MARCH MADNESS

Upsetting No.1 seed Arizona in Sweet 16 could come down to this for UH Coogs

Upsetting No.1 seed Arizona in Sweet 16 could come down to this for UH Coogs
The Coogs square off with Arizona on Thursday night. Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images.

After defeating both UAB and Illinois in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, the Houston Cougars have advanced to their third straight Sweet 16 and have a date with No. 1 seed Arizona.

The Cougars obtained their first two victories with great defensive performances, effective rebounding and timely scoring from a multitude of players.

Their previous game against Illinois saw Taze Moore and Jamal Shed take over from a scoring perspective.

Moore tallied a season high 21 points, seven rebounds and two steals, and Shed contributed an additional 18 to push the Cougars past the Fighting Illini.

Senior guard Kyler Edwards has been shooting lights out as well. The Texas native has made at least three 3-pointers in 14 games, and has scored at least 15 points in three of his last four contests.

Houston’s leading scorer seems to heating up at the right time and has been the team’s go-to 3-point shooter as of late.

Other starters Fabian White Jr. and Josh Carlton were contained throughout most of the Illinois contest, but Houston was able to adjust without their bigs by establishing scoring outside the paint.

White made some key shots at the end of the game, but the Fighting Illini defense held Houston’s all-time winningest player to obtain only six points.

The Cougars however didn’t need to have a stellar offensive showcase to win, as they dominated Illinois with some elite level defense holding them to 34% shooting, and forced 17 turnovers.

Houston's next game against Arizona will be their toughest of the season so far, but head coach Kelvin Sampson may have a few tricks up his sleeve to keep his team’s title hopes alive.

In their previous game against Illinois, Houston had to adjust their offense from the paint to the perimeter due to the Fighting Illini playing great interior defense.

Coach Sampson has changed his offense in-game with great success throughout this season, and can give Arizona a run for their money if they are unprepared.

Even though the Wildcats are favored to win, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Houston advance past the No.1 Seed.

Arizona’s tournament run saw them defeat Wright State and survive a narrow overtime victory over TCU.

The latter was a result of the Horned Frogs containing top-10 NBA Draft prospect Bennedict Mathurin early before the Wildcats eventually mounted a comeback to win the game.

Houston is a vastly superior defensive team compared to TCU, and has done a good job limiting guards over the course of this season.

Players like Shed, Edwards and Moore will likely take turns defending the Pac-12 Player of the Year and look to limit his production from the perimeter where he is extremely efficient.

If the Cougars can contain Mathurin’s scoring, play an elite level defense and have timely scoring, there’s reason to believe Houston will be advancing to their second consecutive Elite Eight.

The game tips off at 8:59 p.m. at AT&T Center in San Antonio and will be televised on TBS.

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Christian Walker had three hits in Game 1. Composite Getty Image.

The Houston Astros continue their road trip Wednesday night in Denver, looking to stay red-hot against a struggling Rockies team that can’t seem to buy a win at Coors Field.

Houston enters the second game of the series with a 51–34 record, sitting atop the AL West and riding a stretch of eight wins in their last ten games. Their offense hasn’t exactly been overpowering during this run — the team is hitting just .228 over that span — but timely power and elite pitching have carried the load. They’ll lean on both again Wednesday as right-hander Hunter Brown takes the mound.

Brown has emerged as one of the most dominant starters in baseball this season, posting an 8–3 record and an eye-popping 1.74 ERA with 118 strikeouts. His efficiency and command (0.89 WHIP) have kept opponents off balance all year, and he’ll face a Rockies lineup that’s shown occasional pop but little consistency. Colorado is just 19–66 overall, with only eight wins in 41 games at home.

Austin Gomber gets the ball for the Rockies in what will be just his fouth start of the season. The lefty owns a 6.14 ERA and has managed only five strikeouts in limited action, which could open the door for Houston’s power bats to do damage early. The Astros are 18–5 when they hit multiple home runs in a game.

Colorado will hope to build on the lone bright spot from Tuesday’s loss, a five-hit effort from rookie Jordan Beck, while Hunter Goodman continues to show some spark with five homers in his last ten games.

With the Astros heavily favored (-258) and looking to build further separation in the division, all eyes will be on Brown as he tries to keep the momentum rolling, and give Houston its 52nd win of the season.

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -258, Rockies +208; over/under is 11 runs

Roster moves

Luis Guillorme (hamstring) is headed to the 10-day injured list and Zack Short will replace him on the roster.

Thoughts on tonight's lineup

The first thing that jumps out is Christian Walker is hitting fifth after a three-hit game on Tuesday. Cooper Hummel is hitting seventh and playing left field, with Altuve playing second base again. Shay Whitcomb is in the DH spot, and hitting eighth, followed by Mauricio Dubon. Clearly, Houston's depth will be tested with this lineup. But at least they're playing the lowly Rockies.

Image via: MLB.com/Screenshot.


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