Expect the fur to fly and defense to be front and center when No. 3 Houston and No. 5 Iowa State square off Monday in the latest of a series of titanic Big 12 Conference clashes in Ames, Iowa.
Monday’s game is the second of three contests in a row against ranked teams for Iowa State, and the first of a three-game stretch versus opponents ranked in the top 25 for the Cougars over an eight-day period.
The Cyclones (22-3, 9-3 Big 12) bounced back from a mid-week road loss to TCU with a dominating 74-56 win at home over No. 9 Kansas on Saturday. The 18-point margin in the victory was Iowa State’s largest in a win over the Jayhawks since 1973, and the win avenged a 21-point loss to Kansas on Jan. 13 that handed the Cyclones their first setback of the season.
Milan Momcilovic poured in 18 points for Iowa State in the win while hitting four 3-pointers. Joshua Jefferson, Tamin Lipsey, Blake Buchanan and Jamarion Batemon added 11 points each for the Cyclones, who held Kansas to 37.3% shooting from the floor and won for the sixth time in their past seven games.
“Our guys were really locked in,” Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger said. “I thought it was at a very high level in terms of how we pressured the ball, how physical we were, how we were ahead of plays in the first half to turn them. Our defensive intensity was at a very high level.”
Iowa State is a perfect 14-0 at home this year and 47-2 on its home court over the past three seasons. That streak will be tested — in a big way — by Houston’s visit.
“We have tremendous respect for their program,” Otzelberger said about the Cougars. “We know how good they are and the things that they can do, the problems they can pose. It’s always balancing the necessary amount of get rest and get your body to bounce back, come to practice with great mental focus and intent and get prepared to play a really good team.”
Houston (23-2, 11-1 Big 12) heads north after riding its defense to a 78-64 win at home over Kansas State on Saturday afternoon. Emanuel Sharp scored 23 points to pace the Cougars, who overcame a ragged first half in which they made just two of their first 15 shots before finding their stride. Houston held Kansas State scoreless over the final 5:24 of the first half, during which it turned a one-point lead into a 14-point advantage.
“Basketball is not a very complicated game — when you make shots, you look pretty, and when you miss them it’s ugly,” Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said. “I think we lead the world in ugly wins, but we are still 23-2, 11-1, so that’s pretty good.”
Milos Uzan and Kingston Flemings added 12 points each for Houston, which won its sixth straight game despite committing a season-high 15 turnovers.
“I won’t spend one minute tonight worrying about this game — not one minute,” Sampson said after Saturday’s win. “We’ll see if we can go and shock the world because that’s what it would be. Iowa State doesn’t lose at home. Neither do we. Neither does Kansas. Neither does Arizona.”
After Monday’s contest, Houston hosts No. 1 Arizona on Saturday and then travels to No. 9 Kansas on Feb. 23.
