ON TO THE SWEET 16
5 quick hits on UH's win over Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament
Mar 25, 2019, 6:54 am
Corey Davis Jr. is good at sports. Getty Images.
The Houston Cougars are going to the Sweet 16 for the first time in 35 years after beating Ohio State 74-59. Five quick thoughts from Sunday night's game:
1) Defense, again
Ohio State got off to a fast start, hitting 8 of 17 3-pointers in the first half. But the Cougars held Ohio State to just 32 percent shooting in the second half. The Buckeyes would should just 38 percent for the game as the Cougar defense got it done.
2) The veteran
Galen Robinson has been a huge part of UH's turnaround. On Sunday, he played in his school record 135th game as a Cougar. He scored 13 points and his quickness was a big reason for the victory.
3) Staying on point
The Cougars have faced two subpar teams in the first two rounds, but they have not let up. Georgia State was a cakewalk, and Ohio State barely belonged in the tournament and somehow beat Iowa State. The Cougars kept their foot on the gas and took care of business.
4) Kelvin Sampson is pretty good
Ohio State's one real threat was big man Kaleb Wesson. He did score 15, but was just 3 of 7 from the floor and six of those shots were 3-pointers. The Cougars took him out of his game thanks to Sampson's strategies and UH was never in danger of losing.
5) Now it gets serious
UH will face the Kentucky Wildcats in the Sweet 16. If they can get by them, North Carolina awaits. This is a death row for the Cougars, but if they play their best they should have a chance against Kentucky.
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The Houston Astros passed their first test of the second half with flying colors by going to Seattle and taking two of three from the Mariners.
The Astros starting pitching managed to outduel Seattle's, only allowing eight runs in the series. Hunter Brown continues to look like a top of the rotation starter, and Framber Valdez has allowed 3 earned runs or fewer in six consecutive starts.
On the offensive side of the ball, Yainer Diaz and Yordan Alvarez are keeping the lights on as the team awaits the return of slugger Kyle Tucker.
In the meantime, the 'Stros have an important series with the Athletic's looming, followed by an epic clash with the Dodgers. It will be in the club's best interest to take care of business against the lowly A's, because wins could be tough to come by against LA.
Both the Mariners and Rangers have the White Sox on their schedule this week, so this appears to be a three horse race in the AL West as the trade deadline arrives next Tuesday and beyond.
Outside of pitching, first base continues to be the area where Houston could stand to upgrade. Both Jon Singleton and Mauricio Dubon have fallen back to Earth a bit. And The Athletic's Chander Rome reported that Yainer Diaz was taking ground balls at first base recently.
That's an interesting nugget considering the struggles of Singleton and Dubon. Plus, Victor Caratini is back with the team after being activated off the injury list.
Will Joe Espada give Diaz some starts at first base with Caratini back in the fold? Only time will tell. Having a hitter like Diaz playing catcher certainly gives the Astros an edge over many teams.
But at the same time, it's hard to find teams with worse options at first base than what Houston is running out there on a daily basis.
Be sure to watch the video above as we react to the series win over Seattle, look ahead to the upcoming matchups with the A's and Dodgers, and much more!
Plus, we examine how the Astros offense can take another step forward!
*Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via The SportsMap HOU YouTube channel or listen to episodes in their entirety at Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.