HOUSTON — In a commanding performance, J’Wan Roberts led the way for No. 10 Houston with a season-best 22 points, while L.J. Cryer contributed 18 points in their 70-54 victory against West Virginia on Wednesday night. This win marked Houston’s ninth consecutive triumph.
Roberts was particularly impressive in the first half, scoring 17 points on an efficient 8-of-10 shooting. Emanuel Sharp also played a significant role, finishing with 14 points and helping Houston to a 40-27 lead at halftime. The team shot 49% from the field and managed 11 of 26 from beyond the arc, extending their home winning streak to 32 games.
For West Virginia, Amani Hansberry was the standout scorer with 16 points, while Javon Small added 13 points and distributed eight assists. West Virginia achieved a field goal percentage of 44%, including 9 of 22 from three-point range.
After initially trailing 18-13, Houston responded with a dominant 20-3 run to take control of the game, capped by Roberts’ hook shot with just over four minutes remaining in the first half.
A significant takeaway for West Virginia was Small’s performance. As the Big 12’s leading scorer with an average of 19.8 points per game, he started strong, hitting three 3-pointers in the opening six minutes and helping the Mountaineers establish an early five-point lead. However, he struggled after that, finishing with only one point in the second half after shooting 1 for 7 following his hot start.
On the other hand, Houston improved their record to 1-3 in Quad 1 games this season, with plenty of opportunities ahead in their last 15 regular-season matches.
A crucial moment in the game came when West Virginia cut Houston’s lead to 51-48 with a 12-2 run. However, the Cougars quickly responded with a powerful 14-0 run ignited by a putback dunk from Ja’Vier Francis, culminating in a three-pointer from Milos Uzan that pushed their advantage to 17 points with seven minutes remaining.
A notable statistic was that Houston forced West Virginia into 12 turnovers, converting those into a remarkable 25 points in total.
Looking ahead, Houston will travel to face Central Florida on Saturday, while West Virginia will host the No. 2 ranked Iowa State on the same day.
