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Florida wins the NCAA title with a 65-63 victory over Houston

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Florida wins the national championship at the 2024 Final Four at the Alamodome.

The confetti rained down on the Florida Gators Monday night after they defeated the Houston Cougars and won their third NCAA men’s basketball championship. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

If the NCAA Division I men’s basketball championship game had been a canvas, then the Florida Gators’ last defensive stop against the Houston Cougars in a 65-63 victory represented a work of art. They stuffed both of the Cougars’ leading scorers on one play to secure their first title in 18 years.

With Florida leading by two and 19 seconds remaining Monday night at the Alamodome, Houston had an opportunity to tie or take the lead. Coming out of a timeout, they inbounded and put the ball in guard L.J. Cryer’s hands about 30 feet from the hoop.

Florida wins the national championship at the 2024 Final Four at the Alamodome.

Florida fans shouted their approval after the Gators won their first title since back to back crowns in 2006 and 2007. – Photo by Joe Alexander

But with a defender in his face, the Cougars’ No 1 offensive threat had nowhere to go and tossed it to teammate Emanuel Sharp, a deadly 41.5 percent shooter from three-point range. Seeing an opening in the middle of the floor, he jumped and started to launch what would have been a long three for the lead, only to see Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. close out on the play and fly past him.

To avoid having the shot blocked or getting called for traveling, Sharp dropped the ball before his feet hit the floor, hoping that one of his teammates could retrieve it. The gamble proved costly. With the ball bouncing three times and the clock ticking away the last few seconds, Florida forward Alex Condon raced out from his post inside, dove and secured it in his arms.

Then he tossed it to Clayton as the buzzer sounded.

Still face down on the floor, Condon knew that the sound of the blaring horn was a good thing. It meant that the Gators had scrawled their initials on a season-long masterpiece. Afterward, Florida coach Todd Golden hailed his team’s run to the title as “a heck of an accomplishment.”

“Obviously, we have an incredibly talented group, one of the most talented groups individually in America,” Golden said. “I do think what separates us and has separated us all season long is our team talent, how our guys have played together and for each other all year. Because of that, we can call each other national champions for the rest of our lives.”

For the third straight game in the tournament, the Gators rallied from a deficit of nine points or more to win. They did it against Texas Tech in the regional final. They did it against Auburn Saturday in the national semifinal. And once again, against Houston, they were down 42-30 early in the second half, only to find a way to win.

It wasn’t easy. The Cougars, who had won 18 straight, continued to play hard even though they were not at the top of their game.

Leading by three points with 4:17 remaining and looking for their first national title, Houston was outscored 8-3 down the stretch as their championship hopes slipped away. The Gators took the lead with 46.5 seconds remaining when Alijah Martin drove to draw a foul and made two free throws, making it 64-63.

Alex Condon, Florida

Florida forward Alex Condon had 12 points, seven rebounds and four steals. – Photo by Joe Alexander

After a timeout, Sharp had the ball on the dribble, taking it down the right side of the lane. In response, Florida’s Will Richard reached in and deflected it, knocking it off Sharp’s leg.

The play, confirmed on an official review at the monitors, gave Florida possession with 26.5 seconds left. Drawing a foul, Gators guard Denzel Aberdeen went to the line and made one of two free throws, giving the Gators a 65-63 lead as the Cougars called time with 19.7 seconds left.

That is when the Gators’ masterpiece of a defensive stand unfolded. Clayton, held to 11 points after scoring 30 and 34 in his last two games of the tournament, read Houston’s play perfectly and promptly hustled outside to contest Sharp.

“Felt like we were going to get something from Cryer or (Houston forward J’Wan Roberts),” Clayton said. “Sharp kind of creeped down to the baseline. I seen a back screen. I’m yelling ‘screen,’ at Do (Condon). Sharp ended up slipping it … We work on it in practice, closing out, jumping to the side, so you don’t foul the shooter. He pump faked, threw the ball down. Ended up being a good play (for us). Do got on it. We won the game.”

Condon described the surreal moment of latching onto the ball and then realizing that the game was over, and that the Gators had won.

“I think it was a great defensive play by Walter,” Condon said. “I was questioning whether I should go out and leave my man. He did a good job of making him (hesitate and drop the ball). It was going to be a travel (violation) if he picked it up. Just diving on it and hearing the buzzer … was a crazy feeling. Didn’t feel real, for sure.”

Guard Will Richard led the Gators in scoring with 19 points. Condon had 12 points and Walter Clayton Jr. 11. Defensively, the Gators played extremely well, holding the Cougars to 34.8 percent shooting from the field and limiting them to just six of 24 from the three-point line.

Walter Clayton Jr., Florida.

Walter Clayton Jr. contributed 11 points, five rebounds and seven assists. Clayton, a first-team All American, had scored 30 and 34 points in his two previous tournament games. – Photo by Joe Alexander

For Houston, playing its first national title game since 1984 in front of a mostly red-clad throng of its own fans, Cryer scored 19 points. Mylik Wilson had nine and Roberts, Sharp and Ja’Vier Francis contributed eight apiece.

“I told our guys after the game to be disappointed you lost,” Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said. “But do not be disappointed in your effort. You know, defending Florida is difficult. They got a really, really good team. Coach Golden runs great schemes over there. But we guarded ’em. We held that team to 65 points.”

The loss stung Sampson, a 69-year-old veteran of 36 years as a college head coach who has won 799 games but still has never won a national title. Asked during his postgame news conference what was on his mind in the big picture, he tried to explain.

