Sports
Kelvin Sampson Turns Houston Basketball Into a Powerhouse Again
When the University of Houston introduced Kelvin Sampson as its head coach almost 11 years ago, the well-traveled basketball veteran stepped into one of the sport’s longest shadows. As the 2025 calendar turns to March, Sampson’s Cougars are setting a new standard for a program long synonymous exclusively with the late, great Guy Lewis.
Houston closes out its 2024-25 regular-season slate with games against Cincinnati on Saturday and two of the last three programs to win the national championship, Kansas and Baylor. However, the Cougars have already sealed no worse than a share of the Big 12 Conference championship.
Houston embarks on this stretch and the Big 12 Tournament playing for its third straight No. 1 seed and an inside track to its second Final Four appearance in five seasons. Not since Hall of Famer Guy Lewis coached the Cougars to three straight Final Fours from 1982 through 1984 has Houston enjoyed such success.
In fact, at no time since Lewis retired in 1986 has Houston reached the heights that are fast becoming routine for the Cougars under Sampson. From 1961, when the first Lewis-coached Houston team reached the NCAA Tournament, until the Hakeem Olajuwon-led national runner-up Cougars team of 1984, the program played in 14 editions of the Big Dance.
In the three decades between Lewis’ retirement and Sampson’s 2014 hire, only four Houston teams reached the NCAA Tournament—one fewer than the total Final Four appearances the program made under Lewis.
Yesteryear’s powerhouses fade from glory regularly in college basketball and spend generations chasing past success in futility. When Sampson came to Houston in 2014, the program was one such example, sharing qualities with teams like DePaul and UNLV: once-dominant juggernauts in cities that produce top-flight recruits, but who opt to go elsewhere.
Keeping in-state prospects around has been one pillar of Sampson’s resurrection of Houston basketball. His first NCAA Tournament team at UH in 2017-18 featured key players like Armoni Brooks of Round Rock and Fabian White of Atascocita, who grew into a standout on the 2022 Elite Eight team.
This year, Houston features forward J’Wan Roberts, a graduate of Shoemaker High School in Killeen, and L.J. Cryer of Katy. As a two-time All-Big 12 selection headed for a third, the Baylor transfer Cryer is the de facto star of the 2024-25 Cougars.
But if there’s another quality of Sampson’s tenure at Houston that best explains the program’s return to Lewis-era levels of prominence, it’s that the Cougars don’t rely on stars.
Make no mistake; Cryer is a terrific player. He shoots almost 42 percent from 3-point range and will finish a third consecutive season averaging in the neighborhood of 15 points per game.
However, other teams jockeying for No. 1 seeds alongside Houston include Auburn with Johni Broome, a stat-sheet-stuffing big man averaging a double-double per game. Broome’s a throwback to a time when dominant centers owned college basketball—a time like the mid-1980s when Olajuwon and Houston faced Patrick Ewing and Georgetown for the national championship.
Broome’s recent 31-point, 14-rebound effort against Georgia is unlike any stat line a Cougar is likely to produce. Cryer went for 28 points in a pivotal win over Iowa State, but just five the next time out against Texas Tech.
The results of those two games were the same, though: Houston wins that secured the Cougars’ stake to the Big 12 championship.
And then there’s fellow No. 1 seed contender Duke, built around the explosive game of likely No. 1 NBA draft pick Cooper Flagg. The freshman phenom compares to Lewis-era Houston greats in that his NBA readiness is clear in college.
Indeed, Lewis’ best Houston teams were built around players like Elvin Hayes, Clyde Drexler, and Olajuwon—college stars who went on to pro greatness.
It’s rare for college teams to compete for championships without NBA talent, and Sampson has and continues to attract future pros to his program. His teams differ from Lewis’ Final Four squads in that this era of NBA-bound Cougars are not the individually dominant presences of the past.
And in that contrast lies another characteristic that explains Sampson’s success with a program that seemed destined to long for days gone by. Sampson has unlocked Houston’s potential to return to its prior peak not by emulating what defined the program before, but by embracing his own philosophy.
No one will confuse the aggressive, defensive-oriented style of the present-day Cougars with Phi Slamma Jamma, but it’s Houston’s hard-nosed approach that makes it successful. Tune into a UH game, and you are guaranteed to see maximum effort from all five players on the court for all 40 minutes.
It’s a trait that made Sampson-coached teams winners elsewhere, from a historically downtrodden program like Washington to his tenure at Oklahoma, which produced a Final Four run. This is also the identity that could elevate Houston to a milestone that not even the great Guy Lewis reached: a national championship.
Sports
Wolves, Nuggets each bring an edge into finale of season series
Jan 31, 2026; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) reacts during the fourth quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images The Minnesota Timberwolves wrap up a three-game road trip at the Denver Nuggets on Sunday afternoon with a chance to improve their seeding in the Western Conference playoff picture.
Minnesota has won the first two games of its trip and now faces a tough task against its Northwest Division rival.
Denver already secured the tiebreaker in the season series by winning the first three matchups. With both teams holding identical 37-23 records, the winner of Sunday’s game will have sole possession of fourth in the Western Conference standings.
The Nuggets have lost three of their first five games out of the All-Star break, including a 127-121 overtime setback at Oklahoma City on Friday night. Sunday’s game gives them a chance to get back some momentum.
The Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic appears to already have a postseason mindset after mixing it up with the Thunder during the loss.
Jokic was knocked down when Luguentz Dort hit him with his hip in the fourth quarter and then confronted the Oklahoma City forward. There was pushing and shoving before Dort was assessed a flagrant-2 foul and ejected.
Jokic, who leads Denver in points (28.7), rebounds (12.6) and assists (10.5), has a casual and deliberate demeanor on the court that belies his competitive nature.
