Led by Terrance Arceneaux, #15 Houston basketball beat Toledo 78-49 to improve to 7-3 on the year.
The Cougars dominated wire-to-wire and didn’t trail the whole way through for the third straight game. The last time Houston trailed in a game was versus San Diego State in the third-place game of the Player’s Era tournament on Nov. 30th. UH won their 29th straight game at home, which continues the longest streak in the nation.
Houston took control with a 22-5 lead halfway through the first half after a jumper from Tugler. UH built their largest lead of 20 with just over two minutes to go after a layup from redshirt junior guard Emanuel Sharp, and led 39-22 at halftime after a couple late buckets from Toledo. While UH only shot 14% from three in the first half, the Rockets were limited to shooting just 27%. Houston also made 13 free throws. Sharp led the way and scored all 13 of his points in the first half.
Houston maintained their lead around 20 throughout the next 10 minutes, but completely broke the game open down the stretch. A turnaround jumper by Terrance Arceneaux brought the advantage to 30. The Cougars bench chipped in and the lead kept growing and eventually hit 38, the largest of the game at 78-40 off a layup from Mylik Wilson. Sophomore forward Joseph Tugler added 13 points, while junior point guard Milos Uzan put up 10. Head coach Kelvin Sampson highlighted graduate guard LJ Cryer’s defense as one of the best of the night.
Takeaway #1: Houston’s signature elite rebounding
UH completely dominated the boards and outrebounded the Rockets by 21. The Cougars got 50 total rebounds compared to only 29. The true difference made was on the offensive glass, with Houston winning it 16-6. That resulted in 24 second chance points for UH compared to just three for Toledo, who struggled containing Houston’s size. Of the 10 players who played four or more minutes, all of them grabbed at least three rebounds and with half of them getting busy on the offensive boards. That is typical Houston basketball culture.
“We’ve been a good rebounding program for a long time,” coach Kelvin Sampson said. “These guys are doing what all the guys who came before them did. They’re doing what’s expected.”
Takeaway #2: Arceneaux, Wilson and the bench
The Houston bench continues to be effective, putting up 36 points against the Rockets. This effort was highlighted by sophomore guard Terrance Arceneaux, who put up a career high 16 points and also collected nine rebounds. The Beaumont native has impressed so far this year after tearing his achilles a year ago.
“It’s definitely feeling stronger (Achilles), I don’t think about it too much. Just pushed myself until I couldn’t,” Arceneaux said.
Graduate guard Mylik Wilson also made an impression, as he scored 10 points which is his second highest total of the season. Wilson had an all around complete performance with five rebounds, four assists, two steals and a blocked shot.
Takeaway #3: Tough stretch for Toledo
The Rockets have now lost four of their last five and shot just under 30% overall versus the Cougars. Sophomore guard Sam Lewis once again led Toledo in scoring with 14 points. The Rockets were able to stay active on the defensive end and force 12 turnovers. However, Toledo struggled offensively as they missed 10 shots in a row early in the first half.
Next up for Houston (7-3): vs. Texas A&M CC (7-5) – Dec. 21 at 2 p.m. EST
Next up for Toledo (6-5): at #16 Purdue (8-3) – Dec. 29 at 6 p.m. EST