Sharp Scores 18, #3 Houston Bounces Back to top UCF

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – University of Houston redshirt freshman guard Emanuel Sharp came off the bench to score 18 points, and No. 3 Houston bounced back from a loss, beating UCF, 82-71, inside Addition Financial Arena on Wednesday night.

Freshman forward Jarace Walker added 17 points, junior point guard Jamal Shead had 14 points and 10 assists, and senior guard Marcus Sasser also scored 14 for the Cougars (19-2, 7-1 American Athletic Conference).

Ithiel Horton scored 18 points and Taylor Hendricks had 17 for UCF (13-7, 4-4). Hendricks' three-point play capped a 6-0 run that pulled the Knights within 67-62 with 7:02 remaining.

Horton was called for a flagrant foul with 3:19 left in the game. Sharp made two free throws to extend Houston's lead to 74-64.

Shead swished a contested 3-pointer to give the Cougars a 78-67 lead with 2:15 remaining, and Walker sank a shot from the baseline to make it 80-67 with 1:25 left, matching Houston's biggest lead of the game.

UCF took an early 8-2 lead before Houston responded with an 11-0 run. The Cougars led 38-34 at halftime.

BIG PICTURE
Houston: The Cougars controlled the paint and the pace of the game for stretches in the second half, but foul trouble kept them from pulling away until the final three minutes. ... The Cougars shot 50.9% from the floor.
UCF: The Knights could not keep up the pace in the second half and struggled handling Houston's length on the inside. ... UCF hit just one of its final seven shots.

UP NEXT
• Following Wednesday's game, the Cougars meet Cincinnati at 1:15 p.m., Sunday, inside the Fertitta Center. That game will air on CBS.
• The Cougars look to sweep the regular-season series against the Bearcats after taking a 72-59 win inside Fifth Third Arena on Jan. 8.
• From there, Houston opens the month of February with a road contest at Wichita State at 8 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 2, inside Charles Koch Arena in Wichita, Kan. That game will air on ESPN2.
• The Cougars then meet Temple at 5 p.m. (CST), Sunday, Feb. 5, inside the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia. That game can be seen on ESPN.
• The Cougars look to split the regular-season series against falling against the Owls on Jan. 22 inside the Fertitta Center in Houston.
• All Houston Men's Basketball games can be heard on 950 AM KPRC.

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