No. 2 Houston defeated No. 6 Iowa State 73-65 at home Monday to move into first place by itself in the Big 12 standings. Both teams were 9-3 in the Big 12 entering the game with the Cyclones holding the head-to-head tiebreaker, before the Cougars' standout performance put them all alone at the top
Since losing to Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse on Feb. 3, Houston (23-3, 10-3 Big 12) has won its last four games. The Cougars are in their inaugural season as a member of the Big 12 after spending the previous 10 years in the AAC.
Houston star Jamal Shead scored 20 of his 26 points in the second half. Shead and Emanuel Sharp (20 points) carried the offensive load while fellow starters L.J. Cryer and J'Wan Roberts played with foul trouble in the final eight minutes of regulation.
The Cougars, who were a No. 1 seed in the NCAA's early seeds released Saturday, now has nine Quad 1 wins — tied with Purdue and UConn for the most in the country. The Cougars also moved to an impressive 15-0 at home, which is the second-most wins in Division l basketball with Iowa State.
Iowa State (20-6, 9-4) handed Houston its first loss on Jan. 9 at Hilton Coliseum. The Cougars were the last team in Division l men's basketball to have an undefeated record before their first loss to ISU on Jan. 9.The Cyclones had won seven of their last eight games prior to the loss. That stretch included wins over ranked TCU and Kansas teams.