
Houston point guard Milos Uzan fighting for a path to the net, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Wednesday, January 15, 2025, in Houston, Texas, | Gillian Wisniewski/The Cougar
What looked like another commanding victory for No. 6 Houston in its first-ever visit to the WVU Coliseum turned ugly in a hard-fought 63-49 win over West Virginia.
“It ain’t no beauty contest, they don’t put no pictures beside the score,” coach Kelvin Sampson said. “It’s just a win.”
The victory marked Houston’s 18th consecutive Big 12 win, the second-most in conference history. The red-hot Cougars held their opponent under 20 points in a half for the eighth time this season, but uncharacteristic second-half mistakes opened the door for a Mountaineer comeback.
Houston opened the second half with a 20-point lead, but within five minutes, that advantage had shrunk to just nine.
Fifth-year West Virginia guard Toby Okani poured in four points and added a steal, fueling the Mountaineers’ 11-0 run to start the final frame. During that stretch, they allowed only one Houston field goal attempt while forcing three turnovers.
Graduate forward J’Wan Roberts drove in for a layup to end the scoring drought for Houston, but mistakes continued as the Cougars couldn’t find the basket again for nearly four more minutes.
West Virginia scored 13 points off Houston’s second-half turnovers and pulled within five with under eight minutes to go, but couldn’t get any closer. Mountaineers senior guard Javon Small briefly left the court after a hard hit but later returned.
“We’re a defensive minded team,” graduate guard L.J. Cryer said. “On nights that the ball isn’t going in, I feel like we’re going to win because of that.”
After the rocky start to the second half leaving the squad with a season-high 14 turnovers total, the Cougars eventually returned to their defensive identity, slowed the tempo and regained a double-digit lead.
Cryer led all scorers with 17 points and three assists.
The defensive core of senior forward Ja’Vier Francis, Roberts and sophomore forward Joseph Tugler combined for 18 rebounds and two blocks.
Houston used its defensive pressure to hold all West Virginia scorers in single digits. Fifth-year guard Joseph Yesufu led the Mountaineers with nine points.
The Cougars controlled the game from the opening tip and looked poised to cruise to victory after opening with an 8-0 run. Tugler grabbed his own rebound to score the first basket of the night before redshirt junior guard Emanuel Sharp forced a West Virginia turnover and Cryer connected on back-to-back threes to set the tone. Houston shot 50% from the field while holding its opponent to a meager 36% shooting and just 2-for-10 from three-point range.
Although the Cougars gave away the ball five times in the opening half, the Mountaineers couldn’t find a way around Houston’s smothering defense.
After Houston missed consecutive attempts from beyond the arc, Tugler broke away for an emphatic fast-break dunk to silence the West Virginia crowd with four minutes to go before the break. Houston led 39-19 as the first-half clock wound down to zero.
With the win, UH improves to 17-3 overall on the season.
Next up, Houston heads home to face conference rival No. 22 Texas Tech on Feb. 1 in “Houston Blue.”
In a special halftime presentation, former Cougar and two-time NBA champion Don Chaney will be honored with a jersey retirement and have his banner hung high inside Fertitta Center.