“I’m just going through those last two possessions more than anything else,” he said. “Incomprehensible in that situation we couldn’t get a shot. Couldn’t get a shot. We were down two, and obviously we didn’t need a three … We were struggling to score the entire second half. We got good looks.

“Florida was doing a good job running us off the (three-point) line and forcing us to score it (elsewhere). We just didn’t do a good job of finishing some shots … Give Florida credit, too. I’m not going to sit up here and poor mouth, pity mouth us.

“We held that team to 65 points. Clayton and Martin combined go five for 20 (from the field). If you would have told me we would hold those two guys to five for 20 … We had a good plan. We just didn’t score it well enough to win. Scored it well enough to be in a position to win. At the end, you’ve got to get a shot.

“Got to do better than that.”

Records

Florida 36-4
Houston 35-5

First half

Wilson and forward Francis came off the bench and sparked the Cougars to a 31-28 lead at halftime.

Wilson, a 6-foot-3 graduate guard, played 11 minutes and hit three of six shots from the field for seven points. Francis, a 6-8 sky walker, had six points and four rebounds.

J'Wan Roberts, Houston

Sixth-year Houston forward J’Wan Roberts had eight points and eight rebounds, – Photo by

Six minutes into the game, Francis brought the crowd to its feet with a soaring dunk. Later, he added a couple of shots in the paint. His second field goal in the stretch gave Houston a 20-16 lead.

Wilson energized the Cougars with a steal from Denzel Aberdeen and then a breakaway layup. He later punctuated an 8-0 run for the Cougars with a dunk on the fast break, soaring to catch an alley-oop pass from Emanuel Sharp, and then dunking with force.

When Wilson hit a three off the glass out of the corner, the Cougars had a 29-21 lead with 5:02 remaining. At that point, the Cougars failed to capitalize on the momentum, hitting only one field goal for the rest of the half.

Will Richard scored on a jumper and a three-pointer in the last 3:21 to bring the Gators back. Richard finished the half with 14 points, including five of eight from the field and four of six from three.

The top scorers for both teams in Saturday’s semifinals were held in check. Florida’s Walter Clayton was scoreless on zero for four shooting. Guarded closely as soon as he crossed halfcourt, Clayton would try to drive, only to find another Houston defender in his face.

Clayton tried to adjust, passing for five assists. Clayton scored 34 points in Florida’s 79-73 victory over Auburn Saturday afternoon. Houston’s L.J. Cryer, who played 40 minutes and scored 26 in a 70-67 victory over Duke, was also guarded with intensity by Florida defenders.

Cryer had five points on two for six shooting.

Improved three-point shooting has helped propel Houston to the NCAA title game

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

After an exit from last year’s NCAA tournament in the Sweet 16, coaches for the Houston Cougars went back to work in an effort to upgrade the team’s offensive capabilities.

Milos Uzan. Houston beat Duke 70-67 in the second semifinal of the Final Four on Saturday, April 5, 2025, at the Alamodome. - Photo by Joe Alexander

The addition of Milos Uzan (No. 7) has bolstered the depth of Houston’s three-point shooting. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The Cougars did just that, reconfiguring a backcourt that now has the ability to carry the team with its three-point shooting.

Houston has always been known for its rugged defense, which ranks first in the nation this season in points per game and field goal percentage allowed.

Nevertheless, the Cougars’ ability to shoot the three has, in essence, turned the squad into a more well-rounded force of nature, one that has surged all the way to the NCAA championship game.

Houston (35-4) will try to win its first national title when it meets Florida (also 35-4) on Monday at 7:50 p.m. at the Alamodome.

“We collectively have more guys that can make a three,” Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said earlier this week. “We’ve gone from being a three-point shooting team to a three-point making team. There’s a difference.”

The Duke Blue Devils found that out the hard way.

Guards L.J. Cryer and Emanuel Sharp combined to hit nine of Houston’s 10 three-point buckets Saturday night in a riveting, 70-67 victory in the NCAA semifinals.

Cryer, in his second year at Houston after starting his career at Baylor, poured in 26 points. On the way to that outburst, Cryer knocked down six of nine from long distance.

Sharp made three of seven from beyond the arc and scored 16, including a momentum-changing three during the Cougars’ 9-0 run in the last minute of the game.

The performance was emblematic of Houston’s success all season. At least one player, and sometimes two or three, will heat up from the perimeter to make life miserable for opposing players and coaches.

Last season, the Cougars were excellent defensively, as usual, but were only a respectable team in hitting the long ball. They made 286 of 821 for 34.8 percent in a 32-5 campaign that ended in the Sweet 16 with a loss to Duke.

This season, the Coogs have connected on 320 of 803 for 39.9 percent. Houston’s three backcourt starters — Cryer, Sharp and first-year point guard Milos Uzan — have all hit better than 40 percent for the season.

Uzan, a transfer from Oklahoma, was brought in to be a distributor as veteran point guard Jamal Shead was leaving for the NBA.

He doesn’t shoot the ball a lot in the Cougars’ system but he can make the three, as evidenced by his 44 percent accuracy for the year.

Cryer leads the team with 119 makes from distance while hitting 42.7 percent. Sharp, meanwhile, shoots the long ball at 41.5 percent clip.

In five NCAA tournament games, the Cougars have been even better. They’re making 40.3 percent in five games, averaging a little more than nine per outing. Opponents, by contrast, are hitting 26 percent and 5.2 per game.

Duke made seven of 17 from outside the arc, but that wasn’t quite enough.

