2 Huge Takeaways From No. 5 Houston's Bounce-back Blowout Win Over Colorado
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A complete effort across the timeline was something hard to come by for No. 5 Houston men's basketball, needing to break its first three-game losing streak as a Big 12 member.
But 26 points from senior guard Milos Uzan and 29 across coach Kelvin Sampson's bench put away any possibility of that streak extending, and instead, it cashed the Cougars a 102-62 blowout win over the Colorado Buffaloes Saturday afternoon at Fertitta Center.
It was beyond a welcome sight for the Cougars shooting-wise, considering they shot 36% from the floor over the losing streak, due to multiple scoring droughts and a slight decline in half-court offense, which can be attributed to the leveling physicality of the league's top competition.
In all, Houston finished a hot 60% in shooting towards its second-highest point total in Big 12 play this season, leaving optimism offensively back towards a deep run in March with just two regular-season games remaining.
With the Cougars moving to 24-5 overall and 12-4 in Big 12 play, here are two takeaways that dive into the performances of Uzan and Houston's frontcourt.
Tugler hails redemption from foul-laced minutes
With 1:10 to go in the first half, junior forward Joseph Tugler picked up his third personal foul and entered the half with a single make from the floor in just six minutes.
Across four games dating back to Houston's 78-64 win over Kansas State on Feb. 14, Tugler averaged just 21 minutes of game time due to also averaging 2.8 fouls per game in that span.
But even after redshirt fifth-year forward Kalifa Sakho contributed a season-high nine points in the first half, Tugler saw a path to redemption out of 12 second-half points across a clean 13 minutes towards Houston's 38-point finish in the paint.
Considering foul trouble was one of the weaknesses in Houston's frontcourt during the three-game losing streak, Tugler's get-right outing became a sight for sore eyes and helped provide the Cougars their largest margin of victory in a Big 12 game this season. If his consistency picks back up, it's just one piece towards a deep March run with a deep active rotation.
As March hits, Uzan aims to familiarize
In matching his season-high 26 points to go with five triples, Uzan also racked up six assists towards what looked like the most complete on-and-off-ball showing in a Big 12 game for Houston this season.
Entering Monday night in Allen Fieldhouse, he logged two sprained ankles, making him a game-time decision in Houston's eventual 69-56 loss to No. 14 Kansas.
But knowing the implications of snapping the losing streak, long-awaited rest and a meaningful meeting with Sampson created a template for Uzan's best league outing.
"Milos and I had a little visit, and I know how good he is," Sampson said. "I have zero interest in anybody else's opinion of it, because it means nothing."
No matter how much outside noise there was from the beginning of the season to now in terms of Uzan's efficiency, it remained indisputable in Saturday's performance, considering the similar trajectory of it from last season's run to a national championship game.
With the Big 12 tournament quickly approaching, his style of play remains a key piece towards a potential capture of a second straight conference title, and Saturday provided glimpses that a similar or better feat in the third weekend of March can come true.
Michael Carrara is a staff writer for Houston Cougars on SI. He attends the University of Houston, where he is a journalism major and a marketing minor. He is also a sports writer and reporter for the Daily Cougar, having covered baseball as an NCBWA member. You can find Michael on all major social media channels, including X on @michaelcoalec.