DALLAS, Texas — SMU Upset Nationally Ranked Houston, 85-83 Wednesday night. The nationally televised showdown packed Moody Coliseum, featuring the 1st and 2nd ranked teams in this weeks’ American Athletic Conference standings. UH led almost the entire game, setting up a huge comeback for SMU to defend their now 12-0 undefeated record at home this year.
UH leads the AAC, followed by SMU. The Mustangs are 17-5 overall and 8-2 in the American. SMU broke UH’s 12 game win streak, handing the Cougars their first loss in conference play.
The Mustangs played hard and shot well in the 1st half but couldn’t keep up with the Cougars big men. Houston established their lead with points in the paint and out rebounding SMU. UH’s lead got up to 15-points before the Mustangs started to chip away at the deficit.
SMU’s push began late in the 2nd half, scoring on a fast break kick back to Marcus Weathers for 3, forcing a UH timeout. The statement rocked Moody Coliseum and started a run for the Mustangs that cut the Cougars lead to 2 with 7:42 left. The rest of the game was hard fought. The Mustangs took their 1st lead with 3 and a half minutes to go.
With 45 seconds to go the game was tied at 81, Mustang’s ball. Point guard, Kendric Davis went to the line and hit 2 on a defensive blocking call. The Mustangs got a huge stop on the other end of the court, forcing the Cougars to start fouling.
SMU scored 36 points on 3-pointers, improving their own league leading average on 3-pointers made per game. Davis came to play as usual, scoring 22 points, with 7 rebounds and 7 assists. The Weathers brothers stepped up in a huge way, Marcus scoring 20-points while Michael added 17-points.
The AAC schedules each opponent twice, so these teams will see each other again in Houston on February 27th. Conference play continues through the beginning of March, followed by the AAC Tournament in Fort Worth, March 10th-13th. The Mustangs head on the road, playing at ECU later in the week.
