Jamie Squire/Getty Images
It was a night to forget for Kelvin Sampson and the No. 1 Houston Cougars in Saturday’s Big 12 Championship.
Not only were the Cougs knocked off by Iowa State in the conference title game but the Cyclones held Houston to the fewest points by an AP No. 1 seed in over 40 years.
ISU hammered the Cougars in the second half and ended up rolling to a 69-41 victory.
The Clones held Houston’s Jamal Shead to just 10 points on 3-of-17 shooting while also keeping big man J’Wan Roberts quiet for the 13 minutes he played in the first half. For a nine-and-a-half minute stretch, UH was unable to score a single basket
Keshon Gilbert and Milan Momcilovic led the way for Iowa State with 16 and 18 points respectively; carrying over the positive momentum they’ve been building throughout the tournament.
It’s obviously a huge win for T.J. Otzelberger and his program as they make their push for a No. 2 seed for March Madness.
Houston, meanwhile, will likely still be a No. 1 seed with its 30-4 record but it’ll definitely be interesting to see if the selection committee chooses to put them in the same region as Iowa State for the postseason drama.