No. 3 Houston Cougars vs Utah Utes Live Updates, Box Score
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Houston Cougars basketball, now up to No. 3 in the AP poll, are continuing their road trip up in Utah on Tuesday night as they take on the Utes in Salt Lake City. Houston moved up five spots in the rankings thanks to a 77-66 win against then No. 16 BYU on Saturday in Provo.
The Cougars were led by freshman point guard Kingston Flemings for the 14th time this season with 19 points, while freshman stretch big Chris Cenac Jr. added 16 points. Flemings was named to the Big 12 Conference’s Starting Five of the Week for the sixth time this season.
Houston is 21-2 and 9-1 in the Big 12 entering this game against Utah, who is currently the worst team in the conference. The Utes are 9-14 and 1-9 overall in the Big 12 this season.
The Cougars have won four in a row overall and 16 out of their last 17 road games, and they’ll look to get out of Utah unscathed.
Coogs vs Utes
Utah is going through a tough time in basketball, having lost its last five games and 10 out of its last 11. The Utes’ last win and only Big 12 victory this season came on Jan. 17 at home over TCU. Utah is 8-5 at home in Huntsman Center.
The Utes most recently lost at Kansas 71-59 on Feb. 7. Junior guard Terrance Brown is the leading scorer for Utah this season with just over 21 points per game, almost four assists, and 1.7 steals per game.
Junior forward Keanu Dawes, who is a Houston native, is third on the team with 12.6 PPG, and leads Utah with 9.1 RPG. Utah is under new head coach Alex Jensen, a 2000 Utah graduate, who is in his first season coaching at Utah and first season head coaching overall. This will be the first time Jensen will face Houston and coach Kelvin Sampson.
There isn’t a deep history with Utah, and this game will just be the fourth in series history. Houston leads the series 3-0 entering. Houston won the last meeting at home 70-36 last January. This is the third straight season UH and Utah will face each other. This game will be the first time Houston has faced Utah in Salt Lake City.
The Cougars are 16.5 point favorites and have a 93.4% chance of winning according to ESPN predictor.
Houston faces off against BYU in Provo. Be sure to check back here at tipoff for live updates as the game goes on.
Follow below for live updates as the game progresses.
Live Updates
1st Half | 2nd Half | Final | |
|---|---|---|---|
Houston | 34 | 32 | 66 |
Utah | 25 | 27 | 52 |
Starting Lineup: G Kingston Flemings, G Milos Uzan, G Emanuel Sharp, F Joseph Tugler, F Chris Cenac Jr.
Under 16 Timeout: Houston 8, Utah 4
Houston gets out to a good start from three with Uzan and Sharp. Cenac Jr. hits his jumper.
Under 12 Timeout: Houston 26, Utah 18
Utah gets things going thanks to Keanu Dawes, who also had an epic poster dunk over Tugler during this period. Sharp caught fire and made four consecutive triples, with a couple from way downtown. Sharp made six 3-pointers through nine minutes.
Under 8 Timeout: Houston 30, Utah 18
Uzan and Miller add layups. A lot of good defensive rebounding.
Under 4 Timeout: Houston 33, Utah 21
Uzan keeps it going. Utah makes a couple of shots.
HALFTIME: Houston 34, Utah 25
A lot of attacking from both teams as the half ends. Sharp was the leading scorer with 19, but not much else to show for Houston on offense. Utah still hanging around down nine is a bit surprising. The Utes shot 46% from the field in the first half and matched Houston on the boards. Houston shot over 43% from 3-point land and the field overall.
Under 16 Timeout: Houston 48, Utah 29
The Cougars break this game open to start the second half thanks to Tugler and Flemings. Sharp hits a couple more 3-pointers.
Under 12 Timeout: Houston 48, Utah 31
Under 8 Timeout: Houston 57, Utah 38
McCarty comes in off the bench and scores, while Cenac Jr. gets involved again with a couple of dunks.
Under 4 Timeout: Houston 60, Utah 41
Mercy Miller gets some playing time and makes an impact offensively.
FINAL: Houston 66, Utah 52
The Cougars leak some defense at the end due to the bench unit. Flemings hits a late jumper to feel better about himself. It was Sharp's night with 27 points. Tugler and Uzan each had nine total. Utah shot better than Houston from the field at 44% compared to 43%. Houston did well on offensive rebounding and got 20 points off 13 Utah turnovers. Houston improves to 22-2 and 10-1 in the Big 12.
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.