College Basketball Games of the Weekend: February 21st and 22nd

by Elias Meredith

Sportz Nation - 2/23/26

SATURDAY:

HOUSTON VS ARIZONA

Photo by Maria Lysaker/AP Photo

Saturday afternoon, the Fertitta Center on the campus of the University of Houston was the place to be for a preview of a potential Final Four matchup in March. The No. 4 Arizona Wildcats traveled east to face the No. 2 Houston Cougars in front of a packed house. Senior guard Anthony Dell’Orso tied a season-high scoring 22 points to get Arizona back to its winning ways after dropping the two previous games, defeating Houston 66-60.

Arizona came out the gates firing. The Wildcats would start the game on a 20-11 scoring run, scoring 12 of the points in the paint. In the first half, Arizona would also grab their first double digit lead of the game, powered by a 10-3 scoring run.

Houston would cut their deficit back down to single digits before the end of the half, going on a 7-2 run to cut the Wildcat lead down to 6 going into halftime. 

Dell’Orso had a huge first half for the Wildcats. The Melbourne, Australia native scored 14 points. Houston senior guard Emmaunel Sharp led the way for his club, scoring 7 points in the first half.

At the 14:17 mark of the second half, Houston grabbed their first lead of the game on a Milos Uzan three-pointer. The Las Vegas native's second three of the game capped off an 8-2 Houston run.

The game remained tight for the next few minutes, with a handful of ties and lead changes before Arizona pulled away. 

An Anthony Dell’Orso three-pointer started a game-changing 12-0 Arizona scoring run that put them in the driver’s seat in a hostile environment. That run would last six minutes, as Arizona led 60-50 with 5:29 left in regulation.

Houston would show some fight late, going on a 7-1 scoring run to cut their deficit to four. They were rolling until Arizona’s leader sealed the deal. Senior guard Jaden Bradley would score 7 of Arizona’s last 12 points to give Houston their first loss at home this season, and ninth home loss in 12 years underneath head coach Kelvin Sampson.

Key to Victory: Arizona’s 12-0 second half scoring run

A huge momentum shift in the game. The 12-0 put Arizona in a great position to close out the victory. They also held one of the most efficient scoring teams in the nation to 35.7% from the field, and forced 12 turnovers. 

Houston’s team averages are 44.9% from the field and 8.3 turnovers per game.

Next for the Wildcats: Tuesday, February 24, at Baylor Bears at 9 PM EST

Next for the Cougars: Monday, February 23, at Kansas Jayhawks at 9 PM EST

SUNDAY:

MICHIGAN STATE VS OHIO STATE

Photo by Nick King/Lansing State Journal

The No. 15 Michigan State Spartans hosted the Ohio State Buckeyes in a conference matinee at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. Senior center Carson Cooper dropped a career-high 20 points, and grabbed 11 rebounds in a 66-60 victory.

In the first half, Ohio State grabbed hold of the lead nearly halfway through the first half, but Michigan State stayed within striking distance throughout the half. At the 5:55 mark, Ohio State had its biggest lead of 6 points, but Michigan State would close that gap.

Ohio State took 26-23 into halftime. The Buckeyes were led by senior guard Bruce Thornton, who scored 16 points in the first half. Michigan State led by committee as six different players scored in the first half. 

In the second half, it was more of the same until the Spartans had the first scoring run of the game. An 8-0 scoring run would give them their first lead since the 12:01 mark of the first half.

The Spartans would also close the game on a scoring run. A 14-3 run gave them their biggest lead of the game. Michigan State would hold a 63-53 lead, with 1:35 left in regulation.

Ohio State would attempt to come back going on a 7-0 run in the last minute of regulation, but with no timeouts left, Ohio State was forced to foul. Michigan State would convert on their last four free throw attempts to seal the home victory.

Key to Victory: Late scoring run

The Spartans 14-3 run put them in the driver’s seat to close the game. The scoring run led Michigan State to their third win and the last four games.

Next for the Spartans: Thursday, February 26 vs Purdue Boilermakers at 8 PM EST

Next for the Buckeyes: Wednesday, February 25, at Iowa Hawkeyes at 9 PM EST

Thank you for reading!

Elias Meredith (@EAM_55)