Houston guard Milos Uzan (7) drives the ball past BYU forward Mawot Mag (0) during the second half of the Big 12 Semifinals, Friday, March 14, 2025 in Kansas City, Missouri. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar
With Houston’s commanding 74-54 victory over No. 4 seed BYU, the Cougars will play in their seventh consecutive conference championship game and face the Arizona Wildcats.
Regular season matchup
On Feb. 15, the two teams faced off for the only time this season inside the McKale Center.
Despite trailing for almost 29 minutes in the game, graduate guard L.J. Cryer and graduate forward J’Wan Roberts propelled the Cougars to victory in the final minutes of the matchup.
Junior guard Milos Uzan was a game-changer for UH, finishing with 19 points on 75% shooting and five assists.
On the Arizona side, fifth-year guard Caleb Love led the team with 17 points and seven assists.
Redshirt sophomore forward Henri Veesaar shut down Houston’s forwards defensively most of the game and made his presence felt down low.
With Roberts ruled out, senior forward Ja’Vier Francis and sophomore forward Joseph Tugler will be tasked with rebounding against an aggressive Arizona team.
Arizona vs Texas Tech
Last night, in the semifinal game between Arizona and Texas Tech, the Wildcats held on to win 86-80.
Love could not miss and finished with 27 points and five made 3-pointers.
Veesaar also made his presence felt with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Sophomore guard K.J. Lewis made a huge impact off the bench, ending the game with 15 points, six assists and eight boards.
The Wildcats shot 50% from 3-point range and averaged 87 points per game in the tournament.
Houston’s tournament overview
The Cougar’s defense has only allowed an average of 61 points per game in the tournament.
Houston will have to rely on continuing to force tough shots and grab rebounds against an aggressive Wildcat offense.
Redshirt junior guard Emanuel Sharp is coming off a season-high 26 points against BYU.
Cryer also scored 20 points and Uzan followed with 14.
With Roberts not expected to suit up for the match, Houston’s guards must step up offensively against Arizona.
The Cougars take on the Wildcats on Saturday, March 15, at 5 p.m. at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.
