Max Abmas’ late-game heroics lift Texas past gritty No. 25 TCU

Max Abmas likely will not have a statue erected outside Moody Center to pay tribute to his brief stint at Texas but maybe a collection should be taken up to consider its commission, especially after his late-game performance in the Longhorns’ gutsy 77-66 win over No. 25 TCU on Saturday afternoon in a key Big 12 Conference dustup in Fort Worth, Texas.

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Abmas hit back-to-back 3-pointers as part of a personal 11-0 run in crunch time as Texas made all the plays in the final minutes to beat a Horned Frogs team that is as hard to knock out as Rocky Balboa. But in the end, it was the Longhorns’ mercurial middleweight that landed the haymakers that lifted Texas to a crucial win that snapped a two-game losing streak. 

Texas (15-7, 4-5 Big 12) led by 11 points at halftime before the Horned Frogs rallied to take a brief lead with nine minutes to play. The game was tied at 64 after a pair of free throws by TCU’s Emanuel Miller with 3:53 left.

That’s when Abmas took charge. He had a layup and free throw with 3:25 to play, then poured in 3-pointers on the ensuing two possessions – the latter of which came from 30 feet – to push Texas’ lead to 73-64 with 1:47 left. Abmas added four free throws in the final 42 seconds to finish off his 21-point effort and allow the Longhorns.

Abmas scored Texas’ final 13 points and personally won his third game for the Longhorns this year. This one wasn’t a buzzer-beater like he produced in New York City against Louisville or the 3-pointer he had with seven seconds to play at Cincinnati, but it might have been even more impressive.

Dylan Disu added 15 points and Dillon Mitchell had 13 points and 11 rebounds for Texas.

Miller led TCU (16-6, 5-3 Big 12) with 15 points while Avery Anderson III scored 13 and JaKobe Coles added 10. The Horned Frogs had a three-game winning streak snapped.

The Longhorns inserted defensive whirling dervish Chendall Weaver into the starting lineup to ramp up their intensity on that end of the floor and it didn’t help in the early going. TCU hit five of its first six shots from the floor – and its first two 3-pointers – and built a 12-4 lead by the game’s first media timeout.

TCU led by 10 before Texas started whittling away at the margin, pulling to within 21-18 when Brock Cunningham drained a 3-pointer at the midway mark of the first half.

The Horned Frogs were up 25-20 when Coles hit a jumper with 8:47 to play before halftime. Texas then ran off a 10-0 run capped by Disu’s 3-pointer two minutes later assume its own five-point advantage. TCU culled that deficit to 32-30 on a layup by Anderson with 4:51 to play but the Longhorns pulled away, outscoring the home team 11-2 that included the final eight points over the rest of the half to take a 43-32 lead into the break.

Disu and Mitchell led the Longhorns with 10 points each before halftime, while Anderson paced all scorers with 11 points. Texas’ lead was built with the help a 26-14 edge in points in the paint and five Horned Frogs’ turnovers over the final five minutes of the half.

TCU rushed from the gate to open the second half, cutting the lead to 47-42 when Xavier Cork hit a layup with 16:09 remaining. The Horned Frogs took the lead on Jameer Nelson Jr.’s three-point play with 8:58 to play that capped a 7-0 run, but Disu immediately answered with a dunk and a free throw to leapfrog Texas back in front and set the stage for furious finish – and Abmas’ heroics.

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The Longhorns return to the floor on Tuesday when they host No. 12 Iowa State at Moody Center. It will be the sixth straight game for Texas against a team ranked in the Top 25.