Men's Basketball Sports

Lengthy run propels No. 6 Houston men’s basketball past Oklahoma State

Houston Cougars guard Milos Uzan (7) passes the ball while Oklahoma State Cowboys guard Bryce Thompson (1) plays defense during the second half of an NCAA men’s college basketball game, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025, in Houston, Texas. | Oscar Herrera/The Cougar

While it took No. 5 Houston men’s basketball nearly 14 minutes to take the lead against Oklahoma State, a burst spanning the end of the first half and the beginning of the second gave the Cougars enough momentum to pick up a 72-63 win Tuesday at Fertitta Center.

Graduate guard Mylik Wilson made a game-changing play in the first half, blocking graduate guard Bryce Thompson’s shot and making a layup on the other end to cap a 7-0 run and give Houston its first lead.

Five more lead changes followed, but the Cougars went on a 13-6 run to enter halftime with a 39-33 advantage.

Houston opened the second half with eight straight points, six coming from redshirt sophomore guard Terrance Arceneaux. Graduate guard L.J Cryer hit his fourth 3-pointer near the end of a 13-2 run, giving Houston its largest lead at 17. 

A departure from when Oklahoma State had an 18-9 lead early in the game as shots for the Cougars weren’t falling. 

Houston grabbed 18 offensive rebounds compared to the Cowboys’ four, allowing UH to cash in on 16 second-chance points while Oklahoma State was left empty-handed.

“You’re not going to make shots every night, especially in this league, when it’s your third game in six days or your fifth day in 13 days… but we have a formula for winning,” head coach Kelvin Sampson said.

The Cowboys fired with a late push to make it a 5-point game, while Houston went nearly seven minutes without a field goal leading up to the final 60 seconds of play. But the Cougars stayed the course and sealed the win at the free-throw line, where they went 12-for-14 overall on the night.

 The Cougars took care of business behind 18 points from Cryer, 17 points and five assists from junior guard Milos Uzan and 14 points and 10 rebounds from graduate forward J’Wan Roberts.

Arceneaux recorded a career high six assists. He started in place of redshirt junior guard Emanuel Sharp, who is out with an ankle injury.

Houston now holds a 31-2 record in games following a regular-season loss under Sampson.

The Cougars are 18-4 on the season and 10-1 in conference play, and will face the Colorado Buffalos at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

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