KANSAS CITY, Mo. — L.J. Cryer hit six 3-pointers and scored 20 points for No. 1 Houston, which played most of the game without an injury to big man Jawan Roberts. used to defeat No. 25 Texas Tech 82. -59 Friday night in the semifinals of the Big 12 Tournament.
Roberts played only a few minutes in the first half with an injury to his right foot, but the Cougars, lacking the rest of the field, replaced him. Emmanuel Sharpe scored 17 points, conference player of the year Jamal Shihed added 12 points, and Houston (30-3) defeated its old Southwest Conference rival 50-30 in the second half to advance to the new conference. They advanced to the title game in their first year.
The Cougars will play either No. 7 Iowa State or No. 14 Baylor on Saturday night for the Big 12 Tournament championship.
Chance McMillian scored 15 points and Joe Toussaint added 10 points for Texas Tech (23-10), which got within 40-38 with 16 1/2 minutes left, but Houston went on a 17-0 run over the next five minutes. He got a run and succeeded in turning the game around. A close game brings laughter.
Red Raiders leading scorer Pop Isaacs was limited to six points on 2-of-13 shooting.
Houston won the regular-season Big 12 title and despite a wave of injuries (even before Roberts' injury) that paralyzed the front line that Kelvin Sampson expected this season, AP for the past three weeks. He has spent time at the top of the top 25.
Terrence Arsenault was the first to go down with a torn Achilles tendon in December. Ramon Walker Jr. tore the meniscus in his knee in February, and Joseph Tugler fractured a bone in his foot about a week later, ending his season.
The Cougars shored up their defense to compensate for Roberts' injury and forced Texas Tech into several shot clock violations.
The Red Raiders, who started four of their 21 games from the field, briefly picked up steam late in the first half. McMillian came off the bench to make two 3s and score 10 points, and Texas Tech went on a 17-5 run to within 32-29 at the break.
But when Roberts limped to the floor in the second half, Houston got all emotional. And although he played just a few minutes before icing his leg again on the bench, his return coincided with a decisive breakout for the Cougars.
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Texas Tech had won four straight games by Friday night and gained momentum heading into the NCAA Tournament.
Houston's first loss came against Iowa State on Jan. 9, but the Cougars got revenge at home last month. They defeated Baylor in their only matchup a few weeks ago when Cryer had a great night with his former team.
