Houston finds a way despite 16 turnovers in Big 12 tournament quarterfinal win over BYU

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Freshman guard Kingston Flemings and Houston know their best days are still ahead of them. 

“We have mature players, but sometimes we’re just immature during the game,” Flemings said following a night where Houston recorded 16 “out of character” turnovers, nearly twice its season average. 

Those turnovers included several instances of losing sight of the baseline, possessions that could’ve given Houston more breathing room in its 73-66 win over BYU Tuesday evening.

“We’ll take plays off, and you can’t do that when you’re playing a talented team,” Flemings added. 

BYU trimmed Houston’s lead to three with 1:59 remaining, after freshman guard Aleksej Kostic nailed his third triple of the game.

Flemings responded on the following possession, nailing a 3-point dagger to reestablish a late six-point lead for Houston. 

By that point, he already had four fouls to his name and was forced to spend some of the game’s most critical minutes on the bench.

But when he stepped onto the court, he gave Houston a spark it needed to stay ahead, finishing with a team-high 17 points on 7-for-15 shooting, alongside four rebounds and three assists.

“Kingston doesn’t feel pressure,” coach Kelvin Sampson said. “I don’t think Chase (McCarty) does either.” 

The redshirt freshman forward McCarty, fresh off the heels of a career-high 20 points and six 3-pointers against Oklahoma State, rose to the moment in the closing minutes again for Houston, nailing a triple with 3:14 left. 

It’s no easy task to guard the nation’s leading scorer in freshman forward AJ Dybantsa.

Yet, McCarty drew praise for the defense played on Dybantsa, who shot just 3-for-10 in the second half for 10 points after pouring in 16 in the first.

Flemings said McCarty “might have guarded AJ the best on the team,” helping prevent the same efficiency Dybantsa had in the first half.

While Houston overcame its mistakes, Flemings acknowledged he was responsible for a few himself.

“I had two turnovers that I shouldn’t have had,” Flemings said. “Sometimes you’re going to have games like that. You’ve got to win ugly.”

Doing that often requires finding an extra gear or turning to another way to create an advantage.

For Houston, that meant working the glass, where it totaled 37 rebounds, 14 of them on the offensive end.

Junior forward JoJo Tugler alone finished with five of those offensive boards. 

“When we get those we get rolling,” senior guard Milos Uzan said. “That’s big time for Jo to get five of those.” 

Tugler was one of four Houston players with three or more personal fouls, picking up four, yet still managing to play 28 minutes. 

The remedy for Tugler’s foul troubles could come with a change of approach. 

“They can shoot the shot. That’s how I’ve got to start looking at it,” Tugler said. “They can shoot the shot… make it a hard, difficult shot, pray they miss.” 

As Tugler continues to try and harness his tenacity with better discipline, Houston will look to tighten up the small mistakes that loom large this time of year.

Still, what’s most important of all is simply surviving and advancing.

“The name of the game this time of year is to win,” coach Kelvin Sampson said. “We’re 27-5. That means we’ve got a pretty good team.”

Houston will face No. 3 Kansas on Friday at 8:30 p.m. at T-Mobile Center for its Big 12 tournament semifinal matchup.