Here's TCU coach Jamie Dixon's perspective on KU’s comeback win

LAWRENCE — TCU coach Jamie Dixon had his own perspective on Kansas basketball’s comeback win Tuesday, which handed his Horned Frogs a 104-100 defeat inside Allen Fieldhouse.

Here are a few takeaways from what he had to say postgame, regarding three of the key reasons TCU (11-4, 1-1 in Big 12) fell short in stopping a comeback bid by No. 21 Kansas (11-4, 1-1).

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Did Jamie Dixon anticipate Darryn Peterson returning in final seconds of regulation?

When Kansas freshman guard Darryn Peterson exited the game with about two and a half minutes left in the second half, it didn’t seem likely that Peterson would return in regulation. Peterson, who’s dealt with injury issues through much of KU’s season, appeared to have reached the extent he could play that evening. But faced with an opportunity to tie the score, specifically a three-point deficit with barely any time left, Peterson checked back into the game and — after being fouled on a 3-point attempt — tied the score at 87-87 ahead of overtime with three made free throws.

Dixon said he didn’t think about Peterson coming back into the game or not in that situation, noting every team has guys who are battling through things — including his own. Dixon expects guys will be available to play. In regard to Peterson getting fouled, the extent to which Dixon would go was that games can change on calls like that, and the Horned Frogs just didn’t execute what they’d planned in that moment.

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How much of a factor did free-throw shooting prove to be?

Kansas finished the game shooting 30-for-40 from the free-throw line, including Peterson’s 13-for-15 effort there. TCU, however, finished 15-for-24. That’s a disparity, Dixon acknowledged, that will get your team beat.

Within that, Dixon noted that his team's foul trouble early and late in the game cost the Horned Frogs. That included two starters who eventually fouled out. One of those starters, Xavier Edmonds, thrived with a plus/minus of +15 in nearly 20 minutes of game action and just couldn’t stay on the court.

What was behind Kansas’ impressive in-bounds defense late in second half?

When Kansas cut the deficit to 87-84 with less than 10 seconds left in the second half, TCU’s first attempt to get the ball in bounds ended with a timeout. Then, the second attempt saw the Horned Frogs turn the ball over, leading shortly to Peterson’s free-throw trip. In fact, even following Peterson tying the score, TCU turned the ball over again, which left KU with a shot-opportunity at the buzzer for the win at the end of regulation that Peterson would miss.

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Dixon detailed that he thought his Horned Frogs were able to get guys open initially, but the timing of when people moved on the court created an issue of getting the ball to them. When they changed it up the second time, they just didn’t deliver when it came to getting the ball to the open man. Like the foul trouble causing TCU to not be able to guard how they had been down the stretch, this was an issue with execution — something holistically Dixon took the blame for.

Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He was the 2022 National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: How TCU coach Jamie Dixon views 3 critical parts of KU’s comeback win