AAC clash: Houston's Cougars get their claws into UC in front of large Sunday crowd
Research shows the Cougar has no natural enemies and sits atop the food chain. Don't tell that to any school in the American Athletic Conference that is chasing Houston's basketball Cougars this season.
Kelvin Sampson's No. 2-ranked squad proved worthy of its place in the basketball food chain Sunday as the Cougars pulled away in the second half to down the Bearcats 72-59 at Fifth Third Arena. UC was able to cut a 20-point deficit down to 13 and their 59 points were above the 51 Houston had been allowing per contest. Still, it was a loss for the upset-minded Bearcats who led in the game's opening minutes but trailed for nearly 36 of the game's 40 minutes.
While UC leads the all-time series against Houston, the Cougars have won the last five and nine of the last 11. UC committed 17 turnovers and Houston outscored the Bearcats 26-4 from those lapses in judgment.
"I'm very disappointed in our approach, especially in the second half," UC coach Wes Miller said. "I feel like this team has taken a lot of steps and has a better character than we displayed. That's what I told the kids in the locker room. It's not good enough."
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Freshman five-star Jarace Walker lived up to his McDonald's All-American status showing the quickness of a Cougar despite his 240-pound frame. Walker topped all scorers with 21 points.
"We tried to make him make some contested shots over the top and he did that," Miller said. "You can't take everything away from everybody. Give him credit. He made a couple of them tonight. We were going to try to bait him into more difficult shots that were contested. He shot it really well tonight and made plays."
Redshirt junior J'Wan Walker pounded on the boards for Houston and finished with a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds. Marcus Sasser and Tramonn Mark had 16 and 10 points, respectively.
Mika Adams-Woods keeps Cincinnati in the game vs. Houston
Senior Mika Adams-Woods, who was in the lineup the last time UC beat Houston in 2020, kept the Bearcats in the game with 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting.
Landers Nolley II had 12 first-half points but failed to score in the second half. Viktor Lakhin had just two points at the half but finished in double figures for the 14th time this season with 16 points. He added six rebounds and UC actually outrebounded Houston 39-33.
"I didn't think it was his best game," Miller said of Lakhin. "His line's respectable, but I didn't think it was his best game."
Lakhin said in the first half he was looking for his teammates but told himself in the second half he had to join his team. As a result 14 of his 16 came in the second half.
"They're just active and big," Lakhin said of Houston. "They're just a really good defensive team with their size and principles they execute. It's not something unbeatable. You just have to be prepared for that and answer the bell."
The loss drops the Bearcats to 11-6 and 2-2 in the AAC. Houston had 13 steals in the game, the most against a Wes Miller Bearcat team thus far.
"The first thing they do is the guy guarding you, guards you," Miller said. "It's really hard to get downhill, it's really hard to beat that guy. Obviously, their activity and positioning is so sound. Seventeen turnovers is not characteristic of our team. They get their hands on some balls and they have a level of activity defensively that really impacts their possessions and impacts your ability to move the ball and execute and make plays."
Crowd of 10,264 shows up to watch UC play Houston
The Bearcats fired up the crowd of 10,264 by running out to a 5-0 lead, but Houston quickly answered and led 8-5 by the first timeout. UC stayed with them largely thanks to Landers Nolley II's hitting back-to-back treys to tie the game with 8:41 remaining in the half.
After a timeout, the Bearcats couldn't capitalize. Houston's 6-foot-8 freshman phenom Walker and 6-foot-7, 230-pound Roberts had their way in the paint combining for 19 points and nine rebounds while all UC could muster in the post was a tip-in bucket by Lakhin late and three rebounds. Starter Ody Oguama and Kalu Ezipke off the bench were void of points and rebounds in the first stanza.
Houston scored the first five points of the second half causing Miller to call a jumping timeout after a 3-pointer by Jamal Shead. That was almost immediately followed by a steal and dunk by Walker to give the Cougars a 42-28 lead.
At the first media timeout the lead had ballooned to 18 with the Cougars seemingly having a hand on every ball. UC didn't score its first field goal until nearly eight minutes into the half when Ezpike scored from short range.
Houston's lead would reach 20, but Lakhin fueled a comeback and cut it to 10 with just over five minutes to go, to reach double figures again. He has scored in double digits in all but three of UC's games. Not helping was David DeJulius being held to six points on 2-of-10 shooting and Jeremiah Davenport had just 2 points and was 0-for-7 on 3-pointers after hitting 6-of-9 in the most recent road win at Wichita State.
"I thought JD had some really good looks that didn't go," Miller said. "I believe in his shot. I think he's proven over a long period of time at this level that he can shoot the ball. It's about the quality. He was 1-for-9, but I thought seven were pretty good looks and the right shots for him. It's tough when some of your best offensive players have off nights at the same time. I believe in those guys' abilities to shoot the basketball."
Houston is now 16-1 and 4-0 in the AAC. They are the fourth Power Five team the Bearcats have played along with Arizona, Ohio State and Louisville. In basketball, the Xavier game stands with those as well. UC also scrimmaged top-ranked Purdue.
"They (Houston) are pretty similar to Ohio State," Lakhin said. "I wouldn't compare them to Arizona. They're physical, (get) offensive boards, hustle plays, that's what they do. That's what I need to get better at, me personally, offensive boards and defensive as well."
Next up for the Bearcats is their final 9 p.m. tip of the regular season when they entertain East Carolina on Wednesday night. Of UC's AAC foes thus far, the Pirates lost to Temple by 2 at home and beat Wichita State by 10 in Kansas.
"I feel like we've taken so many steps forward over the last five or six weeks," Miller said. "This felt like a little bit of a step backward. We've got to regroup and recharge and get ready for the next one."
15 NBA scouts in attendance for Cincinnati vs. Houston
The University of Cincinnati hosted 15 NBA scouts Sunday including Tim Hardaway who was just enshrined into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in September. Hardway was a five-time All-Star and won a gold medal in the 2000 Olympics. The former UTEP Miner was known for his crossover dribble. Before the game, he grabbed the first seat next to the ESPN TV announcers, the one previously filled by UC great Oscar Robertson when he was in town.
"Well, we're both in the Hall of Fame," Hardway said.
At game time, Hardaway was elsewhere and the Big O's seats were vacant.
Cincinnati Bearcats football stars in attendance for basketball game vs. Houston
Several Bearcat defensive linemen were sitting in the student section behind the basket near the Houston bench. Spotted were Dominique Perry, C.J. Doggette, Derrick Shepard and Dontay "The Godfather" Corleone. Corleone said he actually played some roundball at Colerain as a freshman prior to terrorizing quarterbacks on a daily basis. He was most recently named the top-rated defender by Pro Football Focus in college football.
CINCINNATI 28 31 59
HOUSTON 35 37 72
H - Roberts 7 0 14 Walker 8 4 21 Sasser 7 0 16 Shead 2 0 5 Tramon 4 0 10 Francis 1 0 2 Arcenaux 2 0 4
UC- Lakhin 4 8 16 Nolley 4 0 12 Adams-Woods 8 0 19 DeJulius 2 0 6 Davenport 1 0 2 Skillings 1 0 2 Ezikpe 1 0 2
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: UC unable to hang with No. 2 Houston in second half Sunday
