The Ohio State Buckeyes and the TCU Horned Frogs kick off the entire NCAA Tournament on Thursday afternoon with the 12:15 PM EST tip time. 

The Buckeyes and the Horned Frogs come into the first round of the NCAA Tournament looking like two very evenly matched groups on paper. TCU is 22-11 on the year, while Ohio State is 21-12.

Both teams struggled in Quad 1 games but dominated their opponents in Quad 2 through Quad 4. They have some questionable losses mixed in with some very impressive victories. 

The Buckeyes opened as -2.5 favorites for Thursday afternoon, and a lot of the public is on the Buckeyes. Over the last month, the Buckeyes have been playing like a top-10 team, and they are doing it at just the right time.

Here are three players to have your eye on wearing purple on Thursday afternoon.

David Punch is the Horned Frogs' best player, hands down. He is a tough cover as he stands at 6-foot-7 and is your prototypical big guard. He can handle the basketball, and he can score it. He leads the team in scoring at 14.3 points per game and rebounds at 6.7 per game.

Punch is shooting over 51 percent from the floor, but struggles from the perimeter at 25.6 percent. In the most recent game against Kansas, he had a 24-point, 10-rebound double-double where he was an efficient 8-15 from the field and 1-2 from three.

The Buckeyes are going to need to know where No. 15 is at all times.

Standing at 6-foot-8, Xavier Edmunds is TCU's biggest threat from behind the arc. He comes into Thursday with a 41.8 percent clip from behind the arc. He is a low-volume, decent-efficiency guy and is the biggest threat that the Horned Frogs pose from deep. He won't shoot it a lot, but the Buckeyes can't leave him without a hand in his face.

Edmonds averages 12.2 points per game and 6.6 rebounds per contest, which is good for second for both behind Punch. 

Jayden Pierre leads a veteran backcourt for the Horned Frogs. 2026 is Pierre's fourth college season. His first three came at Providence before he transferred to TCU this year. 

Pierre averages just over 10 points per game and only 2.7 assists per game, but over his last five games, he has been playing some solid basketball. He is averaging 12.4 points and 3.6 assists. 

He isn't incredibly dynamic, but he is the Horned Frogs' best guard, especially over the last month.

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