We have been knocked out of the American tournament by sub 500 teams two years in a row. Do you feel that’s ok?
I don’t feel entitled but is it too much to ask for a NCAA tournament berth after 4 years with the same coach who has a great resume like Sampson. Or was the program that run down to the ground that it’s impossible to be successful at UH ?! Given that the fan base sucks, and UH has no real rivalry in basketball.
How many schools were ranked in the top 25 last year in the AAC? 1 at 24. Two this year at 12 and 15. I think its fair to say the entire conference has improved.
We were seeded 5th last year in the NIT and this year we’re 1st.
This year has been an improvement with some major weaknesses. Yea I’m ok with it.
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Respectfully, yes it is @Progs. Investments take a long time before you can gain something out of it. You can’t expect large gains with the mess Sampson was handed.
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what recruits are coming in next year that have you so confident that we won’t be one and done again?
Being knocked out last year was unacceptable. This year, I can stomach it a little better.
UCONN may be a sub-.500 team, but they are a sub-.500 team that maybe has the most talent in the conference and underperformed badly due to early injuries. They were a team that was picked by many pundits to win the conference this year. UCONN also won 8 of their last 10 home games after they lost to us in the 1st conference game of the year (only losses were to CIncy and SMU) and were a much different team down the stretch. The crowd was definitely a factor in the first half and you can tell the Coogs struggled once the Huskies got the momentum going on their home court. They were playing for their lives and came up big while we were trying to beat a wounded animal for a 3rd time on its home court; tough to do.
We’ve been watching this team all year, just about everyone that posts in here. We all know what the Coogs are and what they aren’t. This was a very flawed team that basically relied on 4 above-average D1 players and, well, not much else. Sampson has been saying it all year that this team lacked depth and he’s not lying. We just don’t have the horses right now.
I’m not satisfied with the NIT, but its probably what this team deserves and that’s OK. We have to stop thinking about this team in the same way we did when Guy V. was around. It’s just not fair at this point. That era is gone…not just gone, but long gone. We are barely able to draw 2K fans most nights, we have an arena that folks were complaining about 10 years ago, and the Dickey years killed a lot of local recruit interest in us (the whole Michael Young saga, House and Thomas transferring, but not being allowed to go where they wanted to, etc). Sampson literally had 6 guys when he came in and only 1-2 of those were D1 capable players. Yes, we aren’t happy with our big men, but Sampson had to basically pull warm bodies (Meyer and Nkali) just to have someone that could man the position. We have a former walk-on as our first guy off the bench most nights. Only a handful of capable guys have been willing to look at Coach Sampson’s coaching history and have been willing to buy-in. Next year, we’ll have even more and hopefully even more the next year when the new arena opens.
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I’m fine with the job done by CKS. But, I really like to see some staff changes to enhance our recruiting.
Our “bigs” have to get stronger - we’re generally terrible at securing rebounds and loose balls unless a guard gets it. Even with the poor shooting and mistakes, we were really just a play or two away from getting that game.
We need more guys playing with more attitude.
I agree! No one should be satisfied with an NIT bid. The only thing I’m actually concern is that UH has lost in their first game in the conference tournament for the last 2 years. Last year’s lost probably cost UH an NCAA tournament bid.
At the end of the day, well see what Khator, Tillman & Hunter decide to do going forward. Why ?! Because they seem invested on going all in on the basketball program. I think with a new generation of fans (students) enrolling soon, the fan base & buzz will grow with the new arena.
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Comparing the team now to where it was when Sampson took over i am satisfied with the team’s progress. All we need is a decent big man and this team is NCAA tournament worthy. Now if Sampson continues to not be able to get that big man my feelings will change.
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Same story, different year.
Sampson’s been here for three years. This roster is completely his, other than Chicken.
If the argument is that we don’t have sufficient depth, whose responsibility is that? Whose fault is that?
