No. 2 Houston Set To Face No. 4 Arizona In Top-5 Battle

The Cougars continue their tough stretch by facing the Arizona Wildcats this weekend.

Mar 15, 2025; Kansas City, MO, USA; Houston Cougars guard Emanuel Sharp (21) goes to the basket against Arizona Wildcats forward Carter Bryant (9) during the first half for the Big 12 Conference Tournament Championship game at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

Houston basketball will take on the Arizona Wildcats this Saturday, Feb. 21, at 2 p.m., inside the Fertitta Center.

With the Cougars suffering a three-point loss to No. 6 Iowa State on Monday night, Houston will look to take back first place in the Big 12 Conference standings with a win over Arizona.

The Cougars are the early favorites and have a 63.9 percent chance to win, according to ESPN Analytics.

Houston vs Arizona Preview

Mar 15, 2025; Kansas City, MO, USA; Houston Cougars guard Milos Uzan (7) grabs a rebound against the Arizona Wildcats during the second half for the Big 12 Conference Tournament Championship game at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

Houston enters this game undefeated at home this season, and the Fertitta Center is one of the hardest places to win in all of college basketball.

The Cougars also have not lost back to back games since January of 2024, where they lost to Iowa State and TCU consecutively.

While Arizona was the No. 1 team in the country for an extended period of time, they lost back to back games to Kansas and Texas Tech, and they desperately need to win to stay alive in the Big 12 Conference race.

They will also be without star freshman forward Koa Peat, who averages 13.8 points and 5.4 rebounds a game for the Wildcats.

With Peat is still recovering from a leg injury, Arizona will need its other playmakers to carry the load against a tough Houston defense.

Freshman guard Brayden Burries and senior guard Jaden Bradley are the main scoring threats for the Wildcats this season.

The duo combines for 29.1 points per game, and their offense will be needed with the team already short handed.

The game will be yet another Big 12 thriller, and the keys for both teams will be to simply play their brand of basketball.

For the Wildcats, they are ranked the No. 1 offense in the conference, averaging 88.2 points per game this season.

If they can get into a high-scoring game against Houston, they will have a clear advantage.

For the Cougars, they are the No. 1 defense in the conference, and their ability to force turnovers and tough shots is second to none.

Houston relies on unscripted points to held boost their offense, which starts primarily starts on the defensive side of the ball.

For Houston to come out on top in this game, UH will need to stay connected on defense and really put pressure on a short-handed Arizona team to disrupt its offense.

They will also have the luxury of home court advantage, and the Cougars can really use that energy on Saturday to go on scoring runs and close out the game on top.