Houston forward J’Wan Roberts (13) hangs off the rim after dunking the ball over OSU during the first half of an NCAA college men’s basketball game, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025, in Houston, Texas. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar
It was not easy, but No. 5 Houston men’s basketball battled tooth and nail to beat Colorado 69-59, Saturday at CU Events Center.
It was a one-possession game with just over five minutes left, but Houston showed its toughness to close the game and take home the win.
“Proud of our kids today,” coach Kelvin Sampson said. “We kind of knew how we wanted to finish the game.”
A big part of the Cougars’ win was their 15 offensive rebounds, which turned into 18 second-chance points.
First half
Houston started the game fast and furiously.
Redshirt sophomore guard Terrence Arceneaux made a layup that kicked off a 9-0 run for the team which was capped off with graduate guard Mylik Wilson scoring after making a steal.
After Colorado got their first points of the game following a timeout, the Cougars continued to assert their dominance and took a 14-3 lead with 13:43 left thanks to a three-pointer from junior guard Milos Uzan and a layup from graduate guard L.J. Cryer.
The Buffaloes did not back down from this setback and went on an 11-0 run to tie the game 14 a piece with 10:49 left, capping off the run with a layup from freshman guard Felix Kossaras.
“Kudos to Colorado kids and to Tad and his coaching staff,” Sampson said of the Buffalos, who are 0-12 in conference play. “They are fighting their butts off.”
UH then scored six straight, including a layup and a three-point field goal from Cryer to take a 20-14 lead.
After a three-pointer from Colorado senior guard Julian Hammond III, graduate forward J’Wan Roberts made back-to-back layups to give the Coogs a 24-17 lead with 7:22 left.
After the Buffaloes scored four straight, Cryer made a layup to give Houston a 26-21 lead.
After Colorado sophomore forward Assane Diop scored two free throws to cut the lead down to three, Uzan made a big three-pointer to help extend the Cougars’ lead by six.
The half ended with the Cougars up 31-27.
Second half
Houston started the half off strong, going on an 8-3 run to take a 39-30 lead including back-to-back three-pointers from Arceneaux and Cryer.
Hammond then made two 3-pointers to cut the Cougars’ lead down to three.
Roberts then cashed in on a three-point play to give UH a 42-36 lead.
With 10:04 left, the Cougars found themselves leading 48-39.
The Buffaloes then made two huge 3-pointers and cut the lead down to three.
Two free throws from Arceneaux and a layup from Uzan gave Houston a 52-45 lead with 7:30 remaining, but Colorado would go on a 7-2 run to trail only 54-52 with 5:49 left and showed no signs of backing down.
UH showed their grit thanks to hard-nosed defense and working the paint, allowing the Cougars to outscore the Buffaloes 15-7 the rest of the way.
Houston’s poor perimeter defense was a big reason why Colorado was able to stay in it, as they made nine 3-pointers
Cryer had 15 points and six rebounds and Roberts had 20 points on 9-11 shooting, including 14 in the second half.
For the Buffaloes, Hammond had 22 points, shooting 7-13 from the field and 5-7 from downtown.
“He played good today,” Sampson said. “He hit some howitzers.”
Houston improves their record to 19-4 and 11-1 in conference play.
They will look to continue their winning ways on Monday, Feb. 10 at home when they face the Baylor Bears in an in-state showdown.