In the end, the Houston’s remarkable 25-8 run on Duke in the last eight minutes of the game also showcased clutch free-throw shooting, which is always important in championship settings.

During that stretch, the Cougars made nine of 10 at the line, including two for two by forward J’Wan Roberts in the last minute of a harrowing finish. Roberts entered the Duke game as a career 58.9 percent free-throw shooter.

Roberts was three for eight from the free-throw line in last year’s Sweet 16 loss to the Blue Devils.

“Even though we only lost four games all year, a couple of those, the free-throw line impacted two of those,” Sampson said. “So we had our kids make 150 free throws seven days a week. I don’t think J’Wan missed a day from June 2nd till we left (Houston for San Antonio) on Wednesday.

“We left on Wednesday, right? So Tuesday night I looked at what he shot from the free-throw line with his 150 makes. He shot 87 (percent). That was his highest percentage … When he started this, he was at 66.”

Records

Florida 35-4
Houston 35-4

Coming up

NCAA championship game, Houston vs. Florida, Monday at 7:50 p.m. at the Alamodome

Notable

The Cougars have made two appearances in NCAA championship games, in both 1983 and 1984, in the Phi Slama Jama years. The 1983 team featured Clyde Drexler and Akeem (now Hakeem) Olajuwon. Olajuwon also played for Houston in the ’84 title game.

In ’83, the Cougars lost to Jim Valvano and the NC State Wolfpack at Albuquerque, N.M., and in ’84, they lost to John Thompson and Georgetown at Seattle, Wash. Both Houston teams were coached by Guy V. Lewis. This is Houston’s seventh Final Four appearance. The Cougars reached the Final Four in 1967, 1968, 1982, 1983, 1984, 2021 and 2025.

Lewis coached the Cougars to the first five Final Fours and Kelvin Sampson the last two.

Sampson, 69, is bidding to become the oldest coach to win an NCAA title. Jim Calhoun won in 2011 with the Connecticut Huskies at age 68. In his 36th year as a coach, Sampson would also reach two other milestone if he can beat the Gators. A win would be the 800th of his career and his 300th in 11 seasons at Houston.

If Houston wins Monday night, the Cougars would be the third team from the state of Texas to win the NCAA men’s title and the first to do it in a game played within the state.

Don Haskins-coached Texas Western (now UT-El Paso) won the 1966 championship with a victory over Kentucky in College Park, Md. In 2021, Scott Drew-coached Baylor beat Sampson and Houston in the semifinals and then downed Gonzaga in the title game at Indianapolis.

Florida has reached the NCAA finals three times and has won two titles. The Gators made the championship game in 2000, 2006 and 2006, all coached by recently-installed Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame coach Billy Donovan.

A Florida team that included forward Matt Bonner lost in 2000 in Indianapolis to Tom Izzo-coached Michigan State. Bonner went on to become a popular player with the Spurs. In 2006, they won the title in Indianapolis over UCLA, and in 2007, they won again in Atlanta over Ohio State.

Final Four teams at a glance: Florida, Auburn, Houston, Duke

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L.J. Cryer. Houston Cougars at the 2005 NCAA Final Four for a public practice and media session on Friday, April 4, 2025, at the Alamodome in San Antonio. - Photo by Joe Alexander

L.J. Cryer leads the Houston Cougars into the Final Four looking for the program’s first national championship. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The NCAA Final Four starts Saturday at the Alamodome with Florida playing Auburn at 5:09 p.m. and Houston meeting Duke at approximately 7:49 p.m. Here are the teams at a glance:

Florida

Road to San Antonio: The top seed in the West defeated Norfolk State, 95-69; UConn, 77-75; Maryland, 87-71; Texas Tech, 84-79

Record: 34-4

Winning streak: 10

Extended streak: 16-1 in last 17

Coach: Todd Golden, sixth year, 131-69 overall and 74-33 in three years at Florida.

Starters: Alex Condon, Rueben Chinyelu, Walter Clayton Jr., Will Richard, Alijah Martin

Seasoned veteran: Clayton, a first-team Associated Press All American and an All SEC pick, has played 137 games in his college career, including 64 at Iona and 73 at Florida

Most productive player: Clayton averages 18.1 points and shoots 38.5 percent from three.

Top newcomer out of the portal: Alijah Martin has averaged 14.5 points.

Top freshman: Freshmen have had a minimal impact on the Gators. Guard Isaiah Brown from Orlando has played in 19 games.

The journey and the goal: The Gators, in their third season under Golden, started to peak in Nashville a few weeks ago when they won the SEC tournament. Now they’re looking to win their first NCAA title since they went back to back in 2006 and 2007.

Auburn Tigers

Road to San Antonio: The top seed in the South defeated Alabama State, 83-63; Creighton, 82-70; Michigan, 78-65; Michigan State, 70-64.

Record: 32-5

Winning streak: Four

Extended streak: 5-3 in last eight

Coach: Bruce Pearl, 694-269 in 30 seasons, including 232-124 in 11 seasons at Auburn.

Starters: Dylan Cardwell, Johni Broome, Chad Baker-Mazara, Miles Kelley, Denver Jones.

Most productive player: Forward/center Johni Broome, a first-team AP All American, averages 18.7 points and 10.9 rebounds. NCAA South Regional MVP after averaging 23.5 points and 15 rebounds in victories over Michigan and Michigan State.

Seasoned veteran: Forward Dylan Cardwell has played in 165 games in five seasons for Auburn.

