Big 12 Games Houston Should Have Interest In This Weekend

There are several intriguing matchups in the conference this weekend with implications in the standings.

Feb 4, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Cougars guard Mercy Miller (25) celebrates a basket by guard Kingston Flemings (4) in the second half against the UCF Knights at Fertitta Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

Conference play keeps on getting better and better.

This weekend, Houston plays BYU, and it's just one of the multiple games that the rest of the college basketball world will have its eyes on.

Around the Big 12, the Utes hit the road to take on the Jayhawks, while the Cowboys face the highest-ranked team in the country, the WIldcats.

How will it pan out and affect the rest of the league? More will be known after this weekend, but it matters to the Cougars because they still play some of these teams and also want to finish with the best seed going into the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City, Missouri. These are some of the biggest matchups to keep an eye on.

Utah @ No. 11 Kansas

Feb 22, 2025; Lawrence, Kansas, USA; Kansas Jayhawks forward KJ Adams Jr. (24) dunks the ball as Oklahoma State Cowboys guard Brandon Newman (6) defends during the first half at Allen Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

After the weekend slate of games, Houston's eyes immediately turn to Utah, its next opponent on the road. Any given week, a team can be on upset watch, and this Utah team soon could have one even after Kansas got a huge road win against Texas Tech on Monday.

Looking at the records, signs point to the Jayhawks being the better team, as their record is better than the Utes, and one of the highest-rated prospects for the NBA Draft is on this team. The Jayhawks' 17-5 start compared to the Utes' 9-13 season isn’t necessarily the sole reason one team should win or lose against the other. It comes down to the shooters in this game and how prepared everyone is.

Guard Darryn Peterson is expected to be an immediate impact when he declares for the draft, and if he does, his numbers back up why this Kansas team has seen so much success. He’s averaging 21.1 points per game to go along with his 4.3 rebounds. As for the playmaker on Utah, it is guard Terrence Brown, who is also averaging over 20 points per game while playing 32 minutes per game. This is one of the games that Houston might be watching with both rosters scheduled to collide with them this month.

Oklahoma State @ No. 1 Arizona

BYU just lost to Oklahoma State. Could another upset be brewing down in Tucson, Arizona? Right now, Arizona is undefeated at 22-0 while Oklahoma State is 16-6 overall. Neither team has seen each other yet, which makes this one interesting to see how both offenses look when different looks are thrown at them.  

From the field, the Wildcats are doing better, going 51.6 percent compared to the Cowboys’ 47.8 percent. From three, the Cowboys are going 35 percent behind the arc while the Wildcats are at 36.3 percent. One of the differences between the two squads is free-throw percentage, which favors the Cowboys 74.5 to 73.8 percent.

Featured players in this game that Houston will eventually face in Arizona include forward Koa Peat and guards Jaden Bradley and Brayden Burries. As for Oklahoma State, the two stars of the team are guard Anthony Roy and forward Parsa Fallah. Kelvin Sampson and Co. will definitely keep an eye out on this one as they’ll want to be familiar with both styles of basketball.