Houston, we have liftoff

Behind dead-eye 3-point shooting and the always-elite defense, Cougars put on a display vs. TCU. Plus, Wisconsin adds to Rutgers' woes, Ohio State escapes vs. Minnesota, and we highlight some stats to know for the season.

Good morning! Football’s almost over and college basketball conference play is in full swing, complete with the usual Monday night games. Feels good, doesn’t it?

Let’s dive in.

1. ‘The best defensive team in the country’ shuts down TCU

Note to self: Until further notice, Houston belongs among the nation’s elite teams. No matter the AP ranking next to its name.

Especially if Emanuel Sharp keeps hitting 3s.

No. 12 Houston delivered a resounding 65-46 win over TCU on Monday night, as Sharp hit 4-of-7 from deep, including two at the start of the second half that turned a three-point lead into a double-digit drubbing.

He led the Cougars (11-3, 3-0 in Big 12) with 14 points. J’Wan Roberts added 12, and LJ Cryer finished with 10. Houston was 8-of-19 on 3s (42.1%), right at its season average of 41.4% (third in D-I).

Anyway, enough about the 3s. The defense is what makes Houston elite. And it now boasts the nation’s most efficient defense, per KenPom, allowing 86.7 points per 100 possessions. That’s just ahead of Tennessee (87.1) and Duke (87.4), two teams perched in the top four of the AP Poll.

TCU (8-6, 1-2) managed just .78 points per possession on Monday night. It had to deal with a Cougars team that did its usual double-teaming and swarming defense, which usually led to wide-open looks on the other end.

Most of that separation came in the second half, when Houston had a pair of big runs (21-6 and 11-2) that forced most of TCU’s 19 turnovers.

Houston’s now won its last two games by 31 and 19 points, and will prepare for a trip to Kansas State on Saturday.

2. Wisconsin adds to Rutgers’ sad season

The NCAA Tournament is more than two months away. But it sure seems like Rutgers and its two NBA lottery picks won’t be a part of it.

The tough part? It looked like Monday might offer some hope.

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