3 Takeaways From Houston Cougars' Blowout Win Over Rider
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The No. 2 Houston Cougars were able to maintain their perfect start to the 2025 campaign in dominant fashion Thursday night at the Fertitta Center in Houston, downing the Rider Broncs by a score of 91-45.
The win brought Kelvin Sampson's team to 5-0 on the season in a game that never saw the Coogs trail for even a second.
It was clear that the team didn't take too kindly to being knocked back down to number two after defeating the No. 22 Auburn Tigers in such a close-knit contest last Sunday.
As the Cougars spent 40 minutes absolutely manhandling the Broncs Thursday night, here are a trio of takeaways from the contest as the team looks ahead to the Syracuse Orange Monday night.
Kingston Flemings Is That Guy
Freshman guard Kingston Flemings has been everything that the Cougars have needed him to be and more, and Thursday night was no exception.
Flemings turned in an 18-point effort with five assists and two steals to go along with it, just four days removed from a season-high 22-point showing against Auburn.
Averaging 17.4 points through five games so far, it's clear that Flemings is going to be the main producer of points for Sampson going forward, and feeding him the ball should be a crucial part of the team's game plan.
From Downtown... BANG!
38 percent isn't the best from three-point range, but it was a definitive step up for the team from their performance beyond the arc against Auburn on Sunday.
The team made 10 of 26 three-point attempts, led by Emanuel Sharp's trio of triples that he got to fall during the game.
Flemings and Chris Cenac Jr. each went two-for-two from long-range.
The success from downtown played part in a magnificent 56 percent shooting from the field during the entirety of Thursday night's performance.
Winning the Turnover Battle Wins the Ball Game
At least, it's supposed to, and it definitely helped the Cougars with their win in this one.
Houston only committed seven turnovers the entire night, which Rider capitalized on with nine points, while the Broncs turned it over 23 times, leading to 33 free points for the No. 2 team in the nation.
The Cougars will look to keep their losses at a goose egg when they welcome the Syracuse Orange in a battle of undefeated college basketball squads Friday night at 5:00 PM on TNT.
