No. 2 Houston begins Big 12 grind with trips to Iowa State and TCU this week
Houston guard L.J. Cryer (4) dribbles past West Virginia guard Kobe Johnson during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday Jan. 6, 2024, in Houston. Credit: AP/Eric Christian Smith
Kelvin Sampson knows exactly what Houston is getting into now that the meat of the Big 12 schedule has arrived.
After the second-ranked Cougars rolled to an 89-55 win over West Virginia on Saturday in their first league game since making the move from the American Athletic Conference, they are hitting the road for a couple of tough matchups. They visit Iowa State, which has been bumping along just outside the Top 25, on Tuesday night before visiting TCU on Saturday night.
“The Big 12 thing is real, and it's a great conference,” said Sampson, who shared a regular-season Big 12 title with Kansas while he was with Oklahoma, and led the Sooners to three consecutive Big 12 Tournament championships in the early 2000s.
“I made a statement earlier this week: If you win on Thursdays and Fridays, you get to play Saturdays or Sundays, because every team is good,” Sampson said. “That's why you don't get too excited when you win, and I don't worry about stuff if we lose again.”
Well, the Cougars haven't lost yet.
They improved to 14-0 with their win over the Mountaineers and, after losses last weekend by James Madison and Ole Miss, they are the last unbeaten team in Division I men's basketball. The only other times in school history the Cougars started 14-0 came in 1967-68, when they started 28-0 and lost in the Final Four, and in 2018-19, when they started 15-0 before a loss to Temple.
While their offense has been good, the Cougars' defense has been downright excellent.
Houston guard Jamal Shead (1) dunks as West Virginia forward Akok Akok defends during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday Jan. 6, 2024, in Houston. Credit: AP/Eric Christian Smith
Heading into the week, the Cougars are first nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency; first in turnover percentage; first in block and steal percentage. In fact, they are first in just about every meaningful statistical category on that end of the floor.
Just ask Louisiana-Monroe, which managed 31 points against them. Or the other six teams that failed to reach 50.
“When we focus on defense, I feel like we're going to get out in transition, make easier shots,” said Houston guard LJ Cryer, the transfer from Baylor. “Just being locked in on defense won't give us a reason to doubt the offense.”
Not many people are doubting anything about the Cougars these days.
Kansas center Hunter Dickinson (1) tries to block a shot by TCU forward Emanuel Miller (2) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Lawrence, Kan., Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024. Credit: AP/Reed Hoffmann
GAME OF THE WEEK
The marquee game of the week takes place on Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse, where third-ranked Kansas plays No. 9 Oklahoma in an early Big 12 showdown. The Jayhawks squeaked by TCU in their conference opener and visit newcomer UCF on Tuesday night, while the Sooners opened with a win over Iowa State and visit TCU on Wednesday night.
TOP-RANKED TESTS
The only team ahead of the Cougars in the AP Top 25 is Purdue, which consolidated its spot at No. 1 this week following its win over then-No. 9 Illinois last week. The Boilermakers head to Nebraska on Tuesday night and face Penn State on Saturday.
WELCOME BACK
San Diego State, which was No. 17 in the preseason poll, returned at No. 19 this week, while Creighton climbed back into the rankings at No. 22. The Aztecs have won six straight since a loss to Grand Canyon — which doesn't seem so bad anymore given the Lopes are 14-1 — and visit San Jose State and New Mexico this week. The Bluejays head to DePaul before Rick Pitino brings St. John's to town this weekend.
MORE AGGIES
Texas A&M spent five weeks in the Top 25 earlier this season. Now, another bunch of Aggies — Utah State — has barged into the poll. The Aggies have won 13 consecutive games, tied with Samford for the second-longest streak nationally behind Houston, and will put their No. 20 ranking on the line when they play Wyoming on Tuesday and visit UNLV on Saturday.
