9:18 p.m. update: TCU men's basketball head coach Jamie Dixon is staying put in Fort Worth, despite reports earlier this week that Dixon was nearing a deal to become the next head coach of UCLA men's basketball.

Per the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, TCU chancellor Victor Boschini confirmed Friday evening that Dixon is staying at his alma mater, days removed from being identified as a leading candidate to fill the vacancy at UCLA left by former head coach Steve Alford.

The Star-Telegram report also indicated that TCU athletic director Jeremiah Donati denied the Los Angeles Times report indicating that Dixon's estimated buyout of $8 million was the hurdle the Bruins were unable to overcome in poaching TCU's head coach.

"There was never a negotiation regarding the buyout of Jamie's contract," Donati told the Star-Telegram. "From Day 1, he has always expressed his love and passion for TCU to me. I am very excited about the future of our men's basketball program."

An earlier report from TCU 360 -- TCU's student-led news publication -- indicated that Dixon told Boschini he intends to remain at TCU for the rest of his career. Dixon's current contract has him in Fort Worth through the 2023-24 season.

Dixon, who replaced Trent Johnson as TCU's head coach in March 2016, completed his third season with the team earlier this week. Dixon has led TCU past the 20-win mark in all three seasons, and saw the Horned Frogs snap a 20-year NCAA tournament drought in 2018.

Original report: TCU men's basketball head coach Jamie Dixon is reportedly no longer under consideration as a candidate for the head coaching vacancy at UCLA.

Per the Los Angeles Times' Ben Bolch, the Bruins have dropped Dixon's name from consideration, with UCLA unwilling to pay Dixon's $8 million buyout at TCU. Per the report, TCU was unwilling to lower the buyout, which had been identified as a stumbling block after it was reported a deal was being finalized to bring Dixon to Westwood.

Dixon agreed to a two-year contract extension with TCU -- one set to keep him in Fort Worth through the 2023-24 season - following end of the 2017-18 campaign.

Dixon's name had been circulated among potential candidates for the UCLA vacancy as early as the first week of January, shortly after the Bruins fired former head coach Steve Alford. Dixon downplayed the rumors on Jan. 3 -- days ahead of TCU's Big 12-opener with Baylor -- when the team was 11-1 on the season. The TCU head coach was less verbal on the matter this week, however, after the Los Angeles Times reported Monday that Dixon -- along with Cincinnati's Mick Cronin -- was one of the top candidates in UCLA's head coaching search.

Earlier this week, however, TCU brought on former Bruins assistant Duane Broussard, who followed Alford from New Mexico to UCLA in time for the 2013-14 season. TCU's coaching staff was hit with the departures of two assistant coaches - Corey Barker and Scott Cross - in March. Barker was fired after being linked to the ongoing college basketball probe. Cross accepted the head coaching job at Troy last week, though he finished the season with Dixon's staff.

Dixon, a North Hollywood native and ex-standout at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame High School, isn't without existing ties to UCLA. Dixon's spent his early on the Pitt staff as an assistant under head coach Ben Howland, who left to take the UCLA head coaching job in 2003. Dixon was consequently promoted to head coach at Pitt while Howland began what was ultimately a decade-long stint in Westwood.

TCU has seen rapid progress upon Dixon’s March 2016 arrival after posting a mere eight conference-game victories across the team’s first four seasons in the Big 12. The Horned Frogs posted a 6-12 record during conference play in Dixon’s debut in the 2016-17 season, later knocking off No. 1 Kansas in the Big 12 tournament before ultimately winning the NIT that March.

One year later in March 2018, TCU snapped a 20-year March Madness drought when the Horned Frogs rode a 21-11 mark -- including a 9-9 Big 12 record -- to their first NCAA tournament appearance since 1998.

The Horned Frogs looked to return to the Big Dance during the 2018-19 season after opening the year as the No. 20 AP team in the nation, but injuries and departures over the course of the campaign ultimately resulted in TCU narrowly missing the tournament. TCU earned an NIT bid, losing to Texas in the quarterfinals Tuesday.

Dixon, 53, has an overall 68-41 record at TCU, including a 22-32 mark in Big 12 play. The Horned Frogs have posted at least 21 wins every season under Dixon's watch, something that hadn’t been done in Fort Worth since Spring 2005 prior to his arrival.