Houston’s defense carries Cougars into 7th Final Four with 69-50 March Madness win over Tennessee.

Houston is headed home to Texas, but it’s to San Antonio for the NCAA men's tournament Final Four.

The Cougars, who lead the nation with the fewest points allowed, had another exceptional defensive performance to defeat Tennessee 69-50 in the Midwest Region championship game and earn its first Final Four trip in four years.

Houston got contributions from everyone that got onto the court. Eight players scored, led by 17 points from Big 12 player of the year L.J. Cryer. The guard shook off a shaky performance in the Sweet 16 with 10 first half points. Emanuel Sharp had 16 points, including a couple of important 3-pointers in the second half as Tennessee tried to trim its deficit below double digits late in the second half.

It's the third trip to the Final Four for Houston coach Kelvin Sampson. He led Oklahoma to the national semifinals in 2002 and took the Cougars in 2021.

The Cougars started the game on a 9-2 run. The Cougars were blocking shots near the bucket and not giving up easy looks around the perimeter. The Volunteers missed their first 14 3-point attempts in the first half and shot just 6-for-28 (21%) from the field in the first half.

Houston led by as much as 22 points in the first half and went into halftime with a 34-15 lead. The 15 points was the lowest ever scored in the first half of a NCAA men's tournament game for a team seeded No. 1 or No. 2.

The Cougars finally get to the Final Four as a No. 1 seed. The first appearance in the national semifinals since 2021 is redemption for Sampson’s team after the past two seasons as a top seed ended in the Sweet 16.

Houston advancing means at least three No. 1 seeds will be in the Final Four, the first time since 2015. Awaiting the Cougars in the Final Four will be No. 1 seed Duke. Auburn has the chance to make it an all No. 1 seed Final Four, which would be the first since 2008.