March Madness: Breaking Down Houston’s Top Prospects

The Houston Cougars dominated the Big 12 regular season and conference tournament.

They had 22 wins and only one loss in all of conference play. They've also looked very good throughout the entire NCAA Tournament. Houston through four games in the tournament have won by an average of 16 points per game, with a very experienced team and one of the best defenses in all of college basketball. They have three potential draft picks in the 2025 NBA Draft between Milos Uzan, Joseph Tucker and Terrance Arceneaux.

Let’s dive into their strengths and areas of improvement:

Milos Uzan | Guard

Tennessee Volunteers guard Zakai Zeigler (5) guards Houston Cougars guard Milos Uzan (7) during the first half of a game Sunday, March 30, 2025, during the Elite Eight round of the NCAA March Madness tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Houston defeated Tennessee 69-50. | Christine Tannous/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Uzan is a 6-foot-4 guard who transferred from Oklahoma this past season. He has consistently been one of their top scoring threats and their leading assist man this season. The 6-foot-4 guard is shooting over 40% from behind the arc as he’s a very good spot-up shooter that makes defenses pay when he’s left open.

Throughout his entire college career he’s shooting 38% from behind the arc in a total of 94 games played. When opposing defenses elect to run off the line, he has a good pull-up jumper that he’s able to rely on, and even his decision-making is very impressive. Uzan is a very good playmaker who can create open shots for his teammates.

He’s not a very athletic guard which can limit him at times, but despite his athletic imitations he still wins with his smarts and shooting. He has been mostly in second round conversations but with how impactful he has been in the NCAA Tournament, especially against Purdue then there’s a chance he ends up in first round conversations by the end of the tournament.

Joseph Tugler | Big

Mar 20, 2025; Wichita, KS, USA; Houston Cougars forward Joseph Tugler (11) celebrates with guard Mylik Wilson (8) in the first half of a first round men’s NCAA Tournament game against the SIU Edwardsville Cougars at Intrust Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nick Tre. Smith-Imagn Images | Nick Tre. Smith-Imagn Images

The 6-foot-8 sophomore big man is one of the most unique bigs in the college game due to his rare physical tools. Despite being undersized for a center, he makes up for it with his incredibly long arms as he possesses a 7-foot-6 wingspan making his height and wingspan differential ten inches.

If he was to be in the NBA that would have him second in the NBA amongst all active players as he would only be behind Talen Horton-Tucker who has a 10.75 difference. Tugler is an elite rim protector who does a great job of altering shots at the rim and blocking nearly two shots per game in just 21.7 minutes per game.

He’s a defensive star who has anchored this Houston defense for the vast majority of the season. His physicality on the glass doesn’t go unrecognized either as he plays with a ton of intensity and energy. Offensively he doesn’t offer a ton outside of some lobs and rim finishes so developing a perimeter game will be a must for the 6-foot-8 big man.

Terrance Arceneaux | Wing

Mar 30, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Houston Cougars guard Terrance Arceneaux (23) reacts against the Tennessee Volunteers in the second half during the Midwest Regional final of the 2025 NCAA tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images | Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

Arceneaux was on a ton of draft radars early in his college career but his sophomore season got cut short due to him tearing his achilles. He only appeared in 11 games this past season so he looks to still be recovering from that rough injury.

This season he has looked far better than his first two seasons in college basketball as he’s averaging a career high in points, assists, steals, field goal percentage, 3-point percentage and free-throw percentage. Defensively is where the junior wing stands out the most as he’s a versatile peri defender that plays with a ton of intensity and energy like the other Houston players.

He doesn’t get a lot of stocks, but he still makes winning plays on the defensive end. With his 3-point percentage now up to 34.6% this season it shows he has improved as an outside shooter and could serve as a legit 3-and-D wing. Improving upon some of shot-creation skills and overall efficiency will be the next step for him to legitimately get back on the draft radar again.