Weekly College Basketball Roundup

Houston drops its first, Texas stumbles, Tech continues to roll

Houston drops its first, Texas stumbles, Tech continues to roll
Chris Beard and Tech are on a mean roll. Sarah Stier/Getty Images

TEXAS LONGHORNS (10-7) 2-3 Big XII

Last week (0-3):
L- @ Oklahoma State 61-58, L- Texas Tech 68-62, L- @ Kansas 80-78

This week: Saturday vs. Oklahoma

Any momentum Texas had going into this week after a 2-0 start to Big XII play is out the window after a horrid second week of conference play. First, the Horns dropped a heartbreaker to Oklahoma State on the road, 61-58. You don't have to dig deep into a box score to find out what led to Texas' downfall. Texas shot 2-22 from 3-point range in the game, including a miss with a chance to tie the game at the buzzer. Kerwin Roach was the leading scorer for Texas with 18. Things didn't get better with Texas Tech coming into Austin. The Horns dropped a 68-62 battle with the Red Raiders, giving Tech their first win in Austin since 1996. Roach had 17 points in the loss. Texas' biggest issue in this one was turnovers, as the defensive-minded Red Raiders forced 14 in the game. Finally, the Horns battled hard and came up just short against Kansas in Phog Allen Fieldhouse, dropping their third straight by a final of 80-78. Texas shot the ball well, won the rebounding battle 38-31, and only had 6 turnovers, but it wasn't enough. Kansas only committed 4 turnovers all night. 5 Longhorns hit double digits, led by Matt Coleman III's 16 points. Texas will look to get back on track this week against Oklahoma.

TEXAS A&M AGGIES (7-7) 1-2 SEC

Last week (1-1):
L- @ Kentucky 85-74, W- @ Alabama 81-80

This week: Wednesday vs. Auburn, Saturday vs. Mizzou

The Aggies started well against Kentucky, but couldn't hold off the talented Wildcats, losing 85-74 in Lexington. The game was closer than the score indicates, with the Aggies shooting nearly as well as the Cats all game. The 19 turnovers for Texas A&M were the deal breaker, though. TJ Starks and Jay Jay Chandler both had 18 points for the Aggies. The Aggies came back strong with a buzzer-beater win over Alabama, 81-80. Starks struggled mightily in this one, getting his 12 points on 4-17 shooting. He came through when it mattered most, though, banking in a game winning 3 as time expired. Josh Nebo was near perfect, shooting 10-12 en route to a season-high 21 points. The Aggies get Auburn and Mizzou at home this week.

HOUSTON COUGARS (16-1) 3-1 American

Last week (1-1): L- @ Temple 73-69, W- Wichita State 79-70

This week: Wednesday @ SMU, Saturday @ South Florida

Houston tasted defeat for the first time this season, dropping a 73-69 battle with Temple. A late charge call sealed the win for Temple. The game was only the 3rd road game all season for Houston, who has a nation's best home winning streak at 29 games. Senior Breaon Brady's 19 points kept the Cougars in the game on a night when their top two scorers, Armani Brooks and Corey Davis, combined for 6 of 23 shooting. The Coogs bounced back with a 79-70 win over Wichita State. Davis led the way with 20 points in the win, with Brooks adding in 14 more. Houston held Wichita to just 39% shooting in the win. Houston hits the road for matchups against SMU and South Florida this week.

RICE OWLS (7-11) 2-3 CUSA

Last week (0-2): L- @ UTSA 95-79, L- @ UTEP 65-64

This week: Saturday @ North Texas

Rice followed up their first back to back wins in two years with a week of back to back losses. The Owls dropped their game at UTSA, 95-79. Rice shot just 25% from 3-point distance and turned the ball over 15 times. Chris Mullins and Quentin Miller-Brown each had 14 for the Owls in defeat. That was followed up dramatic 65-64 loss to UTEP. The Owls hit a 3-pointer to take a 1 point lead with just 1.5 seconds left. The inbound was knocked out of bounds, so UTEP had a chance to inbound again with .5 seconds left. The 3/4 court inbound was on the money, as was the turnaround jumper that followed it, giving the Miners a 1 point win. Jack Williams led the Owls with 15 points and 11 rebounds in the loss. Rice plays at North Texas on Saturday.

