Houston knows miracle March Madness win over Duke won’t matter without national championship
SAN ANTONIO — On a whiteboard in the Houston Cougars locker room inside the Alamodome, Kelvin Sampson wrote down his team’s record: 35-4.
Then, underneath it: “One more.”
The message was clear: The job isn’t done.
As remarkable and thrilling and emotional and unbelievable as Houston’s Saturday night victory over favored Duke was, it didn’t end this team’s journey.
The job isn’t finished.
The crazy rally from 14 down with 8:17 left won’t mean nearly as much if Houston can’t follow it up with a victory over fellow No. 1 seed Florida Monday night for the school’s first-ever national championship.
“We didn’t want to overreact. That wasn’t our championship,” junior guard Emanuel Sharp said. “It was a great win and it put us in a great position. But we got to know that there’s still one more. We learn to flush it really quick.
“New day, new scouting report, new mindset. It’s good to get back focused on a game. The game was won, we beat Duke, all right, onto the next one.”
Monday night is 11 years in the making.
In 2014, Sampson arrived at Houston, inheriting a program that hadn’t advanced in the NCAA Tournament since the days of Phi Slama Jama way back in 1984.
He has turned it into one of the country’s very best. This season has marked the fourth straight 30-win seasons for the Cougars and their second Final Four since 2021.
It is their third consecutive tournament as a No. 1 seed and the fifth straight time they have produced a top 10 defense in terms of efficiency.
But the ultimate goal, a national championship, has eluded them.
There has been plenty of March heartbreak in recent seasons.
The Sweet 16 loss to Duke last year, when star guard Jamal Shead was lost to a sprained ankle in the first half.
The 2023 Sweet 16 setback to Miami. The 2018 second-round loss to Michigan and Jordan Poole at the buzzer.
“We deserved a break,” Sharp said. “It’s just been tough, year after year.”
For much of Saturday night, it looked like Houston was headed for more disappointment. But the Cougars refused to lose, stunning Duke and projected No. 1 NBA draft pick Cooper Flagg.
Monday night won’t be easy. Florida may have the best player on the floor in Walter Clayton Jr., and a big frontcourt that will tower over Houston’s.
“Duke had size over us, too,” J’Wan Roberts said with a smile. “Find a way to win.”
A key to Houston’s success — continuity — is a rarity in the sport these days. Four of their starters a year ago returned.
While leading scorer L.J. Cryer is a transfer from Baylor, this is his second season as a Cougar.
Sharp, Roberts, Joseph Tugler and key reserves Terrance Arceneaux and Ja’Vier Francis have never played for another school. They have all been developed by Sampson and his staff.
“We’re not the same as other programs. We’ve got a culture that not many guys want to leave,” Sharp said. “We win a lot every year and we’re always in a position to be a great team because of the coaching staff and how we work every day. Not a lot of guys leave here.”
A win Monday night would be for all those players who fell short, who helped Sampson make Houston into an annual March threat. Many of them will be in attendance at the Alamodome.
“I feel like there’s only one way for us to go out,” Roberts said, “and that’s to win a national championship.”
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