KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Milos Uzan poured in 25 points, Emanuel Sharp added 17 and second-ranked Houston turned up its trademark defense in the final minute to hold on for a 72-64 victory over Arizona in the Big 12 Tournament championship game Saturday night.
Playing without injured big man J'Wan Roberts, the Cougars took a 64-62 lead on Uzan's 3-pointer with 5 minutes to go, then suffocated the Wildcats (22-12) down the stretch to avenge a loss to Iowa State in last year's title game.
Houston romped to the regular-season Big 12 title, winning 19 of 20 games in the expanded league. And it was just as dominant in three games in Kansas City, easily beating Colorado and No. 17 BYU before turning back red-hot Arizona for the trophy.
Houston (30-4) also secured its fourth straight 30-win season, tying for the second-longest streak in Division I history, according to ESPN research. Gonzaga posted five straight 30-win seasons from 2016-21.
Caleb Love scored 19 points for the Wildcats. Jaden Bradley had 14 points and KJ Lewis finished with 11.
Wildcats coach Tommy Lloyd had bristled after their quarterfinal win over No. 9 Texas Tech when it was suggested that the title tilt amounted to a showdown of styles: Arizona's high-flying, high-scoring offense against Houston's dominant defense.
"We're not that bad on defense," Lloyd said succinctly.
Turns out the Wildcats are quite good.
They harried and harrassed Houston's guards wherever they went on the floor, twice holding the Cougars without a point for 5-minute stretches in the first half. The result was a 33-28 lead in the locker room that felt just a little bit bigger.
Yet there is a reason that Houston is No. 1 nationally in defensive efficiency.
The Cougars were still trailing 40-37 when they clamped down on the Wildcats, turning defense into offense and outscoring them 19-6 over the next five minutes. By the time Uzan curled in a bucket with 11:40 to go, Houston had taken a 56-46 lead - the largest of the game for either team at that point.
Arizona gamely fought back to take a 62-61 lead, only for the relentless Cougars to regain the lead seconds later, when Uzan dropped his 3-pointer. He scored again on their ensuing possession, and Houston maintained its lead from there.
The result was its third conference tourney title in five years after the pair it won in the American Athletic Conference.
Roberts, who sprained his right ankle in the quarterfinals, went through pregame warmups without the walking boot he wore a day earlier. But he had the boot back on as he watched from the bench in the hopes of playing in the NCAA Tournament.
Houston almost certainly locked up a No. 1 seed on Selection Sunday and will probably begin its NCAA Tournament in Wichita, Kansas. Most expect the Wildcats to land a No. 4 seed after their run to the conference championship game.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
