The University of Houston men’s basketball team is going back to the Final Four, the first time since 2021, after a blowout win over Tennessee in the Elite Eight on Sunday afternoon. The Coogs held Tennessee to a record low 15 points in the first half. It was downhill from there.
The win puts Kelvin Sampson’s team back in the Final Four after two consecutive losses in the Sweet 16. Clearly, this is their best team and one with a real shot to win it all. First, they will have to go through Duke and star Cooper Flagg, the clear favorites to win the title this year. Here are some thoughts.
This is a good offensive team.
If there was anything the Cougars lacked in recent years, it was consistency on the offensive end. They were alway great on defense, but their offense was typically limited to one or two very good players and some gritty determination. Now, they are the best overall shooting team in the nation with multiple shooting threats inside and out. Pretty easy to argue this is Sampson’s best squad since taking over the program.
This is a BETTER defensive team.
D is the trademark of Sampson’s teams and this one is no different. As solid as they are offensively, they are simply spectacular on the other end of the floor, maybe the best in college basketball. They held a No. 2- seeded Tennessee team to just 15 points in the first half. 15! That’s just bonkers. Yes, the Vols missed a BUNCH of shots, but it wasn’t for no good reason. UH can absolutely get it defensively.
Duke is a tough draw, but the Coogs can handle them.
The Blue Devils are by far the consensus choice to win it all this year with their star, Cooper Flag. They have opened up as a 4.5-point favorite. But, unlike so many of the teams Duke has rolled on their way to Final Four birth, Houston has both the defensive tenacity and the athleticism to not just stay in the game with Duke, but beat them. Make no mistake, it would be an upset, but not as much as some in the national media might think. If this is a blowout, it would be a surprise.
Kelvin Sampson’s program is the best in the country.
Whatever happens in this Final Four, Sampson has this entire program set in the right direction, and it should continue. Another appearance on college’s biggest stage means better recruiting, yet again. And don’t be surprised if the Coogs are active again in the transfer portal. This is the best this program has been since the 1980s and probably the best ever.
