.png&width=48&height=48&type=webp)
Friday, March 19
Bloomington, Ind.
6:15 p.m.
University of Houston
25-3
87
vs
56
Cleveland State
19-8
1
2
F
Cleveland St.
29
27
56
Houston
37
50
87
Cougars Advance Behind Second-Half Surge
3/19/2021 8:29:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Sixth-ranked Houston used a strong second half to defeat No. 15 Cleveland State
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Quentin Grimes scored 18 points and Houston coach Kelvin Sampson tied John Wooden on the career victories list as the Cougars beat 15th-seeded Cleveland State 87-56 in the NCAA Tournament on Friday night.
Sampson earned his 664th win, No. 38 all-time, in his first game at Assembly Hall since resigning as Indiana's coach in February 2008.
No. 2 seed Houston has won eight straight and will face 10th-seeded Rutgers in the Midwest Region's second round on Sunday. It's unclear if starting guard DeJon Jarreau will be available after he missed all but 41 seconds with a hip pointer.
''DeJon has been our MVP this season,'' Sampson said. ''Quentin has been our best player but DeJon has been our most important player and I think doing this tonight will give us some confidence going forward.''
Tramon Mark added 15 points in place of Jarreau and Marcus Sasser finished with 14 for Houston (25-3).
D'Moi Hodge scored 11 points and Torrey Patton had eight points and eight rebounds for the Vikings (19-9). Cleveland State had won at least one game in each of its two previous tourney appearances, beating Indiana (1986) and Wake Forest (2009).
Hanging with Houston, No. 6 in the AP poll, was simply too much to ask - even on a neutral court that had at least a measure of tournament atmosphere. Fans gathered early in the concourse, took photos of statues, lined up for concessions and some brought signs.
''That's a one seed, I'm telling you,'' Vikings coach Dennis Gates said. ''They can score the basketball in every which way possible. They do a great job defensively of not fouling. We didn't play our very best but that was because of the University of Houston. They put us on our heels.''
Grimes' basket to end the first half gave the Cougars a 37-29 lead and they opened the second half on a 12-2 run, holding the Vikings to just one basket over the first five minutes.
''Rebounding and defense set the tone for the second half,'' Grimes said. ''Coach emphasized some guys weren't getting rebounds, we had some mistakes we were making and when we corrected those that's when we started to take off.''
Cleveland State was 5 of 19 from the field after halftime.
Houston is in its third straight tourney - its longest streak since 1982-84, when the team dubbed Phi Slama Jama lost in back-to-back title games.
BIG PICTURE
Cleveland State: The Vikings were overmatched. They played hard and fought valiantly for a half - but they were outrebounded 38-24, committed too many fouls and lacked the depth to stay with the Cougars. Walk-on Ben Sternberg brought some joy to the Vikings bench by making two late free throws.
Houston: The loss of Jarreau and Mack's early foul trouble created some difficulties for the Cougars. But they still look like a team capable of making a deep run - if they're healthy.
INJURY WATCH
Tip-off time and TV network designation will be made available later.
JOIN the 2021-22 SEASON-TICKET PRIORITY WAIT LIST
Houston Men's Basketball fans can join the season ticket priority wait list for the 2021-22 season inside the Fertitta Center with a $75 deposit today. To place a deposit for the 2021 season, click here or call 713-GO-COOGS (462-4667).
JOIN the 50-50-CLUB
Fans are invited to join the 50-50 Club to support Houston Men's Basketball. 50-50 Club members help fund program necessities and enhance the experience for our student-athletes.
Fans who join the 50-50 Club will receive embroidered Jordan Brand team apparel, invitations to exclusive events, regular updates about the program and much more.
For more information or to sign up, fans may visit uhcougars.com/5050club or click here. To join the 50-50 Club, fans may call Cougar Pride at 713-743-GoUH (46874).
STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarMBK on Twitter and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team's Facebook page at UHCougarMBK or by visiting the team's Instagram page at UHCougarMBK.
Sampson earned his 664th win, No. 38 all-time, in his first game at Assembly Hall since resigning as Indiana's coach in February 2008.
No. 2 seed Houston has won eight straight and will face 10th-seeded Rutgers in the Midwest Region's second round on Sunday. It's unclear if starting guard DeJon Jarreau will be available after he missed all but 41 seconds with a hip pointer.
''DeJon has been our MVP this season,'' Sampson said. ''Quentin has been our best player but DeJon has been our most important player and I think doing this tonight will give us some confidence going forward.''
