STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — J'Wan Roberts had 20 points and 11 rebounds to lead No. 14 Houston past Oklahoma State 60-47 on Monday night in the Big 12 Conference opener for both teams.
L.J. Cryer added 18 points and Oklahoma transfer Milos Uzan contributed 12 points and six rebounds for the Cougars (9-3), who began defense of their conference title by limited the Cowboys to 18 points in the first half on 6-of-27 shooting.
Brandon Newman led Oklahoma State (8-4) with 12 points off the bench and Robert Jennings added 10 as the Cowboys made just 14 of 54 (25.9%) shots from the field.
Takeaways
Houston: The Cougars were the aggressors throughout, forcing 14 turnovers that resulted in 16 points and blocking five Oklahoma State shots.
Oklahoma State: The Cowboys came in averaging nearly 80 points, but didn't come close to that against a swarming Houston defense.
Key moment
A 9-0 run gave Oklahoma State a 17-11 advantage at the 10:24 mark of the first half. The Cowboys went cold after that, missing all 10 of their field goal attempts and turning the ball over eight times before halftime. Houston went on a 17-1 run for a 28-18 lead at the break.
Key stat
Oklahoma State's starting five shot a combined 4 of 24 from the field. The Cowboys got most of their production from their bench, which scored 28 of the team's 42 points.
Up next
Houston hosts BYU on Saturday, the same day Oklahoma State visits West Virginia.
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