The decisive manner in which No. 15 Houston dismantled Butler on Saturday only reinforced the surprise that the Cougars somehow have managed to lose three games this season.Seemingly on track now, the Cougars (5-3) will play host to Troy on Tuesday after they extended their homecourt winning streak to 26 consecutive games, the best in the nation, with their 79-51 victory over the weekend against the Bulldogs.Houston excelled in every phase, stifling Butler defensively while dominating the rebounding battle and turning a hot-shooting second half into a runaway triumph.”Could have easily won all three (at Las Vegas),” Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said of the recent Players Era Festival, where the Cougars fell to Alabama and San Diego State in overtime by a combined eight points. “So our team is not that far away. You guys have heard me say I don’t overreact to wins or losses.”We have been 13-0 enough. When you’re 13-0 most people think you’re better than you actually are. When you’re 4-3, most people think you’re worse than you actually are. It’s a good thing they are not coaching.”The Cougars limited Butler to 28.3 percent shooting and finished with a 41-22 rebounding advantage. It was yet another example of Houston’s hard-nosed style under Sampson, who has a reputation for defensive and rebounding might.Houston also flashed plenty of offense, shooting 66.7 percent after halftime while scoring 51 points. L.J. Cryer scored 18 of his game-high 20 points after the break while Emanuel Sharp came alive from 3-point range, matching Cryer by making 4 of 7 from distance.Houston’s goal is to pair that level of offensive efficiency with its usual brand of defense and rebounding.”Well, we scored 50 more in the second half by not changing anything,” Sampson said. “Just doing it harder, doing it faster, doing it more confidently, having more of a purpose to what we’re doing. I saw a lot of purposeful basketball.”
