PROVIDENCE, R.I. - There were two games on the Thursday night American Athletic Conference men's basketball schedule and both road teams were able to come away with victories. No. 9/9 Houston went into the XL Center and held off a late UConn rally to improve to a nation-best 24-1 record. Tulsa traveled to New Orleans and used a strong team effort to get past Tulane.
Thursday, February 14
No. 9/9 Houston 71, UConn 63
DeJon Jarreau had 18 points and seven assists to help No. 9/9 Houston beat UConn 71-63 on Thursday night on the road at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn., for its ninth-straight victory. The Cougars have already registered a 15-game win streak this season; the fifth-longest span without a loss in the history of The American.
Armoni Brooks added 12 points for the Cougars (24-1, 11-1). They opened the second half with a 17-4 run to take control.
Houston once again boasts the best winning percentage in the nation and is tied for the most wins with No. 3/3 Gonzaga with 24 victories. The Cougars were the first team in the country to 20 wins.
Christian Vital had 15 points for UConn (13-12, 4-8). The Huskies have lost three straight since a knee injury took out scoring leader Jalen Adams.
Jarreau's driving layup gave Houston a 17-point lead with just over 7 1/2 minutes to go. UConn cut it to 61-55 after a 3-pointer by Sidney Wilson and a free throw from Christian Vital.
Another driving layup by Jarreau, followed by a steal and two foul shots from Cedrick Alley Jr. brought the lead back to double digits.
The Huskies were not able to capitalize on 21 Houston fouls, going 14-of-25 from the line.
UConn played without two stars. Junior point guard Alterique Gilbert missed his fifth-straight game since suffering a shoulder injury. Adams was deemed out 4-6 weeks last week. The Huskies are 1-4 since Gilbert's injury.
The Cougars' bench, led by Jarreau, outscored UConn's 42-9. Chris Harris Jr., Alley Jr. and Gresham were a combined 9-for-9 from the floor.
Tulsa 80, Tulane 57
Jeriah Horne came off the bench to produce the first double-double of his career with 20 points and a career-high 12 rebounds as visiting Tulsa ran past Tulane on Thursday night, 80-57, at Avron B. Fogelman Arena.
Horne, who had 16 points in the first half, helped the Golden Hurricane improve to 15-10 overall and 5-7 in American Athletic Conference play. The sophomore was joined in double-figures by DaQuan Jeffries (16 points), Martins Igbanu (16 points) and Curran Scott (12 points).
The Hurricane shot 51.6-percent in the second half to blow the game open, while it held the Green Wave (4-19, 0-11) to a season-low 27.6-percent shooting. Tulsa also had a season-high 46 rebounds in the contest.
Tulane was paced by 13 points from Caleb Daniels, while Jordan Cornish added a dozen to go along with eight rebounds and four assists.
Horne provided the spark for the Hurricane offense in the first half, as he went 7-of-11 from the field for 16 points to go along with six rebounds and three steals. After coming off the bench early in the half, the Overland Park, Kan., native scored nine straight points and 14 of the team's 16 points over a 12-minute stretch.
The game was knotted at 24 with 4:22 on the clock before Tulsa went on a 13-3 run for a 34-24 halftime advantage.
Lawson Korita and Scott hit back-to-back 3-pointers to start the spurt before a baseline jumper from Horne. Scott then knocked in a pair of free throws and a converted a layup and the run ended with another free throw by Elijah Joiner.
The second half belonged to Igbanu, who scored all 16 of his points over the final 20 minutes, and Jeffries, who scored a dozen, to help turn the game into a rout.
A 12-3 stretch early in the second half pushed the lead to 53-34 and Tulsa never looked back. The visitors led by at least 18 points over the final 13 minutes and the advantage grew to as much as 74-48 with 2:41 to go.
UPCOMING GAMES