 seconds to send the game into the half with the Pokes trailing, 38-31. 

The Cowboys struggled from the floor in the first shooting just 38% from the floor and 25% from 3-pointrange. On the other end, the Frogs shot 52% from the field and outrebounded the Pokes, 18-16, four coming on the offensive end leading to eight second-chance points.

Fouls became an issue for TCU as starter David Punch picked up his fourth foul just under 14 minutes left in the game. Vasean Allette and Ernest Udeh each had three fouls apiece. 

The Cowboys cut their deficit down to just two points, 45-43, but Udeh hit a three-point foul with a foul on Connor Dow on a dunk to go back up five points, 48-43. 

After a quick bucket by the Pokes, TCU went on a quick 7-0 run, combined with a two-plus-minute scoring drought to put the Pokes down by 10 points, 55-45, with just under 11 minutes left in the game.

The Cowboys then went on a 10-0 run, which was punctuated with a put-back slam by Ousmane to tie the game up at 55-55. However, he fouled Allette on the other end for a three-point play at the under-eight media timeout. 

Brandon Newman made it a one-point game, 66-65, with just over three minutes left in the game. A foul on the other end makes it a two-point game, with Ousmane tying it up at 67 on a big-time slam on the assist from Dean. That led to a TCU timeout on the other end with 1:53 left in the game and five seconds on the shot clock. Out of the time out, Reynolds drilled a shot to beat the buzzer to put TCU back up by two. 

Chi-Chi Avery attempted a three on the other end and had the ball knocked out of his hands, leading to an OSU foul on the other end with the Horned Frogs in the double bonus. 

After a missed bucket in the paint, Dean stole the ball at midcourt, leading to a TCU foul and two free throws for Dean, who missed both free throws. Newman hit a layup with 23 seconds left following a missed three from Avery making it a one-point game once again, 70-69.

On the in-bounds pass, Dean forced a turnover with 22 seconds left leading to a dunk by Ousmane to give the Pokes their first lead of the game with 18 seconds left, 71-70.

TCU missed a couple of buckets on the other end, leading to Newman being fouled on a breakaway towards the other end, who missed the first free throw and made the second to make it a two-point lead, 72-70, with just 3.2 seconds left. 

Allette drilled a deep three on the in-bounds to put TCU back up by one-point, 73-72, with less than one second left to win it.