With 2.8 seconds on the clock in a 60-60 tie, Kelvin Sampson went to his play sheet to name “51.” Purdue coated the primary one, however the second choice was open, and it was a becoming one for Houston to advance to the Elite Eight for the primary time since 2022.
After Milos Uzan delivered an entry move to Joseph Tugler, the junior bought each of his toes in-bounds and laid in a go-ahead bucket with 0.9 seconds left to place the Cougars up, 62-60. A Braden Smith heave on the horn was off, Lucas Oil Stadium was largely silenced, and the category of the Huge 12 discovered a method immediately basic Friday night time in Indianapolis.
After Houston misplaced a 10-point lead attributable to Smith’s heroics and a Camden Heide game-tying triple with 35 seconds left, the Cougars had the ball with a 3.7-second distinction between shot and recreation clock. After two missed pictures resulted in a Boilers deflection out of bounds, it gave Sampson the power to name the game-winning play, and it was executed to perfection.
It is solely becoming that it was Uzan, who was introduced in to assist offset the lack of star guard Jamal Shead. On Friday night time, Houston wanted the Oklahoma switch in each method, as LJ Cryer shot 2-of-13 from the sphere and had simply 5 factors. Cryer did hit an enormous 3 with beneath 4 minutes remaining within the recreation, however the fifth-year senior was off for almost all of the night time, whereas Smith was commanding the sport, ending with 15 assists and solely three turnovers. However it was simply shy of being sufficient, because the Boilers had been outscored by Houston 27-15 within the first 12 minutes of the second half.
Following the sport, Sampson was fast to credit score Uzan, who he stated embodies what this system is about and battled via a damaged nostril harm throughout October follow when he collided with Emanuel Sharp. He has fought via it and is now 40 minutes away from the objective he set when coming to Houston.
“His progress has mirrored our progress,” Sampson stated of Uzan throughout a postgame interview. “As he is gotten higher, we have gotten higher.”
And the Cougars will meet Tennessee on Sunday for a visit to San Antonio.
John Fanta is a nationwide school basketball broadcaster and author for FOX Sports activities. He covers the game in a wide range of capacities, from calling video games on FS1 to serving as lead host on the BIG EAST Digital Community to offering commentary on The Subject of 68 Media Community. Observe him at @John_Fanta.
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