A spot atop the standings will be on the line on Tuesday when No. 7 Houston hosts No. 14 Texas Tech in a titanic Big 12 Conference clash.
The two Big 12 heavyweights head into the game with plenty of momentum. Houston (13-1, 1-0 Big 12) has won seven straight games while the Red Raiders (11-3, 1-0 Big 12) have captured four in a row and seven of their past eight.
The Cougars head home after outlasting Cincinnati 67-60 on Saturday. It was the third consecutive game that Houston won by single digits as it tries to find the correct mix of player rotations to produce a deep run into the NCAA Tournament.
“Believe it or not, I played five freshmen in the first half — who does that?” Cougars head coach Kelvin Sampson said. “No one ever accused me of being very smart.”
Kingston Flemings led Houston with 19 points while Milos Uzan added 16 of his 18 points in the second half in Saturday’s win.
“The guy that willed us was Milos,” Sampson said.
Leading scorer Emanuel Sharp, who entered the Saturday contest averaging 17.0 points per game, was limited to two free throws with 14 seconds remaining in the second half. He missed all nine of his shots from the floor, five of those from beyond the arc.
“Every game is not going to be your best game,” Sharp said. “But that’s the thing — I can affect the game in other ways other than scoring. It’s good we had the will to fight back. Every game is a prize fight.”
Uzan’s 3-pointer with 2:48 to play broke open a tie game and sparked a late 7-0 run for Houston.
“Coach (Sampson) came in the locker room and said our seniors weren’t stepping up,” Uzan said. “We took pride in that. Emanuel, defensively, took the challenge, and I thought we needed help on the offensive end. We were trying to do whatever it takes to win.”
The Red Raiders dismantled dangerous Oklahoma State 102-80 at home on Saturday behind a 23-point, 14-rebound performance from J.T. Toppin. Christian Anderson collected 19 points and a career-high 13 assists and LeJuan Watts added 19 points and nine boards.
Texas Tech recorded 21 assists on 37 made shots and forged a 48-36 advantage on the glass.
Donovan Atwell finished with 15 points, with all of his scoring from beyond the arc. Jaylen Petty also was a factor from deep, making a career-high four 3-pointers while scoring 12 points.
The offensive production was the Red Raiders’ most in a game this season, but it was the defense that propelled Texas Tech to the win. Up eight points at the break, The Red Raiders limited Oklahoma State to just a free throw over the first 4 1/2 minutes of the second half.
“Our team is improving — we’re not perfect, but we’re getting better and are scrappier,” Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland said. “We’re a tough team to defend, so if we keep sharing the ball and keep making strides defensively then we can be a team that can compete in this league. This was a good start. I do feel like this team is capable of doing this every night. The question is, when the ball isn’t going in, can we still defensively fight the way we need to.”
Tuesday’s meeting will be the first of two between the teams in 18 days. The Red Raiders will host Houston on Jan. 24.