BAYLOR BEARS (10-6) 2-2 Big XII

Last week (1-1):
W- Iowa State 73-70, L- Kansas 73-68, W- Oklahoma State 73-69

This week: Saturday vs. Texas Tech, Monday @ West Virginia

Baylor went 2-1, but their biggest loss of the week won't show up in the standings. Baylor's 2nd leading scorer, Tristan Clark, was lost for the season to a knee injury. He scored 16 points in the 73-70 win over Iowa State. Makai Mason led the team with a season-high 25 points. Mason hit 5 free throws in the last minute to seal the win, and the Bears were 17-20 from the stripe overall. The Bears lost their other game this week, dropping a hard fought 73-68 matchup with Kansas. The Bears cut a 23 point Kansas lead to just 4 with under a minute remaining. Freshman Jared Butler led the Bears with 14 points in defeat. Baylor got a massive showing from King McClure to pace them to a 73-69 win over Oklahoma State on Monday. McClure had 29-points 9 rebounds and 4 assists in the win. He knocked down 7 3-pointer's on the night. The Bears as a team were 15-25 from deep. Jared Butler, starting for the injured Clark, had 16 points in the win. Baylor gets Texas Tech on Saturday and a road trip to West Virginia on Monday.

TCU HORNED FROGS (12-3) 1-2 Big XII

Last week (1-0):
L- @ Kansas 77-68, L- @ Oklahoma 76-74

This week: Tuesday vs. WVU, Saturday @ Kansas State

TCU had its worst week of the season, dropping two road games to drop their conference record to 1-2. First, they lost 77-68 to Kansas in Lawrence. The Frogs killed themselves in this one, turning the ball over 20 times in the loss. The Frogs had five players in double digits, led by RJ Nembhard's 14 points. Things didn't get much better in Norman, OK, where the Frogs blew a 6 point halftime lead and fell to Oklahoma 76-74. Kouat Noi was the lone offensive bright spot for TCU, scoring 30 points on 10-14 shooting. The rest of the Frogs shot 15-58 from the field. TCU gets West Virginia and Kansas State next week.

TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS (15-1) 4-0 Big XII

Last week (2-0): W- vs. Oklahoma 66-59, W- @ Texas 68-62

This week: Wednesday vs. Iowa State, Saturday @ Baylor

Texas Tech again trailed at halftime, and again Jarrett Culver led them back to a victory, 66-59 over Oklahoma. Culver had 23 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Red Raiders back from a halftime deficit. Tech's dominant defense held the Sooners to just 32% shooting and 31% from 3-point distance. They followed it up with a win in Austin, downing the Longhorns 68-62. Matt Mooney led the charge with 22 points. The Red Raiders forced 14 turnovers and only gave up 9. Texas Tech, now 8th in the polls, gets Iowa State and Baylor this week.

SMU MUSTANGS (11-5) 3-1 American

Last week (1-1):
L- @ UConn 76-64, W- Tulsa 77-57

This week: Wednesday vs. Houston, Saturday @ Memphis

SMU started their game at UConn well, but shot their way out of it and ended up getting beat 76-64. SMU shot 23-66 and 3-23 from distance in the loss. Jimmy Whitt, Jr. shot 9-18 for 20 points and 10 rebounds in the loss. Things improved dramatically for the Ponies against Tulsa, winning in blowout fashion, 77-57. Jahmal McMurray led the way scoring 22 points on 7-12 shooting, including 6-11 from 3-point range. McMurray added another double-double scoring 10 points and hauling in 10 rebounds. SMU held the Golden Hurricane to just 36% shooting in the victory. SMU gets Houston and Memphis this week.

LSU TIGERS (12-3) 2-0 SEC

Last week (2-0):
W- Alabama 88-79, W- @ Arkansas 94-88 (OT)

This week: Tuesday @ Ole Miss, Saturday vs. South Carolina

LSU looked well rested after their week off. They started off with an 88-79 win over Alabama. LSU jumped out to a big lead and never looked back. The Tigers hit 10-15 from long range, and hit 49 percentfrom the field overall. Tremont Waters was 6-9 shooting and led the Tigers with 19 points. Kavell Bigby-Williams had 14 points, 13 rebounds and 5 blocks as well. They followed that up with a solid road win against Arkansas, 94-88. Freshman Naz Reid was dominant, with 27 points and 7 rebounds on 10-12 shooting. Again the difference in this game came at the 3-point line, where the Tigers shot 40% and the Hogs shot 19%. LSU goes to Ole Miss on Tuesday and hosts South Carolina on Saturday.

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