Top newcomer out of the portal: Guard Denver Jones made the SEC all defense team. He’s scored 51 points in four NCAA games.

Top freshman: Tahaad Pettiford, a 6-1 freshman guard from Jesey City, N.J., averages 11.7 points off the bench. Has scored 69 points in four NCAA games, including 23 against Creighton and 20 against Michigan.

The journey and the goal: Ranked 11th nationally in the preseason, the Tigers won the SEC regular-season crown and entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 1 seed. They’re in their second Final Four after making it in 2019, also under Bruce Pearl. Both the coach and the program have never won the national title, so Pearl will be looking to make history this weekend.

Houston Cougars

Road to San Antonio: The top seed in the Midwest defeated SIU-Edwardsville, 78-40; Gonzaga, 81-76; Purdue, 62-60 and Tennessee 69-50.

Record: 34-4

Streak: Won 17 in a row

Extended streak: 30-1 in last 31

Coach: Kelvin Sampson, 36th year, 798-353; 11th year at Houston, 298-83.

Starters: G Milos Uzan, G L.J. Cryer, G Emanuel Sharp, F J’Wan Roberts, F Joseph Tugler.

Most productive player: L.J. Cryer, a 6-1 guard, made AP third-team All America after leading the Cougars in scoring at 15.4 points per game. He shoots 41.9 percent from three. Cryer played limited minutes as a freshman when the Baylor Bears won the 2020-21 national title.

Seasoned veteran: Forward J’Wan Roberts has played in a school-record 171 games in the last five seasons for the Cougars.

Top newcomer out of the portal: Milos Uzan, a transfer from Oklahoma, has averaged 11.6 points and 4.4 assists. He scored 22 against Purdue in the Sweet 16.

Top freshman: Not much impact from freshmen. Mercy Miller has played only 22 games and has averaged 2.7 points.

The journey and the goal: The Cougars won the Big 12 regular-season and tournament title en route their second Final Four in the last five years (both under Sampson) and their seventh overall. Both Sampson and the Cougars are looking for their first national title.

Duke Blue Devils

Road to San Antonio: The top seed in the East defeated Mount St. Mary’s, 93-49; Baylor, 89-66; Arizona 100-93 and Alabama, 85-65.

Record: 35-3

Streak: Won 15 in a row

Extended streak: 31-1 in last 32

Coach: Jon Scheyer, third year, 89-21, all at Duke.

Starters: G Sion James, G Tyrese Proctor, G/F Kon Knueppel, G/F Cooper Flagg, C Khaman Maluach.

Most productive player: Freshman forward Cooper Flagg averages 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists for the season. The 18-year-old Associated Press player of the year is averaging 19.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists in the NCAA tournament.

Top newcomer out of the portal: Guard Sion James, an offseason transfer from Tulane, shoots 52.4 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from three. He averages 8.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists.

Top freshman: Other than Flagg, the Blue Devils’ top freshman is guard/forward Kon Knueppel, who averages 14.4 points. He’s a 47.7 percent shooter, including 40.1 percent from three.

The journey and the goal: The Blue Devils won the ACC regular-season and postseason titles en route to a No. 1 seed in the East. After Flagg sat out two games in the ACC tournament with an ankle injury, he returned and led the Blue Devils to their 18th Final Four appearance. Duke is trying to win its first NCAA championship since 2014-15 and its sixth overall.

In a potentially epic Final Four Saturday, don’t count out the ‘old guys’ coaching at Houston, Auburn

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Houston coach Kelvin Sampson. No. 5 seed Houston upset No. 1 seed Arizona 72-60 in the NCAA tournament South Region Sweet 16 on Thursday, March 24, 2022, at the AT&T Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Coach Kelvin Sampson has won 798 games in 36 seasons as a head coach. He’s looking for his first national championship this weekend at the Alamodome. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Since last weekend, everyone in the basketball universe has known of the potential for an epic NCAA Final Four.

The qualifiers include the Florida Gators from the West region and the Duke Blue Devils from the East, and then the Houston Cougars from the Midwest and the Auburn Tigers from the South.

Since last Sunday, when the field was set, the statistics have been crunched, the talent evaluated and the odds posted. Who shoots the three ball the best? Who plays the best defense? How do they play it?

The Final Four, featuring a mixture of four No. 1 seeds for the second time ever and the first time since 2008, has been analyzed seemingly every which way.

So on Thursday, it was funny to hear a reporter at an afternoon news conference break it down in another way.

Basically, he said, when it comes down to the head coaches involved, the Final Four may be viewed as “two old guys” against “two young guys.”

In the first game Saturday at the Alamodome, it’ll be Pearl, 65, sending his Tigers out to play Todd Golden’s Gators in a battle of Southeastern Conference powers.

In the nightcap, we’ll see 69-year-old Kelvin Sampson’s Cougars, representing the Big 12, against Jon Scheyer and the Blue Devils from the Atlantic Coast Conference.

As the reporter rolled out his question, he asked Pearl, who was seated at the dais, “You and Kelvin have been through adversity, all these things in your career. How much difference does that make?”

Also, the reporter asked Pearl to comment on a trend by schools to hire 30-something coaches like Golden and Scheyer into jobs at high-profile schools.

As the question was being asked, Pearl started to grin. You could tell he liked it. When it was delivered in full, the coach was still smiling as he delivered the type of answer that has made him so popular over the years.

“You know,” Pearl began, “the only way I look at it is, Kelvin and I have fewer chances to get to where we are right now (in the future), whereas Jon Scheyer and Todd Golden will be back here many, many more times.

