Second-half run seals win for Cougars
Kelvin Sampson did not say a word in the locker room at halftime Saturday.
The University of Houston got the message.
Emanuel Sharp had a career-high 25 points and L.J. Cryer added 21 as the thirdranked Cougars pulled away in the second half to beat Jackson State 89-55 before a crowd of 7,122 at Fertitta Center.
“When a coach is upset at his team, the answer is not always screaming, hollering and fussing at them,” Sampson, UH’s 10th-year head coach, said. “Sometimes you can have a much better effect by saying nothing. That’s kind of the approach I took.”
Sampson was unhappy with the Cougars’ performance for the first 20 minutes as Jackson State shot 45.5%, matched UH on the boards and trailed by only eight points at halftime.
Jackson State (2-7) got within 42-35 early in the second half before the Cougars
scored 10 straight points. The Tigers went sixplus minutes without a field goal.
Fueled by its defense, UH had four straight steals at one point during the momentum-shifting stretch, with Jamal Shead finishing off fastbreaks with two layups for a 50-35 lead.
UH improved to 10-0 for the third time in program history, joining the 1967-68 and 2018-19 teams.
“Whether he’s yelling at us or whether he’s quiet, we know the message he’s trying to give us,” said Sharp, who surpassed his previous career high 20 points set in the season opener against Louisiana Monroe.
Sharp and Cryer combined for 46 points on 12of-28 shooting, including eight 3-pointers. Mylik Wilson added 10 points and Shead had nine points and six assists for the Cougars.
After a redshirt season, Sharp came off the bench for all 33 games last season. In six starts this season, Sharp is second on the team with 12.9 points per
game.
Sharp took over in the second half with 16 points, including three 3-pointers. UH shot 51.6% in the second half.
UH’s No. 1-ranked defense forced 24 turnovers, including 18 steals, that led to 31 points. UH finished with a 47-25 advantage on the boards.
Jackson State guard Ken Evans Jr., who averaged 24 points in the previous three games, was held to six points on 3-of-9 shooting. Evans was ejected after picking up his second technical foul with 5:44 left.
“They just jumped on us in the second half,” Jackson State coach Mo Williams said. “They dominated the second half on the boards — all game — and they turned us over.”
Cryer, a transfer guard from Baylor, had 16 points in the first half. In the last four games, Cryer is averaging 20.8 points.
Sampson praised the effort of JoJo Tugler, a 6-7 freshman forward, who provided a lift in the frontcourt in the first half.
“He was our best player in the first half,” Sampson said. “Other guys joined the party in the second half.”
Jackson State is amid 13 straight road games to begin the season. The Tigers, who compete in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, beat Missouri on Nov. 19 and narrowly lost to Georgetown.
Jackson State led 16-15 with 10:26 left in the first half on a 3-pointer by Jayme Mitchell Jr. UH answered with a 15-2 run, highlighted by a pair of 3s by Sharp.
The Tigers scored 10 straight points just before halftime to pull within 3729.
Jackson State closed within 42-35 in the opening minutes of the second half before the Cougars began to pull away.
Asked after the game what adjustments the Cougars made, Sampson said: “Two words that are indigenous to effort — try harder.”