Prize fight in Memphis: No. 1 UH survives OT thriller after No. 9 Texas A&M erases 13-point lead

MEMPHIS, Tennessee (KTRK) — Head shots, knock downs to the floor, punches and counter-punches.

You would think a heavyweight boxing bout broke out in Memphis on Sunday night, but it was all part of the intensity of the No. 1 Houston Cougars’ 100-95 overtime win over the No. 9 Texas A&M Aggies in the second round of March Madness’ South Region.

The Coogs, two nights removed from a 40-point first-round blowout of the No. 16 Longwood Lancers, engaged in physical play underneath the hoop and used their brand of stifling defense that kept the Aggies at arms length for most of the game.

That was until the Aggies went on a 13-3 scoring run in the last minutes of regulation, including a buzzer-beating three-pointer by A&M’s Andersson Garcia to bring it to 86-86.

Houston’s stars came up big, with Emanuel Sharp leading the way with a career-high 30 points, including seven three-pointers.

Jamal Shead and L.J. Cryer added 21 and 20 points, respectively.

The big story, though, was the foul situation. Cryer and Ja’Vier Francis fouled out before overtime. Sharp and Shead fouled out in OT.

The victory gave the Cougars their fifth consecutive Sweet Sixteen trip. Houston faces the No. 4 Duke Blue Devils on Friday night in Dallas. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:39 p.m. CT.

Sunday’s game was the second meeting this season between the two teams. The Cougars won the previous matchup in a 70-66 victory over the Aggies at the Toyota Center on Dec. 16, 2023.

More coverage on UH’s March Madness run