Once Upon A Time In Las Vegas
No. 2 Houston will try to jump to the top spot in the polls when it travels to Cincinnati on Sunday afternoon. The Cougars have rattled off six straight wins following their 87-53 win against SMU on Thursday, and they can take back over the top spot in the rankings following No. 1 Purdue’s loss earlier this week. Cincinnati could prove to be a challenge though, as the Bearcats have won five of their last six games.
Houston opened the season as a national title contender, and the Cougars have lived up to those expectations thus far. They rattled off nine consecutive wins before suffering their first loss to then-No. 8 Alabama on Dec. 10. Houston has bounced back since then, winning six straight games. The Cougars picked up a 69-61 win at then-No. 2 Virginia in the middle of December and have since added wins against McNeese State, Tulsa, UCF and SMU. They have covered the spread in four of their last five games, cruising past SMU in an 87-53 final as 20-point favorites on Thursday.
How 'bout that @JaraceW on Thursday night?#ForTheCity x #GoCoogs pic.twitter.com/crS8FmoNBw
— Houston Men's Hoops ?? ?? (@UHCougarMBK) January 7, 2023
The Cougars had a plus-28 rebounding margin against SMU, including a 21-7 advantage on the offensive glass. Their offensive rebounding has been their strength this season, as they lead the nation in that statistic. They are also shooting 54.1% from 2-point range and are taking care of the ball. Houston is facing a Cincinnati defense that is No. 86 in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency ratings. Senior guard Marcus Sasser leads Houston with 15.8 points, 3.0 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game. Junior guard Tramon Mark is also scoring in double figures, averaging 10.1 points and 3.8 rebounds. Freshman forward Jarace Walker is averaging 9.7 points and 6.2 rebounds, while junior forward J’Wan Roberts is chipping in 9.6 points and 7.2 rebounds.