The Houston Cougars stamped their ticket to the Sweet 16 in convincing fashion on Sunday, as they took care of business with a 68-53 round of 32 win against the No. 4 ranked Illinois Fighting Illini in the NCAA Tournament South region.

As was the case in its first-round win over UAB, Houston needed to have a balanced scoring output in order to go head-to-head with an Illinois team that entered the contest with a 75.1 points per game average, which ranked at third among Big Ten teams. In the end, Taze Moore, Jamal Shead and Kyler Edwards all stepped up to the calling with 10-plus point outings en route to leading the Cougars to a 15-point win over Illinois.

After what sure was a stressed-filled game for his team, Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson went shirtless after the game, as CBS Sports cameras were rolling when he joined the players for a thrilling post-game celebration.

Sampson has continued to turn around the Houston men’s basketball program, as the Cougars will now play in the Sweet 16 for the third time in the last four years. The Cougars sure are looking to avenge their exit from the Final Four last year.

Houston will now go on to meet the winner of the Arizona and TCU round of 32 encounter in the Sweet 16 later this week.