Tramon Mark added 15 points in place of Jarreau and Marcus Sasser finished with 14 for Houston (25-3).
D'Moi Hodge scored 11 points and Torrey Patton had eight points and eight rebounds for the Vikings (19-9). Cleveland State had won at least one game in each of its two previous tourney appearances, beating Indiana (1986) and Wake Forest (2009).
Hanging with Houston, No. 6 in the AP poll, was simply too much to ask - even on a neutral court that had at least a measure of tournament atmosphere. Fans gathered early in the concourse, took photos of statues, lined up for concessions and some brought signs.
''That's a one seed, I'm telling you,'' Vikings coach Dennis Gates said. ''They can score the basketball in every which way possible. They do a great job defensively of not fouling. We didn't play our very best but that was because of the University of Houston. They put us on our heels.''
Grimes' basket to end the first half gave the Cougars a 37-29 lead and they opened the second half on a 12-2 run, holding the Vikings to just one basket over the first five minutes.
''Rebounding and defense set the tone for the second half,'' Grimes said. ''Coach emphasized some guys weren't getting rebounds, we had some mistakes we were making and when we corrected those that's when we started to take off.''
Cleveland State was 5 of 19 from the field after halftime.
Houston is in its third straight tourney - its longest streak since 1982-84, when the team dubbed Phi Slama Jama lost in back-to-back title games.
BIG PICTURE
Cleveland State: The Vikings were overmatched. They played hard and fought valiantly for a half - but they were outrebounded 38-24, committed too many fouls and lacked the depth to stay with the Cougars. Walk-on Ben Sternberg brought some joy to the Vikings bench by making two late free throws.
Houston: The loss of Jarreau and Mack's early foul trouble created some difficulties for the Cougars. But they still look like a team capable of making a deep run - if they're healthy.
INJURY WATCH
Jarreau, a fifth-year senior, spent most of the game grimacing in pain while wearing an ice pack on his right hip. He earned second-team all-conference honors and was named the American Athletic Conference defensive player of the year. ''A hip pointer for him will be a little more severe than for me or you,'' Sampson said.
TEXAS HOLD 'EM
TEXAS HOLD 'EM
Three Texas teams held serve at Assembly Hall during the first two days of the tourney. Texas Southern drew an ace in a First Four victory Thursday. Texas Tech made it a pair by beating Utah State in the early game Friday and the Cougars made it three of a kind with Friday night's victory. No Texas teams are scheduled to play in Bloomington on Saturday and tourney games after the first round will be played in Indianapolis.
UP NEXT
With the win over (15) Cleveland State, Houston faces (10) Rutgers on Sunday. The Scarlet Knights claimed a 60-56 win over (7) Clemson in the First Round on Friday night.UP NEXT
Tip-off time and TV network designation will be made available later.
JOIN the 2021-22 SEASON-TICKET PRIORITY WAIT LIST
Houston Men's Basketball fans can join the season ticket priority wait list for the 2021-22 season inside the Fertitta Center with a $75 deposit today. To place a deposit for the 2021 season, click here or call 713-GO-COOGS (462-4667).
JOIN the 50-50-CLUB
Fans are invited to join the 50-50 Club to support Houston Men's Basketball. 50-50 Club members help fund program necessities and enhance the experience for our student-athletes.
Fans who join the 50-50 Club will receive embroidered Jordan Brand team apparel, invitations to exclusive events, regular updates about the program and much more.
For more information or to sign up, fans may visit uhcougars.com/5050club or click here. To join the 50-50 Club, fans may call Cougar Pride at 713-743-GoUH (46874).
STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarMBK on Twitter and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team's Facebook page at UHCougarMBK or by visiting the team's Instagram page at UHCougarMBK.
Team Stats
CSU
HOU
FG%
.386
.475
3FG%
.400
.280
FT%
.696
.759
RB
24
38
TO
14
9
STL
6
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
6
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballHOOPS and HOUNDS 2025 – Bryce Jackson, Isiah Harwell and Chris Cenac Jr.
Tuesday, September 23
HOOPS and HOUNDS 2025 – Cedric Lath and Kalifa Sakho
Tuesday, September 23
HOOPS and HOUNDS 2025 – Chase McCarty, Kingston Flemings and Jacob McFarland
Thursday, September 18
HOOPS and HOUNDS 2025 – Ramon Walker Jr, Emanuel Sharp and Milos Uzan
Wednesday, September 17