PREVIEW: Cougars Take on Wildcats in Big 12 Tourney

ARLINGTON, Texas – The No. 11 seeded Houston Baseball team gets its first taste of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Conference Baseball Championship tournament on Wednesday when the Cougars face off against No. 6 seed Kansas State inside Globe Life Field at 8 p.m. on ESPN2.

HOUSTON (29-24, 12-17 Big 12) vs. Kansas State (31-23, 17-13 Big 12)
Date \| Time	Wednesday, May 20 at 8 p.m.
Opponent	Kansas State (31-23, 17-13 Big 12)
Location	Globe Life Field \| Arlington, Texas
Watch	ESPN2 \| ESPN+
Listen	The Varsity Network \| Jeremy Branham
Live Stats	UHStats.com
Game Notes	Houston \| Kansas State
Media Center	Notes, media guide/record book, rosters, box scores, photos

THE MATCHUP

Houston won the last game of the series in Manhattan earlier this year on April 27, 6-5.
The Cougars scored four runs in the first inning against the Wildcats in the series finale on April 27 with Houston hitting back-to-back home runs.
Tyler Cox's RBI double in the ninth gave Houston the lead which Richie Roman was able to finish with a strikeout to end the game.

QUICK HITTERS

Senior Antoine Jean was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Year on Tuesday and is the first Cougar to earn Pitcher of the Year honors since 2018. Jean led the Big 12 in strikeouts per nine, hits per nine, WHIP, and strike out-to-walk ratio, while ranking second in total strikeouts and third in ERA. He is arguably the nation's most consistent pitcher ranking second in both strikeouts per nine innings pitched (14.86) and hits allowed per nine rate (5.14). Jean is the first Cougar relief pitcher since 2003 to strikeout 100+ in a season.
Jean's 56.5% whiff rate on his curveball is second among all D-1 pitchers who have thrown at least 150 curveballs. His 38.0% whiff rate is 12th nationally among pitchers with at least 500 pitches thrown.
Jean leads the team with 2.33 WAR this season while Tre Broussard's 2.24 WAR is best among Houston position players. Jean's 2.32 pWAR is 17th nationally and second in the Big 12 Conference.
Jean was ranked the #6 relief pitcher in the country by D1Baseball.com.
Sophomore Tre Broussard hit .500 with three home runs against Arizona in the final series of the season. Broussard has hit home runs in three consecutive games and has driven in eight during the three game span.
Tre Broussard's wheels are turning, successfully stealing 21 bases in a row this season before being caught against Rice on April 8. The Houston native is tied for second all-time in school history for consecutive stolen bases. Broussard's 30 stolen bases ranks eighth in program history. Broussard is chasing the school record of 36 stolen bases in a single season set by Trey Williams in 1969.
Junior Tyler Cox has quietly put together Houston's best batting average in Big 12 Conference play with a .289 average against Big 12 opponents this season. Cox went 11 for 17 (.647 avg) with six RBI against Utah and Arizona State.
Houston swept its first Big 12 Conference series of the season and won its first home series since March 9 with a sweep of Utah. The Cougars last swept a Big 12 opponent in 2024, opening Big 12 play with a sweep of Baylor.
The Cougars won five-straight Big 12 games, the longest streak in the two years since joining the league. Houston's 12 Big 12 wins is a five-game improvement from 2024.
Houston's 14 road wins is fourth-most in the Big 12. The Cougars have improved their road win total by nine games from 2024 an 180% increase.
Triple Crown Chase: Antoine Jean and sophomore Xavier Perez are chasing the triple crown on the mound and at the plate respectively (more on page 12).

LAST TIME OUT

Houston won the first game of the final regular season series by posting a program best 16 hits in a Big 12 game against Arizona and tied its most runs scored in a Big 12 game with 13 runs.
The Cougars dropped the final two games of the series.

SERIES HISTORY
Houston record vs Kansas State                5-5
Last meeting      W, 6-5, 4/25/25, Away
Streak                     Houston, W1

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