Emanuel Sharp scores 18 and No. 15 Houston wins its fourth straight, 87-51 over Islanders

HOUSTON — Emanuel Sharp scored 18 points, L.J. Cryer added 17 and No. 15 Houston beat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 87-51 on Saturday for its fourth straight win.

Sharp had 15 points in the first half as Houston (8-3) led 46-27 after shooting 61% and going 8 of 13 on 3-pointers. The Cougars finished shooting 49% and made a season-high 14 of 29 from 3.

Terrance Arceneaux scored 13 points, and Milos Uzan had 12 points and six assists as Houston extended its nation-best home winning streak to 29 games.

Garry Clark had 17 points and nine rebounds, and Damarion Dennis scored 10 points for the Islanders (7-6). Texas A&M-Corpus Christi shot 32%.

Takeaways

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi: The Islanders did well combatting Houston’s size in the post, but Houston’s speed and shooting on the perimeter were too much for them.

Houston: The Cougars’ depth was on display as starting forward J’Wan Roberts was out of the lineup due to injury and reserve guard Ramon Walker Jr. was out after having surgery on his hand that is expected to keep him out until late January.

Key moment

Houston opened the game shooting 7 of 9, including 4 of 6 on 3-pointers, and took an 18-6 lead on a 3 by Cryer with 13 minutes remaining. The Cougars’ lead never dipped below six the rest of the way.

Key stat

The Cougars forced 13 turnovers and held a 27-8 edge in points off turnovers.

Up next

Houston travels to Oklahoma State on Dec. 30 to start Big 12 conference play, and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi hosts Schreiner on Dec. 29.