In the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals, BYU scored 49 points in the first half against Iowa State. But in the semifinals against #2 Houston, BYU didn’t eclipse the 49-point mark until there were three minutes left in the game.

The result was Friday night's 76-56 rout — one not all dissimilar from Houston's 86-55 romp past BYU in January — that sent a hard-nosed team that seems to embody its tough-minded coach to its second consecutive Big 12 championship game.

BYU couldn’t stop Houston’s stars. Even without All-Big 12 First Team selection J’Wan Roberts, Houston had no shortage of horses to take down BYU. Emmanuel Sharp scored 26 points, LJ Cryer added another 20 and Milos Uzan provided 14 points and five assists.