All I know is that for the umpteenth consecutive year, we had to win the conference tournament to go to the NCAA tournament. Whether the coach was Brooks, Clyde, Ray Mac, Penders, Dickey or Sampson, the result has always been the same.
Yes, Sampson has won 20 games the last two years. Now you know how meaningless that statistic truly is. Winning 20 games against our schedule the last two years is hardly a significant accomplishment.
Next year will be my 20th year as a season ticket holder. I’ve seen my alma mater play in one NCAA tournament game in that entire period.
Make all the excuses you want, but that’s unacceptable. Full stop.
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Lawdog has fallen off the cliff? Stick with us Dog, better days ahead. Just hope they happen while I am still breathing…lol
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Lol…how long into the future are we talking about, Butch ?! 5-10 years down the road, you may be in trouble lol jk
Postgame Presser
- Sampson was annoyed
- Mentions that the crowd helped UCONN and was probably the best road crowd that Houston had seen other than SMU/Cincy
- Said that they needed to get in the paint, not continue to shoot 3’s off the dribble. Got impatient
- Galen mentions that he was trying to call plays, but players couldn’t hear because of the crowd
- Sampson again mentions the crowd was a huge advantage
I can see why some of our fans are upset, but Sampson did a great job coaching this year. We played too many cupcakes in non conference which hurt our RPI and had no legit big which made us a good, but not great team. On the other side, should we expect the team to be better next year? I know the coaches are confident Gray is coming back, but if he were to leave I feel like we would drop off. With Gray back, we have a great backcourt and hopefully a healthy Davis all season. Should we expect White as a freshman to be a much better option than Chicken? Will the juco big or wing make an impact? It’s hard for me to see a much better team than this year. Don’t forget playing off campus will make it harder for us too.
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White, offensively, will be much better than Chicken. He’s probably closer to a Pollard type of player where he can face up at the free throw line and score in a variety of different ways. Defense will be the question as Chicken was probably the best defender on the team this year and it’s always tough for freshmen to transition defensively. White also seems to be able to rebound which Chicken was poor at. We’ll see…always tough to tell how a freshman will transition.
Also wouldn’t sleep on Braen Brady who’s 6’9". CKS is very high on him.
You are dreaming. Sampson took a job no good coach would touch. Crap facilities and zero fan support. There was no line of even second tier assistants who would touch it.
Then all the players except Chicken bailed. Sampson was starting at zero. The fact he brought in any talent at all is a testament that the guy can recruit.
Some of you talk like you have never seen a basketball game before. UCONN has much more pure talent than UH and it showed. Their problem is that they were devastated by injuries all season long. It was a bad time (for us) for them to be back up to nearly full strength. And we were playing on their home court.
Moreover we were overmatched at guard and with big men. Our 6’1" guards just didn’t match up well with their pro-sized guards. 6’4" Purvis may be ready for the NBA now. He definitely slowed down Dotson. And we were totally overmatched in the paint. Witness UCONN’s 6 blocked shots. That alone impacted our play in the paint.
You think Sampson knows that? Big men - really good ones, that is - are the toughest players to recruit. And when they walk through the dump that was Hofheinz we lost them.
Tough draw for UH. But to start bashing Sampson just shows how little people understand basketball. I used to think UH had pretty smart basketball fans. That’s clearly not the case anymore. Something else we have to rebuild.
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Y’all make it sound like UH was the worst basketball program in Div 1 when Sampson took over; sadly, it may be true.
Must of been in worse shape than Baylor was when Drew took over as coach.
I honestly think CKS was the right coach when UH hired him; 3 years later with the program going upward, maybe some new blood going into the new arena is what UH needs to take UH to the next level.
In my opinion, CKS has taken UH as far as he can, and I’m appreciated for what he has done. He has made the basketball program relevant, and desirable. Getting new facilities doesn’t hurt neither. Let’s not fool ourselves, if UH has another 20+ win season, and they miss the NCAA tournament next season, he’s gonzo.