Coogs overwhelm the Cougs: No. 8 Houston triumphs over No. 16 BYU 77-66 on the road – The Cougar

Houston basketball travelled east to face off against Birmingham Young University at the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah on Feb 8. The game consisted of a back-and-forth between the two teams in the first half, with Houston ultimately taking the win 77-66 after a big scoring run late in the second half.

Both teams were solid, with BYU taking advantage of Houston’s fouls while Houston focused more on rebounds, scoring off of multiple turnovers from the BYU offense. However, in the last minutes of the second half, it seemed that BYU had slowed down as Houston played more defensively, keeping the lead in the Coogs possession. 

Game Recap

In the first half, Houston would get an early 12-6 lead against BYU in the first five minutes of the game, forcing BYU into a corner early. BYU would bounce back with its own scoring run, but would not retake the lead as Houston’s offense would score ten unanswered points, making the score 28-18.

As time wound down on the first half, the Cougs would begin to rally back into the game, capitalizing on fouls made by Houston and making huge three-pointers, which put them at a six-point deficit going into halftime with a score of 37-31.

After halftime, Houston seemed to keep its momentum from the first half, scoring immediately and continuing their defensive dominance. However, Houston would continue to foul multiple times throughout the first 10 minutes of the second half, leading to 22 total personal fouls that BYU could score off of.

However, Houston freshman guard Kingston Flemings would have an impressive offensive game against the BYU defense, having 19 points total, 5 assists, and tying Houston freshman forward Chris Cenac Jr. on rebounds, with both players having 5 total. 

Throughout the last minutes of the game, BYU attempted to cut down on its point deficit as BYU Freshman forward AJ Dybantsa scored 28 points total against Houston. This scoring run from BYU would not go unanswered, though, as Houston would decimate their momentum with their defense and ultimately take the game 77-66. 

What’s next?

Houston improves to 21-2 on the season and adds another ranked team to their resume heading into the Big XII championship in March, keeping themselves at No. 2 in the conference. The Coogs also look ahead to their next game which is a match against BYU’s rival, the Utah Utes. The game will be a major game for conference play, as it will determine if Houston remains at a high spot in the conference with other major teams like Iowa State and Kansas attempting to dethrone Houston’s spot in the Big XII.

sports@thedailycougar.com