Syracuse’s men’s basketball team will face one of the country’s best offensive rebound teams in Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament.
Houston, runner-up in the Midwest, advanced to Sweet 16 with a 63-60 victory over No. 10 Rutgers on Sunday night. No. 11 Syracuse advanced earlier in the day with a 75-72 victory over No. 3 West Virginia. The match will be played on Saturday at a time to be determined.
Despite not being a notable size, Cougars secured almost 40% of their missed shots over the course of the season, second in the country, behind North Carolina. Houston hit 16 in the win over Rutgers.
The last offensive rebound of the night for Houston resulted in a setback by Tramon Mark to equalize the game with 24 seconds left, with a free kick to give the Cougars the lead. Houston secured the victory by forcing a turn, hitting two free throws and forcing a final mistake.
Houston (26-3) had a brave performance in his victory over Rutgers by losing for much of the second half and pulling the comeback with owner-guard DeJon Jarreau playing with obvious pains. The Cougars finished the game with a 14-2 run.
Guard Quentin Grimes, who initially committed to Kansas before moving to Houston, set the game’s record with 22 points, while Jarreau had 17.
Houston is among the top 20 teams in the country in offensive and defensive efficiency, according to basketball statistician Ken Pomeroy. Cougars are one of four teams ranked high in both categories, a group that also includes Gonzaga, Michigan and Illinois.
Defensive recovery has been one of the main challenges for Syracuse in his 2-3 zone throughout the season, although both the attack and the SU defense have looked much better during the postseason, confusing opponents outside ACC, and success Orange at the end of the season included a win over UNC.
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