Cougars scratch Sooners in scorefest

ANCHORAGE – Senior guards Aubrey Coleman and Kelvin Lewis combined for 55 points Thursday as Houston's run-and-gun offense wore down 25th-ranked Oklahoma for a 100-93 victory in the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout at Sullivan Arena.

The Cougars (2-1) also got 15 points, six rebounds, three assists and four steals from junior guard Adam Brown, using a huge second-half run to earn the victory.

Oklahoma (2-3) was led by 25 points from sophomore guard Willie Warren and 23 from freshman guard Steven Pledger, who tallied all but three of his points in the first half.

Coleman, a Houston native, finished with 27 points (7-19 FG, 13-18 FT), 11 rebounds, six assists and three steals, while Lewis contributed 28 points (11-18 FG, 6-11 3FG) and three assists. Both players combined for only one turnover in 73 minutes of action as the Conference-USA club committed only seven for the game, compared to 18 for Oklahoma.

The Sooners, of the Big 12 Conference, lost despite shooting 53.6 percent (30-56), boosted by 8-of-11 shooting from Warren. OU's star guard also had game-highs of seven assists and five turnovers.

OU came out of the gate inspired and raced to leads of 20-6 and 41-23 in the first half. But Houston retaliated with a 7-2 run to end the half and trailed just 52-47 at the break.

Houston took its first lead, 64-63, on a Lewis three-pointer at the 13:14 mark of the second half. Then, tied 71-71, Cougars guard Zamal Nixon made a steal and converted a three-point play that started a 7-0 run and gave his team the lead for good.

The Cougars' win sets up a Friday-night showdown between Houston and San Diego for the Pool B title and a spot in Saturday night's 7 p.m. (AST) championship game. The Toreros beat the Sooners 78-64 on Wednesday.

Oklahoma will face the third-place team from Pool A in Saturday's 2 p.m. (AST) 5th-place game. Its opponent will be either Nicholls State, host Alaska Anchorage or Washington State.

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