Houston drops a close one to TCU, 68-67. The Cougars had every chance to leave Fort Worth a winner, but it didn’t happen. It’s another conference road game and another loss.
the daily #163 | 1/14/2024 | Archives
This game was there for the taking at the end. Didn’t happen. Jamal Shead hit a 3 with 1:27 to play to give UH a 4-point lead. Perfect opportunity for the Cougar defense to do what they do: to make a play to close it out. Didn’t happen.
TCU’s Treveyon Tennyson was left wide open on the wing to hit a 3. UH still had a one-point lead and the ball and got a good look at the basket from 8 feet from LJ Cryer who missed.
J’Wan Roberts got the rebound and was fouled – for the first time of the game, despite 18 FG attempts – and he went to the line for a one-and-one. He missed the first. Still up one with 36 seconds left, UH had another chance to lock down a win with defense.
Didn’t happen. Emanuel Miller made a lay-up to take the lead, but UH had one last chance. A play they practice repeatedly. Always the same thing. Always Jamal Shead.
Didn’t happen. 68-67 final.
The last 75 seconds of the game went about as poorly as it could. A missed shot and the front end on foul #7, two defensive breakdowns, and the mess at the end created a five-point swing and led to another loss.
But truthfully, this game was lost well before any of that took place. UH built a 12-point lead in the first 12 minutes of the first half, only to let that slip to a two-point lead at the break. After that 12-point cushion, UH shot 2 for 12 from the floor and committed 4 turnovers in the final 8 minutes. Brutal.
I understand it is tough playing on the road. But playing on the road has very little to do with letting a 12-point lead get away from you or giving up a 4-point lead with 1:27 left in the game.
We can all analyze the stats and fouls and the game film to look at what went wrong. That’s easy. Missed too many shots and gave away too many fouls. The real question is “why” these things went wrong. How can a team look so good one week ago and turn around and look completely lost offensively this week?
It’s not time to panic. It’s not a time to change much, either. Despite the poor performances this week, both games were there to be won at the end. There are big-time lessons to be learned here. Of course, you want to learn these lessons with wins, but maybe the lapses against Xavier and A&M weren’t instructive enough. Even if you pulled out two wins this week, the team still played poorly in both games. Now, the issues can’t be swept under the rug and must be addressed and corrected immediately.
There is absolutely no margin for error in this league. Every screen, every offensive set, every ball fake matters. This week, there’s an excellent opportunity to get right, make the needed corrections, and win two home games. Neither game will be easy, but if we all buy into ‘playing on the road’ in this league, then it is time for this team and their fans to make it hell on anyone walking into Fertitta.