“Kelvin and I better take advantage of it this time ‘cause we’re clearly on the back nine. I’m not on the 18th hole yet, but we’re getting closer.

“Todd and Jon don’t give up anything in experience … They just don’t have as much gray hair. They may not have been beaten down as much as Kelvin and I have been over the years.”

For the record, Pearl, in his 30th season as a head coach, has won 694 games. He’s led his teams into 14 NCAA tournaments — including six NCAAs and two Final Fours — in eight years as head coach of the Tigers.

Sampson, in turn, has won 798 games in 36 seasons. In Houston, he has re-energized a fan base, taking the Cougars on seven trips to the NCAA dance.

In his storied career, which started at tiny Montana Tech, he has been to two Final Fours, one with Oklahoma in 2002 and another with Houston in 2021.

Like Pearl, Sampson seemed amused by the topic of the day.

“There’s kind of a divide in this Final Four,” the reporter said. “You got you and Bruce Pearl, then you got two guys that are young enough to be your sons.”

Replied Sampson, smiling, “Thank you. Appreciate that. I hadn’t quite looked at it like that. But I will now.”

At that point, Sampson was told that he and Pearl had negotiated “difficult waters” in their respective careers.

For reference, Pearl and Sampson have both been found to have run afoul of the NCAA rule book, and both have been fired. Pearl, by the University of Tennessee. Sampson, by Indiana University.

But both, undeniably, are on the bounce back.

Both are ascending in stature even as the college game turns to coaches like Golden (131-69 in six years, including three at San Francisco) and Scheyer (89-21 in three, all at Duke).

Both Golden and Scheyer hold their Final Four coaching counterparts in high regard. Golden once worked on Pearl’s Auburn staff for a couple of years.

Scheyer said he elected before his first season as head coach to play a scrimmage with Sampson and Houston, just after he had taken the reins from Duke legend Mike Krzyzewski. He did it because he’s always admired UH’s defensive tenacity and toughness.

Also, Scheyer said he and Sampson texted back and forth that year. It’s clear he holds Sampson in high regard, and from Thursday’s news conference, it was easy to see why.

Sampson has a disarming charm about him. Just listen to him talk.

“Well.” Sampson continued on Thursday, “I coached against my son, (UH assistant coach) Kellen (Sampson), in scrimmages all the time. He’s always kicking my butt. So I’m used to being beat by younger guys.”

He said the move by some schools to hire young talent in coaching is “great for the game, ‘cause the game should always be about the future.”

In making his point, Sampson expressed some dismay at how fans talk about Houston’s teams in the 1960s and the 1980s.

In the ‘80s, former coach Guy V. Lewis led the Cougars to three straight Final Fours with Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler and “Phi Slama Jama.”

“I’m thinking none of the kids that I’m recruiting, nor their parents, have ever heard of that,” he said. “That’s the past. Honor it. Let’s honor those guys. But for God’s sake, don’t live in the past.

“When I look at Todd (and) Jon, it makes me feel good about the future of the game. I still think Bruce has got a lot of good years left. He’s a youngster. He’s only 65. Maybe not for this old one.”

Sampson said basketball is in “good hands” with the younger coaches, who are better equipped “to navigate these choppy waters.” He also mentioned how he relies on his assistants.

From his son, to Quannas White, to Hollis Price and K.C. Beard. He said he encourages them to call their peers in the profession and ask about how they’re handling the changing business model of college sports.

“I didn’t know anything about NIL,” he said. “I used to think it was sacrilege if you transferred inside your own league. That would never have happened (years ago.) Now it’s just a different time.”

For college basketball fans, it’s also an exciting time, thanks to two “old guys” who can still coach and hope to prove it again on Saturday night.

NCAA basketball: Houston advances to the Final Four

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The Houston Cougars are coming to San Antonio to play in the NCAA Final Four.

Top-seeded Houston built a 19-point halftime lead and then fended off a rally in the second half to beat the two seed Tennessee Vols 69-50 on Sunday in the Midwest regional final at Indianapolis.

With Tennessee trying to mount a comeback, Emanuel Sharp knocked down three three-point baskets in the final 5:29 to lift the Houston program into its seventh Final Four and its second in the last five seasons under Coach Kelvin Sampson.

The Cougars, who have won 17 in a row, are scheduled to play the Duke Blue Devils in the national semifinals on Saturday in the Alamodome.

Duke is the No. 1 seed out of the East region. The Blue Devils advanced with an 85-65 victory Saturday night in Newark, N.J.

L.J. Cryer led the Cougars with 17 points, including 10 in the first half. Sharp heated up in the second half and finished with 16. He made four of 10 from beyond the three-point arc.

Joseph Tugler pulled down nine rebounds to lead the Cougars, who out-boarded the Volunteers 42-35, including 14-12 on the offensive glass. Defensively, Houston limited Tennessee to 28.8 percent shooting.

Shut off from making drives to the basket, the Vols hoisted 29 three-point shots and made only five for 17.2 percent. The Cougars weren’t great, making only 42.4 percent from the field.

From three, the Cougars made nine of 25 for 36 percent.

First half

The Cougars surged to a 34-15 lead on the Volunteers, who shot only 21 percent from the field.

Houston didn’t set the world on fire offensively, shooting only 41 percent and making three of 10 from outside the three-point arc, but with Tennessee’s futility, the Cougars had a relatively easy time of it in the first 20 minutes.

