Jamal Shead nailed a clutch go-ahead bucket with 0.4 seconds left to play to beat Oklahoma on the road. | Anh Le/The Cougar
With the game on the line, Shead proved once again why he is one of the best players in college basketball and potential Big 12 Player of the Year.
With the game ties at 85 in the closing seconds, the Cougars’ leader drove to the hoop but was able to get the rebound off of his own missed shot, where Shead put up the game-winning fadeaway jumper with 0.4 seconds left.
Oklahoma’s ensuing inbounds play resulting in a turnover and No. 1 UH won the game 87-85 on the road against the Sooners.
The first half was a back-and-forth affair with an astonishing 16 lead changes and 10 ties. Oklahoma hit five of its first six three-pointers while redshirt forward J’Wan Roberts hit his first five shots to lead a 66.7 percent shooting effort (18-27) in the half by Houston as a team.
The Cougars and Sooners continued to go back and forth on offense. Graduate guard Damian Dunn had some confident play, including a couple of shots from beyond the arc.
With freshman forward Joseph Tugler out for the season with a leg injury, freshman center Cedric Lath got more minutes early on.
Senior guard L.J. Cryer beat the buzzer with an incredible three as Houston led 48-45 at the half. Roberts went to the locker room late in the half to receive stitches on his hand but was still the leading scorer 20 minutes in with 16 points. 45 points is the most UH has allowed in the first half all season.
Cryer went on an 11-0 run to open the second half, including multiple three pointers to help extend the UH lead to double digits.
However, a 7-0 run by the Sooners brought the lead down to six with just under eight minutes left. Soon after, junior center Ja’Vier Francis picked up his fifth foul with six minutes left and had to leave the game.
Oklahoma’s Sam Godwin had a tough layup to make it a one possession game, but the clutch gene of Sharp could not be denied with a very tough three ball to extend the lead to five.
With 30.5 seconds left, UH led 85-82. A Houston turnover after a missed free throw by Godwin proved costly as Sooners guard Javian McCollum drove in for the game-tying basket with 11.8 seconds left.
UH improved to 26-3 on the year and 13-3 in conference play. The Cougars will travel to play UCF on Wednesday in the team’s final road game of the season.
