
Photo by: USA Today Sports Images
Shead Seals Victory for #1 Men's Basketball in Norman
3/2/2024 9:56:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Senior LJ Cryer leads Houston with 23 points, four other Cougars in double figures
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) – University of Houston senior point guard Jamal Shead hit a short follow shot with 0.4 seconds left, and No. 1 Houston beat Oklahoma 87-85 on Saturday night, giving Head Coach Kelvin Sampson a victory over one of his former schools.
• Following Saturday's game, the Cougars close their brief road swing when they take on UCF at 6 p.m. (CST), Wednesday, March 6, inside Addition Financial Arena in Orlando, Fla. That game will air on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
• From there, the Cougars close their regular season and celebrate Senior Day when they play host to #7/9 Kansas inside Fertitta Center on Saturday, March 9. That game will air on ESPN.
• Guards LJ Cryer, Jamal Shead, Damian Dunn, Mylik Wilson and Ryan Elvin and senior forward J'Wan Roberts will be recognized in pregame Senior Day activities.
• All Houston Men's Basketball games can be heard on 950 AM KPRC and the Varsity Network app.
SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Men's Basketball by supporting Linking Coogs – UH's NIL collective – and by joining the 50-50 Club, which provides financial support directly to Houston Men's Basketball for needs beyond its operating budget.
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.
STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarMBK on X, formerly known as 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.
Shead missed a driving layup attempt but corralled the rebound and put the Cougars back ahead after Oklahoma rallied from a 15-point deficit. Sophomore guard Emanuel Sharp tipped away a desperation pass by Oklahoma's Milos Uzan as time expired.
"The main thing (on the last shot) was to get it to the rim," Sampson said. "We weren't going to shoot anything outside of 5 feet. There were three ways to win that game - a whistle, make the shot or (grab) an offensive rebound and put it in - and we got the third one."
Sampson credited the result to Houston's "winning DNA". "We had a lot of things go against us tonight. We were just plugging the holes in the boat up."
Senior guard L.J. Cryer led Houston (26-3, 13-3 Big 12) with 23 points, making 5 of 9 3-pointers. Senior forward J'Wan Roberts added 20 points on 10-of-12 shooting, and Shead scored 14 points. Houston shot 56.7% from the field and Oklahoma was at 52.7%.
Rivaldo Soares had 16 points for Oklahoma (19-10, 7-9). Le'Tre Darthard had 15 points, finishing 5 of 7 from 3-point range.
Sampson coached Oklahoma from 1994 to 2006 and ranks second in program history with 279 wins and first in winning percentage (.719). Before Saturday, he'd never coached against the Sooners, but Houston's entry into the Big 12 for this basketball season provided that opportunity.
Sampson received a warm welcome as he entered the Lloyd Noble Arena court, with many fans applauding, cheering and standing. Just before player introductions, Sampson and his three assistants with Oklahoma ties - former players Hollis Price, Quannas White and Kellen Sampson, his son - were individually recognized with announcements and pictured on the video board.
"The memories that I will take from here are just amazing," Kelvin Sampson said. "Oklahoma will always be home in a lot of ways."
Houston made its first week this season at No. 1 a successful one, with two wins. The Cougars are a game ahead of No. 8 Iowa State in the conference standings with two games left in the regular season and remain in the conversation for the overall No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Houston has won eight of the last nine games it has played as the No. 1-ranked team and is 35-5 overall while atop the AP poll.
Oklahoma dropped its second game of the week against a top-10 opponent, having lost 58-45 at Iowa State on Wednesday night.
The Sooners pushed Houston to the limit. Houston led 67-52 with 12:01 left, but the Sooners methodically closed that gap and Javian McCollum's layup with 11.8 seconds left tied it at 85. It came after a hustle play by Uzan, who tracked down a rebound off a missed free throw and threw it off the leg of Sharp, allowing it to carom out of bounds.
Oklahoma coach Porter Moser said the vibe in the Sooners' locker room was "tough. It wasn't like they were happy to be close. They're hurting. That's a good sign. That's the elite of the elite, and we've got to find a way to win that. That's my job.
"I thought they were resilient battling back. Houston made tough shots, open shots, good shots. They do a lot of good things, but I thought we did too. We played the best team in the country, but we fell short. The margin of error when you play a team that good is small."
Godwin went 6 of 6 from the field and led Oklahoma with 17 points, missing only the one free throw in six attempts as well. He also had seven rebounds.
BIG PICTURE
Houston: Sampson surely appreciated the warm welcome from fans on his return to Oklahoma, but he's undoubtedly glad to have the emotional game against the Sooners over with. Now he can push the Cougars to focus on finishing the regular season strong and prepare them for the postseason.
Oklahoma: A win over the nation's No. 1 team might have pushed the Sooners up a line or two in NCAA tournament seeding, but the loss shouldn't damage their postseason hopes too much. Oklahoma probably needs at least one win next week - at home against Cincinnati or at Texas - to stay comfortably off the NCAA bubble heading into the Big 12 Tournament.
UP NEXT• Following Saturday's game, the Cougars close their brief road swing when they take on UCF at 6 p.m. (CST), Wednesday, March 6, inside Addition Financial Arena in Orlando, Fla. That game will air on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
• From there, the Cougars close their regular season and celebrate Senior Day when they play host to #7/9 Kansas inside Fertitta Center on Saturday, March 9. That game will air on ESPN.
• Guards LJ Cryer, Jamal Shead, Damian Dunn, Mylik Wilson and Ryan Elvin and senior forward J'Wan Roberts will be recognized in pregame Senior Day activities.
• All Houston Men's Basketball games can be heard on 950 AM KPRC and the Varsity Network app.
SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Men's Basketball by supporting Linking Coogs – UH's NIL collective – and by joining the 50-50 Club, which provides financial support directly to Houston Men's Basketball for needs beyond its operating budget.
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.
STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarMBK on X, formerly known as 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.
– UHCougars.com –
Team Stats
UH
OU
FG%
.567
.527
3FG%
.526
.480
FT%
.818
.833
RB
22
27
TO
5
8
STL
6
4
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