3 keys for Houston Basketball to beat Purdue Boilermakers in Sweet 16 matchup

The second weekend of the NCAA tournament is finally here! And after Houston made quick work of their first round game against SIU Edwardsville and passed a close test against Gonzaga, they'll play for the right to vault back into the Elite Eight, squaring off against Purdue on Friday night.

Here are three keys to the game as the Cougars look to stay hot:

Keep things business as usual from the three-point line

The Cougars have continued their phenomenal shooting from deep throughout the season and as the tournament continues and better teams continue to advance, they'll need to continue to bury their open looks at a similar clip. With LJ Cryer, Milos Uzan, and Emanuel Sharp all shooting over 42% from deep, there's danger all over the floor for a Purdue defense that has been shaky at times throughout the season, allowing just over 70 points per game.

Houston's ability to take and make the three will largely rely on their athletes winning matchups and getting into the paint, which they've found a way to do throughout the year. The offense hasn't been overly complicated for Kelvin Sampson's team because of how great his guards have been. Come Friday night, the more the Cougars keep doing what they've done with guys like Cryer and Uzan knocking down shots, the closer they'll be to finding themselves back in the Elite Eight once again.

Control Trey Kaufman-Renn in the paint

Kaufman-Renn has been on an absolute tear over the last month. He helped settle the Boilermakers offense in the first round against High Point, where the Panthers were able to hang around early in the game, but were eventually worn down by Kaufman-Renn's 21 points on what \has continued to be a dominant pick and roll display by both he and Braden Smith.

As great as Kaufman-Renn has been as a scorer in his five games where he hasn't scored less than 20 points, he's showcased an innate ability to create additional oppurtunities for his teammates. He's great at sealing the interior on drives for guys like Loyer and Smith to find spaces to shoot, as well as constantly hounding the boards for second chances.

Houston has the bodies in J'Wan Roberts, Joseph Tugler, and even Ja'Vier Francis off the bench to make life difficult for Purdue's star interior scorer. Kelvin Sampson's ability to constantly throw a fresh defender at Kaufman-Renn, along with an athletic lineup capable of switching nearly every matchup on the floor is huge. Not letting Kaufman-Ren establish himself deep in the post in the early moments of possessions will be a huge key to keep an eye on. If Houston's bigger players are able to set the physical tone early on, it'll likely go a long way into not allowing Purdue to find any open driving lanes to create for others on the outside.

Make Braden Smith earn it on defense

As great of shooters the aforementioned Houston guards are, their constant movement and aggressivenss will work twofold in this game. Braden Smith has been the trigger man for this Boilermaker offense for years at this point with the junior averaging nearly nine assists per game. If he isn't directing assisting the guys around him, it's likely he is the one drawing the extra help in the middle. The easiest way for the Cougars to limit his effectiveness? Tire him out on the other end.

As good as Smith has been this season, he's also been turnover-prone, as illustrated by his 11 turnovers in the first two games of this tournament. Part of that is having the ball in your hands as often as Smith does in this offense, but nonetheless, Houston has the opportunity to capitalize on his importance due to the switching ability and athleticism of Sampson's stellar lineup.

Whether its on ball, running him off of screens with those aforementioned shooters, or consistently earning help and rotations from this Purdue offense, the more Smith is involved on the defensive end, the less effective he'll likely be as a score and distributor the other way.