Even with UH starting forward J’Wan Roberts on the bench with two fouls for much of the half, the Cougars were unfazed in methodically building a commanding lead.

L.J. Cryer led the Cougars with 10 points and Terrence Arceneaux had eight off the bench. Joseph Tugler had six rebounds, including four on the offensive end.

Tennessee shot an air ball on its first attempt of the game and struggled the rest of the half, making only 6 of 28 from the field, including 1 of 15 from three.

Houston did a good job defensively, as usual, but many of the Vols’ misses from deep came without much pressure.

Even Tennessee leading scorer Chaz Lanier was off. Lanier, who averaged 18 points a game, scored only two. He was one of nine from the field.

Records

Tennessee 30-8
Houston 34-4

Coming up

Houston vs. Duke in the national semifinals, Saturday, April 5, in San Antonio

Houston holds off Purdue 62-60 in the NCAA round of 16

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

On a perfectly-executed inbounds play, guard Milos Uzan hit a layup with less than a second remaining Friday to lift the top-seeded Houston Cougars to a 62-60 victory over the No. 4 Purdue Boilermakers in an NCAA Sweet 16 game at Indianapolis.

The Cougars’ 16th straight victory boosted them into the Elite Eight round of the tournament for the first time since the 2021-22 season.

Big 12 champion Houston (33-4) will play the Southeastern Conference’s Tennessee Volunteers (30-7) on Sunday afternoon for the Midwest regional title and a trip to the Final Four in San Antonio next week.

Second-seeded Tennessee advanced by defeating No. 3 Kentucky 78-65 earlier in the afternoon at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Elite Eight matchups

Saturday
Florida vs. Texas Tech, 5 p.m. on TBS/TruTV
Duke vs. Alabama, 7:30 p.m. on TBS/TruTV

Sunday
Houston vs. Tennessee, Sunday, 1:20 p.m. on CBS
Auburn vs. Michigan State, Sunday, 4:05 p.m. on CBS

A riveting finish

In a riveting finish, the Boilermakers manufactured a 14-4 run, erased a 10-point deficit and tied the game when Camden Heide made a three-pointer out of the corner with 35 seconds remaining.

Houston brought the ball up court and put in the hands of Milos Uzan, who had the hot offensive hand all night for the Cougars. After making contact with a Boilermakers defender, he hoisted a shot that went off the rim.

Joseph Tugler tried unsuccessfully to tip it in but he, too, missed and the ball went out of bounds.

On the ensuing inbounds, Uzan tossed it to Tugler, who executed perfectly and bounced it back to Uzan who was wide open for the winning layup that came with less than a second remaining.

On one last desperation play, Purdue threw it out to halfcourt and misfired from 45 feet to end the game.

Uzan, a transfer from Nevada, led the Cougars with 22 points and six assists. His production offset a poor shooting night by L.J. Cryer and Emanuel Sharp, who together combined for seven of 27 shooting from the field.

Forward J’Wan Roberts hauled in 12 rebounds to pace a strong attack on the glass for the Cougars, who out-boarded the Boilermakers 38-29, including 16-7 on the offensive glass.

The extra possessions allowed Houston to take 61 shots from the field and make 23 of them. Purdue was 21 for 52 afield. Uzan was on fire from the three-point line, making six of nine.

Fletcher Loyer led the Boilermakers with 16 points and Trey Kaufman-Renn had 14.

Texas sneaks in to the field of 68, joining Houston, Texas Tech, Texas A&M and Baylor in the NCAA men’s tournament

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Five teams from the state of Texas have made the 68-team NCAA men’s basketball tournament field. The biggest surprise was the 15-loss Texas Longhorns, who will play in the Midwest Region in a First Four, or, a round of 68 game, against Xavier (Ohio) on Wednesday night in Dayton, Ohio.

The Longhorns (19-15) are one of a record 14 teams from the Southeastern Conference to make the NCAA field.

Xavier (21-11) is a Big East team based in Cincinnati, Ohio, meaning the Musketeers will only need to travel about 48 miles to the game site at the Dayton Arena. The winner will advance to round of 64 on Friday against Illinois in Milwaukee.

Games involving Texas teams on Thursday will be:

*Big 12 regular season and tournament champion Houston (30-4) against SIU Edwardsville (22-11) at Wichita, Kan., in the Midwest region. The winner would get either Gonzaga or Georgia in the Round of 32;
*Texas Tech (25-8) against the University of North Carolina at Wilmington (27-7), also at Wichita, in the West. The winner would draw either Missouri or Drake in the Round of 32;
*Texas A&M (22-10) against Drake (22-7) at Denver, in the South. The winner would play either Michigan or UC San Diego in the Round of 32.

Games involving Texas teams on Friday will be:

*Baylor (19-14) against Mississippi State (21-12) at Raleigh, N.C. in the East. The winner would advance to play either top-seeded Duke or 16 seeds American or Mount St. Mary’s.

Houston races to a 22-point lead and then holds off UTSA, 66-64

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The Houston Cougars edged past the UTSA Roadrunners and freshman guard Aysia Proctor, who scored seven of her team-high 19 points in the fourth quarter. – Photo by Tony Morano, courtesy of UTSA athletics

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Other than playing an error-filled first half, the UTSA Roadrunners did just about everything that a team needed to do to win a basketball game. They showed hustle. They grappled on the floor with the Houston Cougars for loose balls.

They decisively won the battle under the back boards against a Power 5 opponent.

