They only bested Iowa State by nine points Saturday, despite being 12.5-point favorites against a Cyclones team missing star guards Keshon Gilbert and Curtis Jones. Houston turned the ball over 17 times in that game, but offset the giveaways by shooting 58.8 percent from 3-point range.

Outside of this, Houston typically has some notable defensive advantages in the halfcourt. Tech remains somewhat reliant on transition scoring, with one of the highest percentiles nationally in such areas. The problem with Houston is it is tough to speed up and get those transition opportunities.