The Three Players Who Will Decide Houston's March Madness Tournament Run
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March Madness is about to get underway this week and it's always a special time of year in Houston. The Cougars are in the big dance for the eighth straight season and are the No. 2 seed in the South region. Houston is ranked the fifth overall seed in the NCAA Tournament and is also No. 5 in the AP Poll.
The Cougars made it all the way to the national championship game in 2025 and were just under a minute away from being crowned champions. In the best run the program had since 1984, there were some key players who stepped up and had some big-time performances.
Last season’s team was full of veterans that will go down as some of the greatest in program history. Houston looks different this season with two freshmen in the starting lineup and a new look bench. The Cougars obviously have the potential to get back to the Final Four for consecutive seasons, but these three players will have to fire in the tournament run through the South Region.
If Houston makes it past the first weekend, it will have the home crowd support in the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight playing inside the Toyota Center. It’s critical for the experienced players on the Cougars to rise to the occasion.
The Three Key Cougars
Emanuel Sharp
He’s known as the senior leader on this team. Sharp is in his fifth season at Houston and is the most experienced player on the roster. Over the years, Sharp has been such a vital scorer for the Cougars on offense and is an elite, tough defender. His 3-point shooting and physicality on defense stand out.
Besides the final possession against Florida in the national championship, Sharp has typically been at his best in the biggest moments. He’s had a history of knocking down big shots and that will need to continue more than ever now. Sharp was both the Big 12 Tournament and Midwest Regional Most Outstanding Player last season.
Sharp currently averages 15.3 points per game along with 2.9 rebounds on 40% shooting from the field. He is 37% from three, which is three percentage points lower from last year’s 40%. Sharp’s total points have gone up by three from 2024-25.
While he started off the season hot with multiple games of over or around 20 points, Sharp has cooled off lately and has not scored at least 15 points in seven out of the last eight games. That also includes a widely inconsistent mark from three. If Sharp can knock down shots and be one of the top scorers on the team, Houston can go far.
Chris Cenac Jr.
The freshman forward was initially recruited as a No. 1 center in his class, but has played the four spot for Houston all year long. Cenac Jr. is projected to be a lottery pick and while he still isn’t among the top freshmen in the country like initially thought, he has made rapid growth over the past few months.
Cenac Jr. has taken J’Wan Roberts’ spot and has offered a different way of scoring from the 3-point line and midrange while being a dunk threat.
Houston is 5-1 in games where Cenac Jr. grabbed a double-double and the Cougars are a much more dangerous team when he gets going. The Kansas game is a perfect example where he contributed 17 points. His 16 points on the road against BYU were massive.
The key is consistency when it comes to freshmen. If the Cougars can get a confident shooting Cenac that makes shots and is an elite rebounder, the Cougars are a different team. The 6-foot-11 Cenac Jr. currently averages 9.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game while going 49% overall from the field and 35% from three.
Milos Uzan
This is the time of year for the senior point guard to step up. While freshman Kingston Flemings is the leading scorer on the team and very important to the team’s hopes, he has remained consistent for most of the season. It can be expected for Flemings to give 20 on any given night, but what will decide Houston’s run will be if Uzan gets things going at a high level.
The Las Vegas native is averaging 11.1 PPG and four assists on 39% shooting from the field. His 3-point shooting has taken a significant step back at just under 35% after shooting almost 43% from beyond the arc last season. He also was 45% from the field in 2024-25.
It took a while for Uzan to get used to playing off-ball with Flemings’ ball-handling half the time, and while that has gotten better, the offense remains inconsistent. For Houston to make a deep run, it will need a senior Uzan to be aggressive and attack. When he does that, it also helps his 3-point shot.
He put up 26 points against Colorado, and that was the only time he crossed 15 points since January 31. When Uzan is getting to his shots, Houston is capable of beating anyone. He put up 25 points in the Big 12 championship last season against Arizona and 22 against Purdue in the Sweet 16.
Maanav Gupta is a staff writer for Houston Cougars on SI. He graduated from the University of Houston in the summer of 2025 with his bachelor’s in journalism and a minor in Spanish. Gupta spent three years at the student newspaper, The Daily Cougar, and also covered the 2025 Final Four and National Championship as Houston beat writer for College Basketball Review. He also has his own YouTube channel, Maanav’s Sports Talk, where he has interviewed professional athletes and broadcasters like Jim Nantz, Jose Altuve, J.J. Watt, Rich Eisen, and Alperen Sengun. Gupta was also a contributor to the Houston athletic program as a student. You can find Gupta on X, Instagram and TikTok @MGSportsTalk.