UTSA center Elyssa Coleman (left) battles Houston’s Djessira Diawara for possession. Coleman snared eight rebounds as the Roadrunners won the battle of the boards, 47-33. – Photo by Tony Morano, courtesy of UTSA athletics

On the offensive end, the Roadrunners knocked down clutch shots in the third and fourth quarters. In the end, though, it wasn’t quite enough as the Cougars built a 22-point lead in the first half and then somehow escaped with a 66-64 road victory at the Convocation Center.

“The obvious elephant in the room is that we got off to a tough start and just (made) too many turnovers … ,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “We talked about it at halftime. You know, our defense was fairly solid. I think we gave them some timely offensive rebounds and a couple of threes. But … they had 19 points in the half off turnovers.”

More specifically, Houston forced 16 first-half turnovers and outscored UTSA by a resounding 19-0 margin off the errors over the first two quarters. As a result, the Cougars juiced the lead to as many as 22 points three times. At intermission, it was a 20-point game.

Not to worry. In the second half, a Roadrunners team that has erased deficits of 11 and 15 points to win this year made a spirited run to get back in the game. At the end, they were looking at an eight-point deficit with 3:44 remaining — and still nearly pulled it out.

First, freshman guard Aysia Proctor and junior forward Elyssa Coleman made baskets to get the fans up on their feet. Kyra White’s elbow jumper with 50 seconds left turned the volume another notch higher.

UTSA guard Kyra White (right) faced intense defensive pressure and still produced 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists. – Photo by Tony Morano, courtesy of UTSA athletics

Then, finally, Sidney Love splashed a three with 18 seconds left for one of the best moments in memory in the Convocation Center, with people standing, cheering and throwing their arms in the air. UTSA was down by just two. The program’s first victory over a P5 opponent in 13 years seemed within reach.

“I just felt like we were in the game,” said Proctor, who led the Roadrunners with 19 points on nine of 11 shooting from the field. “I just felt like we could win it. Our team was hyped. We were locked in.”

For the Roadrunners, it wasn’t meant to be.

On Houston’s next possession, three UTSA players were trapping and had a Cougars player cornered on the boundary and the halfcourt stripe. Cougars coach Ronald Hughey called time out, just in time, because it appeared that the Coogs’ ball handler was about to be whistled for traveling.

Ultimately, Houston inbounded again with seven seconds left, made a few passes and then ran out the clock. UTSA could have fouled at least the last Cougars player with the ball but didn’t, for some reason.

Sidney Love (right, with the ball) takes it to the rim with the left hand. She finished with 13 points. – Photo by Tony Morano, courtesy UTSA athletics

In trying to recall the moments that stood out for her at the end, Aston pinpointed a missed shot from close range by the Roadrunners and then a play on the other end when her team failed to box out, allowing the Cougars to snare an offensive rebound that led to a couple of Laila Blair free throws.

“We have players that understand that block outs are important,” Aston said. “I don’t have to go back and say you should have blocked out. But I do think that not fouling there at the very end…like, we didn’t have a grasp that we had to foul. We need to be better at that, for sure.”

Once-beaten Houston, ranked 69th in the nation in the NET computer rankings, is due a large amount of credit for hanging on when the game seemed to be slipping away. Particularly, the two free throws by Blair were momentous for Houston’s cause. Both Blair and N’Yah Boyd finished with 14 points apiece.

UTSA players also deserve credit for showing fortitude after such a poor first-half. Proctor’s nine for 11 shooting was one individual highlight. Another was the overall hustle and grit of White, who finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Love was another player in double figures with 13 points.

The Roadrunners entered the game 138th in the nation in the NET. Despite the loss, they might have helped their cause in the rankings because they held the Cougars to 20 points below their average. They also dominated on the glass, outrebounding the Coogs, 47-33.

Notable

A school spokesman said that if UTSA had won the game, it would have been the largest comeback in program history. On another historical note, UTSA hasn’t won a game against a Power 5 team since 2010 in a victory over Kansas State. The Roadrunners have lost 22 in a row in that span against teams from the five major revenue-producing conferences. The Cougars became a P5 program just this season when they started play in the Big 12.

First half

Pressing at every opportunity and forcing 16 turnovers, the Houston Cougars dominated the first half. They led by 10 points at the quarter and by 20 at intermission.

N’Yah Boyd scored all of her 11 first-half points in the second quarter as the Cougars opened a wide lead on the Roadrunners.

When UTSA pulled to within 11 at one juncture in the period, the Cougars sprinted away on a 12-1 run to open the first of three 22-point leads. Boyd capped the run with a driving layup and a three-point bucket.

Records

Houston 8-1
UTSA 5-4

Coming up

UTSA at Oregon, Sunday, 2 p.m.

JB’s video replay

Kyra White passes to Sidney Love, who hits a three with 12 seconds left to pull UTSA within two. Houston hung on to win 66-64 after leading by as many as 22 points in the first half.

After taking a cross-court pass from Sidney Love, freshman Aysia Proctor dribbles into the paint and sinks a 12 footer.

Kyra White finds open space and hits a three-pointer during first-half action against Houston.

Freshman Idara Udo takes it to the basket and scores for UTSA late in the second quarter.

Monster rally in Houston boosts UTSA leading into C-USA play

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Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA beat Idaho 76-69 in women's basketball on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA forward Jordyn Jenkins averages 20.6 points per game to rank 16th in the nation and first in Conference USA. The Roadrunners open C-USA play by hosting the Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters Thursday night. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

More than a week has passed since a remarkable women’s college basketball game unfolded at the Fertitta Center in Houston.

