ESPN
SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- It's one thing to know how Houston wins games. It's another to figure out a way to beat them.
Houston's reputation since Kelvin Sampson took over in 2014 has been built on defense, toughness and aggressiveness -- at both ends of the floor. The Cougars are annually one of the best defensive teams in the country, but they're also an elite offensive rebounding unit. Opponents know how they win, but it's impossible to replicate and prepare for their intensity.
Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said as much in Wednesday's news conference, calling Houston's effort and energy defensively "almost unmatched."
Lloyd and the Wildcats knew what they were getting into at the AT&T Center on Thursday night – but it didn't prepare them for what happened.
Houston scored the first basket of the game, never trailed and pulled away for a 72-60 win over top-seeded Arizona, advancing to the Elite Eight to face Villanova on Saturday.
"You're better served if you play them a couple times," Lloyd said after the game. "They do the things they're good at at such a high level. It's hard to get comfortable the first time around. You can try to tell your guys what's coming, but they actually have a lot better feel for it actually having experienced it."
Jamal Shead led the way for Houston with 21 points and six assists, while Kyler Edwards s hit five 3-pointers en route to 19 points.
Meanwhile, Arizona's stars struggled. Bnedict MAthurin had 15 points, but shot just 4-for-14. Zoulas Tubelis went 0-for-8 from the field and Christian Koloko went 2-for-6 after scoring 28 points in the second-round win over TCU.
Arizona, which ranked near the top of the nation in both pace and offensive efficiency, never got into a rhythm in the first half. Houston imposed its style and physicality on the Wildcats, taking them out of their comfort zone on nearly every possession.
"Victories don't come with asterisks. It's not a beauty contest," Sampson said. "I watched Arizona play. I watched them play UCLA. I watched them play Colorado. I watched the way those teams guarded them, and I knew we weren't going to guard them like those teams did. Those teams just switched them. They let them be comfortable. We were going to make them uncomfortable. It's what we do."
Houston's reputation since Kelvin Sampson took over in 2014 has been built on defense, toughness and aggressiveness -- at both ends of the floor. The Cougars are annually one of the best defensive teams in the country, but they're also an elite offensive rebounding unit. Opponents know how they win, but it's impossible to replicate and prepare for their intensity.
Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said as much in Wednesday's news conference, calling Houston's effort and energy defensively "almost unmatched."
Lloyd and the Wildcats knew what they were getting into at the AT&T Center on Thursday night – but it didn't prepare them for what happened.
Houston scored the first basket of the game, never trailed and pulled away for a 72-60 win over top-seeded Arizona, advancing to the Elite Eight to face Villanova on Saturday.
"You're better served if you play them a couple times," Lloyd said after the game. "They do the things they're good at at such a high level. It's hard to get comfortable the first time around. You can try to tell your guys what's coming, but they actually have a lot better feel for it actually having experienced it."
Jamal Shead led the way for Houston with 21 points and six assists, while Kyler Edwards s hit five 3-pointers en route to 19 points.
Meanwhile, Arizona's stars struggled. Bnedict MAthurin had 15 points, but shot just 4-for-14. Zoulas Tubelis went 0-for-8 from the field and Christian Koloko went 2-for-6 after scoring 28 points in the second-round win over TCU.
Arizona, which ranked near the top of the nation in both pace and offensive efficiency, never got into a rhythm in the first half. Houston imposed its style and physicality on the Wildcats, taking them out of their comfort zone on nearly every possession.
"Victories don't come with asterisks. It's not a beauty contest," Sampson said. "I watched Arizona play. I watched them play UCLA. I watched them play Colorado. I watched the way those teams guarded them, and I knew we weren't going to guard them like those teams did. Those teams just switched them. They let them be comfortable. We were going to make them uncomfortable. It's what we do."
1 comment:
Coogs en fuego!
Post a Comment