No. 10 Houston led from the opening minutes and never looked back, beating California 86-68 on Sunday night at the Tahoe Blue Event Center in Stateline, Nevada, in the inaugural Caesars Lake Tahoe Classic, per The Associated Press and the ESPN box score.
Dedan Thomas Jr. scored 20 points with eight assists, Joseph Tugler added 16 points and four blocks, Delrecco Gillespie had 13 points and eight rebounds, and Chase McCarty scored 11. The Cougars moved to 2-0. California fell to 2-1, with Michael Cooper scoring 19 and Jordan Ross adding 15.
Houston Builds the Early Lead
The Cougars opened on a 5-0 run, with Tugler hitting a jumper off a Thomas assist and McCarty following with a three. A Tugler layup and an Arafan Diane layup, then back-to-back dunks from Chendall Weaver, pushed the lead to 22-11 by the 14-minute mark, per ESPN’s play-by-play.
McCarty and Braden East each hit threes in a stretch that made it 33-16 with 8:34 left in the half. California answered with a 12-2 run, led by Ross and Cooper, to get within 35-28, but Houston closed the half on an 8-4 run, with Thomas and Mercy Miller scoring inside, and went to the break up 43-32.
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Second-Half Separation
Thomas hit a three off a McCarty assist to open the second half, and Gillespie followed with consecutive layups to make it 50-32. Tugler added back-to-back jumpers, and by the 12:35 mark Gillespie’s three gave Houston a 65-42 lead, its largest of the night at 23 points.
Cooper kept California in range with a string of threes, and the Golden Bears cut it to 53-69 and later 56-71. Each time, Houston had an answer. Thomas scored on a 17-foot jumper, a 9-foot jumper and a 6-footer, and a 13-footer with 5:18 left made it 80-62. Houston never trailed.
By the Numbers
- Final: Houston 86, California 68 (halftime 43-32), per the ESPN box score and UHCougars.com game center
- Shooting: Houston 35-of-67 (52.2%), California 25-of-57 (43.9%)
- Threes: Houston 6-of-16, California 9-of-26
- Free throws: Houston 10-of-11 (90.9%), California 9-of-14
- Rebounds: Houston 35, California 31
- Assists: Houston 18, California 15
- Turnovers: Houston 9, California 16; Houston scored 22 points off turnovers
- Steals: Houston 14, California 6; blocks: Houston 7, California 1
- Points in the paint: Houston 50, California 24; fast-break points: Houston 20, California 8
- Dedan Thomas Jr.: 20 points, 8 assists, 9-of-15 shooting in 35 minutes
- Joseph Tugler: 16 points, 4 blocks, 2 steals, 7-of-12 shooting
- Delrecco Gillespie: 13 points, 8 rebounds; Chase McCarty: 11 points, 3 threes
- Chendall Weaver: 6 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals; Braden East: 8 points, 3-of-3 shooting
- California: Michael Cooper 19 points (5 threes), Jordan Ross 15 points and 5 assists, Sammie Yeanay 9 points
- Largest Houston lead: 23 points
What’s Next
Houston returns home to face Jacksonville State at 7 p.m. CT on Wednesday, Nov. 11, at Fertitta Center, per UHCougars.com. Follow all of LFG Houston’s college coverage.
Stats via the ESPN box score and UHCougars.com game center. Game details from ESPN’s play-by-play and The Associated Press.
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