FORT WORTH, Texas — TCU might be a break-even basketball team, but the Horned Frogs have earned the respect of Mountain West champion BYU as both teams finish regular-season play tonight.

The No. 24 Cougars (24-6, 13-2) invade Daniel-Meyer Coliseum today to test the Frogs (14-14, 6-9) at 6 p.m. (MT) in a game to air on The mtn. The Cougars believe they'll get TCU's best shot on their senior night and remember how tough the Frogs played in the Marriott Center a month ago.

"They never went away," said BYU sophomore forward Jonathan Tavernari. "We had a hard time with them. They are very competitive, and they're a team that makes big shots."

The Frogs are home after losing to Air Force and UNLV on the road, and that should add to the local emotion.

"What we need to do is focus on the task at hand because while it's just another game and doesn't mean anything in the conference title race for us because its over, it does have a lot of implications for us and our future."

Like what?

Hiking up the Cougars' overall and MWC final record, enhancing the No. 24 national ranking and status on future polling, improving seed placement in the NCAA Tournament and keeping momentum gained in a current three-game win streak.

"We have met our primary goal of winning the conference championship," said Tavernari. "Now we're on to our next goal, winning the league tournament and advancing to the NCAAs. This game is the next step in what we need to get done and we cannot afford to not take this as anything but an important game."

The Frogs are currently in seventh place in league standings after a 4-0 start. They are a team that is up and down, winning and losing in chunks during the season.

TCU signed Henry Salter, a junior college All-American who ranks among the top seven 3-point shooters in the country. Due to a sprained ankle, he has missed the last three games.

Kevin Langford, an athletic post player at 6-foot-8, leads TCU in scoring with a 14.4 point-per-game average. Another 6-8 player, John Ortiz, leads the team in rebounding at 5.4 per game.

"They played us very tough in Provo, and I suspect they'll challenge us there. They are very athletic and capable of making big plays," said BYU coach Dave Rose.

The Cougars need to be more consistent on offense, said Rose. Against Wyoming, he did not like how the offense produced in spurts and sometimes got away from execution. "Our staff will address that," said Rose.

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E-mail: dharmon@desnews.com