SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Tommy Lloyd knew exactly what to expect from Houston; the Arizona men’s basketball coach used the word “effort” three times in his first answer about the Cougars in Wednesday’s news conference.
But the Wildcats still weren’t prepared for what hit them at the AT&T Center on Thursday night.
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.
Jamal Shead led the way for Houston with 21 points and six assists, while Kyler Edwards hit five 3-pointers en route to 19 points. Meanwhile, Arizona’s stars struggled. Bennedict Mathurin had 15 points, but shot just 4-for-14. Azuolas 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, making them uncomfortable on nearly every possession. The Cougars took a 10-point lead less than six minutes into the game and kept Arizona at an arm’s length for most of the first half. Late free throws from Christian Koloko cut the deficit to six points going into the break.
The Wildcats came out of halftime playing much more fluid basketball offensively and were more engaged on the defensive end. A Dalen Terry 3-pointer with 13:27 left cut Houston’s lead to two — but Arizona wouldn’t get any closer. Houston responded with a 10-2 run highlighted by 3-pointers from Shead and Edwards, and Arizona looked deflated.
Every time Arizona looked to make another run, Houston responded with a big shot. After Mathurin hit a 3 to cut the Cougars’ lead to three, Shead hit a pair of free throws and Edwards buried a 3. In the final minutes, Arizona was down by six with the ball — but Mathurin turned over the ball and Edwards hit a 3 at the other end to clinch the game.
Houston had more second-chance points (19-13), significantly more points off turnovers (24-6) and even outshot the Wildcats (nine made 3s to Arizona’s seven).
Houston’s reputation under Kelvin Sampson has been built on defense, toughness and aggressiveness — at both ends of the floor. The Cougars are annually one of the elite defensive teams in the country, but they’re also an elite offensive rebounding unit and simply outwork teams on the glass. Opponents know how they win, but it’s impossible to replicate and prepare for their intensity.
Lloyd said as much on Wednesday.
“I’m so impressed just with how [their] players do what they’re told to do,” he said. “Just the effort they play with. They max out every effort area. They’re well-drilled on offense. They know the shots they want to take. They know who’s taking them, where they’re coming from, and they obviously do an amazing job offensive rebounding. And then defensively, the effort and energy they play with and attention to detail, it’s almost unmatched.”
Lloyd knew exactly what to expect from Houston on Thursday; the first-year head coach and his team just couldn’t get into a rhythm nor could they get the Cougars out of their comfort zone.
It’s been Houston’s M.O. all season, and now the Cougars are just 40 minutes from going to back-to-back Final Fours.