Houston Cougars On SI

Houston in control of the Big 12 after downing Arizona on the road: 4 takeaways

Cougars get it done away from home once again and now lead conference by two games
Buck Ringgold|
Houston point guard Milos Uzan
Houston point guard Milos Uzan | Aryanna Frank/Imagn Images

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Houston Cougars

Houston is getting even more closer to claiming the Big 12 Conference regular-season basketball championship.

On Saturday, the Cougars pulled off yet another road victory, rallying in the second half for a 62-58 win against Arizona at the McKale Center in Tucson.

Houston beats Arizona, takes 2-game lead in Big 12: Game recap, analysis

Houston (21-4, 13-1) is now two games up on the second-place  Wildcats with six regular-season games remaining. After the Cougars go to Arizona State on Tuesday, they will play their last five regular-season contests within the confines of the state of Texas.

Here are four takeaways from Saturday’s win by the Cougars.

Road Dawgs

One reason for the Cougars’ success all season - especially in Big 12 play - has been their ability to win away from the Fertitta Center.

Saturday gave Houston a 7-0 road record this season and the Cougars have already gotten wins at some of the tougher venues in the Big 12 - including Kansas’ Allen Fieldhouse, West Virginia’s WVU Coliseum, Kansas State’s Bramlage Coliseum and now Arizona’s McKale Center.

The Cougars have also currently won 11 straight road games - the longest such active streak in the nation.

ESPN's 'College GameDay' pregame show coming to Houston on Feb. 22

Settling In

Another reason for the Cougars’ strong play has been the play of first-year point guard Milos Uzan, a junior who transferred over the offseason from Oklahoma.

Uzan continued his stellar performances with perhaps his best game on Saturday. He led all scorers with 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting and distributed five assists while not committing a single turnover.

In Uzan’s last 145:22 of game time, he has registered 22 assists while turning the ball over just once. He currently has a 4.36 assist-turnover ratio (122 assists, 28 turnovers), which leads the Big 12.

Perhaps Uzan’s biggest basket on the day was a jump shot made with 1:27 left that put Houston up by three, 59-56.

In contrast, Arizona’s point guard, Jaden Bradley, was held to four points and made only 1-of-6 field goal attempts. He also turned it over twice.

What Tommy Lloyd said after Arizona's loss to Houston

Experience Counts

Houston also turned to its veteran leadership to deliver.

Graduate guard LJ Cryer was also in double figures with 15 points. He also scored 8 points in a pivotal 12-0 run that turned a 48-41 deficit with 9:10 left into a 53-48 advantage with 5:15 remaining, capping that run by making back-to-back 3-pointers.

Cryer later made a jumper to give Houston its biggest lead at seven, 57-50, with more than three minutes to go.

Graduate forward J’Wan Roberts sealed the win with a free throw with 12 seconds left that made it a two-possession game. Roberts finished with 9 points, and he continues to add to his record as the program’s all-time winningest athlete with his 137th victory.

Then senior forward Ja’Vier Francis was the team’s top rebounder with seven boards. The win also gave Francis his 100th win in a Houston uniform, joining Roberts and four other players with that distinction.

Shutting Them Down

Houston’s trademark defense also came up big when the Cougars needed it the most.

The Cougars held the Wildcats without a field goal for more than six minutes after Arizona took its 48-41 lead. They also held the Wildcats to 1-of-9 3-point shooting in the second half.

Arizona’s top scorer, guard Caleb Love, finished with 17 points but was held to 6-of-15 attempts from the field, including 1-of-8 from beyond the arc.

For the game, Houston held the Wildcats to 37 percent shooting (20-of-54), and went 8-of-22 from the field in the second half.

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Buck Ringgold
BUCK RINGGOLD

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