“I think he was reacting to what was being done to him,” Denver head coach David Adelman said. “And his reaction’s not going to be to cower away. He’s competitive.”
Playing Minnesota again should keep that fiery spirit alive for Jokic and the rest of the Nuggets. The teams have forged a rivalry over the last four seasons, including two playoff series.
There is no question about the fiery nature and competitive spirit of Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards.
Edwards missed the first game against the Nuggets this season but is averaging 35.0 points in the two games between the teams. That includes a 44-point performance on Christmas night before he was ejected in overtime for arguing foul calls.
Edwards, who leads the Timberwolves in scoring at 29.6 points a game, doesn’t confine his arguments to opponents and officials. He got into a verbal exchange with head coach Chris Finch after hitting a 3-pointer to seal a 94-88 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday.
It is a feature of their relationship, according to teammates.
“They go at it. Honestly, they do,” Timberwolves guard Mike Conley said. “They go at it… They have days where they’re getting ready to fight, and then after the game they hug each other.”
Finch confirmed that in an interview on Fox Sports Radio.
“We’re both fiery competitors. It’s been part of our relationship since Day 1. … We say these things to each other and we move on,” Finch said. “We don’t take it personally.”
The task of stopping Jokic will fall mainly on Rudy Gobert, who leads Minnesota in rebounds (11.4) and blocks (1.7). Nobody could stop Jokic when the teams met on Christmas, with the three-time MVP recording a 56-point triple-double, including 18 points in overtime.
Jokic has averaged 36.0 points 15.7 rebounds and 12.0 assists in the three games against the Timberwolves.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Cincinnati cruises past Oklahoma State with 3-point barrage
Cincinnati Bearcats forward Baba Miller (18) makes a basket from the two point line in the first half of a NCAA men’s basketball game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and Oklahoma State Cowboys, Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, at Fifth Third Arena in Cincinnati. Day Day Thomas heated up from long range, draining seven 3-pointers en route to a 26-point performance, Moustapha Thiam added 24 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and host Cincinnati rolled to a 91-68 home victory over Oklahoma State on Saturday afternoon.
The Bearcats (16-13, 8-8 Big 12), which entered No. 54 in the NET rankings, have won five of their last six. Jizzle James and Baba Miller each finished with 11 points for Cincinnati.
Oklahoma State (17-12, 5-11), playing its first game since losing big man Parsa Fallah to a torn ACL, was overwhelmed throughout. Vyctorius Miller led the team with 15 points, while Jaylen Curry and Kanye Clary both added 11 points. The Cowboys have lost six of their last seven games.
The Bearcats seized control early, going on an 11-2 run highlighted by 3-pointers from Thomas and Thiam to lead 12-4 less than four minutes into the game.
Those early minutes foreshadowed the rest of the game.
Cincinnati dominated from the start, leading 51-33 at halftime. The Bearcats shot 53.1% from the floor, made seven three-pointers and won the rebounding battle 20-15 in the first half. They finished with a two-handed dunk by Thiam. Miller was credited with an assist on the play as he found Thiam open underneath.
In the second half, the Bearcats pulled away. They went on an 11-2 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Thomas to lead 65-37 with just under 15 minutes remaining. Cincinnati continued to extend the lead, reaching as many as 32 points, with an 81-49 advantage after another 3 from Thomas at the 8:22 mark.
Cincinnati finished with 14 made 3s, dished out 24 assists, and had a 24-7 edge in second-chance points. The Bearcats also led for 39:24 of the 40 minutes and improved to 14-3 at home.
Both teams return to action on Tuesday. Cincinnati hosts No. 19 BYU, while Oklahoma State travels to UCF.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Bobby Durkin has career night as Minnesota tops UCLA
Feb 24, 2026; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers forward Bobby Durkin (3) dribbles against Michigan Wolverines guard Elliot Cadeau (3) in the second half at Crisler Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images Bobby Durkin scored a season-high 23 points with seven made 3-pointers and Langston Reynolds added 21 points with six assists as Minnesota claimed another victim at home with a 78-73 victory over UCLA at Minneapolis.
Cade Tyson also scored 21 points for the Golden Gophers (14-15, 7-11 Big Ten), who shot 62.3% from the floor and 52.2% from 3-point range. Durkin, who reached 1,000 points for his college career in the first half, went 7 of 11 from long range.
Minnesota improved to 12-4 at home this season with victories in its own building over a trio of ranked teams in Indiana, Iowa and Michigan State.
Tyler Bilodeau scored 32 points with eight rebounds and Eric Dailey Jr. added 18 points for the Bruins (19-10, 11-7), who failed to build off huge victories over No. 10 Illinois and rival Southern California over the past week.
Skyy Clark scored 17 points, while Donovan Dent had 15 assists but just three points, as UCLA now prepares for a key home game upcoming against No. 12 Nebraska.
With the game tied 61-61 with 7:59 remaining, Cade scored four points in a 6-0 run for Minnesota to give the Gophers a 67-61 lead with 6:15 left. The Bruins got within 76-73 on a three-point play from Bilodeau with 1:50 remaining.
The Bruins then missed four consecutive 3-pointers over the final 1:08, including two by Bilodeau, as the Gophers held on for the victory.
In a first half of swings, Minnesota led by as many as nine points early before UCLA went on a 17-3 run to lead by as many as seven points before taking a 41-40 lead into the break. Bilodeau had 16 points in the first half, while Dent had nine assists for UCLA.
Durkin scored 15 points in the first half for Minnesota and reached 1,000 points on one of his five 3-pointers before halftime. UCLA’s Clark reached 1,000 career points on a basket in the second half.
–Field Level Media
Wolves, Nuggets each bring an edge into finale of season series
Cincinnati cruises past Oklahoma State with 3-point barrage