In the beginning, the Houston Cougars roamed the passing lanes and pounced on just about every pass thrown by the young UTSA Roadrunners.

An early lead for Houston ballooned to 10. Then to 15. As UTSA kept throwing the ball away, the advantage for the home team widened to 21.

It was only the second quarter, and it looked as if the Cougars might win by 30 or 40 or more. Well, let’s just say that it didn’t quite work out that way.

With UTSA junior forward Jordyn Jenkins putting on a show en route to a career-high 35 points, the Roadrunners opened eyes by unleashing a monster rally, coming all the way back into a few second-half tie scores, before losing 93-89 in overtime.

In one sense, the Houston game is ancient history. It was played nine days ago. Before Christmas. Back before the arctic blast.

In the present tense, the weather has warmed again, and UTSA (2-7) is back home at the Convocation Center, hoping to start a winning trend to coincide with the start of Conference USA play.

Eager to put all those pre-conference losses behind them, Roadrunners are preparing to host the Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters (7-4) on Thursday night, before they entertain the UAB Blazers (8-2) on Saturday afternoon.

Their last game, nonetheless, remains top of mind.

Coaches and players keep talking about Houston. Aston played the tape of it for her players’ again on Tuesday morning.

The video showed two versions of the Roadrunners.

One of them failed to answer the call after the opening tip, committed numerous turnovers and eventually fell behind, 39-18, midway through the second quarter.

The other played with heart and rallied on a 32-11 streak over a 13-minute stretch that spanned the end of the second and most of the third periods.

That same team battled to the end, with standout performances from several players, including double-digit scoring efforts from Jenkins, Elyssa Coleman, Kyra White and Alexis Parker.

“We re-watched (the tape) this morning,” Aston said late Tuesday afternoon. “What I still don’t know is, what turns their motors on? I mean, I don’t know if they were nervous to start the game, or what.

“They looked a little bit frozen, and then — somewhere in the midst of the second quarter — we got our motors running.”

White, a junior from Judson, said the team still feels positive vibes from the Houston game, even though it will go down as a loss in the record book.

And even though UTSA lost some close games earlier in the season with inconsistent play in the fourth quarter, she said she has a good feeling about the team overall.

“Our last game was Houston, and we lost in overtime, but the game showed a lot for our team,” White said. “We showed grit. We showed fight. We just simply didn’t quit. It was a good way to leave before (Christmas) break.

“Coming back, we’re just trying to get everybody back under their feet and and ready to go play.”

From this point forward, every team that UTSA plays will have Jenkins’ name circled on the scouting report.

At Houston, she struggled early with the physicality of the Cougars’ defense, but she kept battling and hit 12 of 17 shots from the field.

In one stretch, she wowed the crowd at the Fertitta Center with deft moves that you might see in a pro game.

Once, while set up at the elbow, she pivoted, spun through traffic and flipped up a shot left-handed into the net.

In another sequence, she came down on the fast break, sweeping past defenders and into the paint, to score again with the left hand.

The right-handed Jenkins leads Conference USA at 20.6 points per game, while making 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from three.

She’s on a roll now, having scored 20 or more in five of her last six outings.

“She’s extremely skilled,” Aston said. “There’s no question. She works on her craft. I mean, she’s in the gym all the time (and) she wants to be great.

“The growth of our team is that we’re starting to figure out who can do what, and I think our team is comfortable knowing they need to get her the ball some.

“I’m not sure we knew that a month ago.

“For her, she’s making better decisions when she gets doubled. Right now, people are, I would say, picking poison against us.”

Aston said the team still needs other players to step up and contribute.

“We also need to see Elyssa Coleman get the ball a little more down low,” the coach said. “She was efficient when she got it (at Houston), and then, you know, we need to have (other) players make open (perimeter) shots.”

Coming up

Louisiana Tech at UTSA, Thursday, 7 p.m.
UAB at UTSA, Saturday, noon.

C-USA standings

FAU 1-0, 8-2
UTEP 1-0, 8-2
Middle Tennessee 1-0, 8-2
Charlotte 1-0, 5-5
Western Kentucky 0-0, 3-6
North Texas 0-0, 3-7
UTSA 0-0, 2-7
Rice 0-1, 9-1
UAB 0-1, 8-2
Louisiana Tech 0-1, 7-4
FIU 0-1, 5-5

Comeback falls short for the UTSA women as Houston wins, 93-89, in overtime

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Guard Laila Blair knocked down six free throws in six attempts and assisted on a field goal in the final 1:27 Monday, lifting the University of Houston Cougars to a 93-89 victory over the UTSA Roadrunners.

Blair’s efforts helped Houston thwart a massive comeback by the Roadrunners, who trailed by as many as 21 points in the second quarter. The Roadrunners, behind junior forward Jordyn Jenkins, rallied on a 32-11 run to tie the game near the end of the third period.

As Houston pulled away again in the fourth quarter, leading by nine with a little more than a minute remaining, UTSA rallied again to tie and send the game to the extra period. Kyra White scored five points in the comeback and freshman Maya Linton sank two free throws with six seconds left to tie it, 80-80.

Houston’s Tiara Young missed a layup in the final seconds that could have won the game, but it bounced off the rim, and the Cougars failed to get off another shot.

In the overtime, Young opened the period with a jumper as the Cougars took the first lead. Jenkins followed by grabbing on offensive rebound and putting it back to tie the score. But when Young made both free throws with 3:35 remaining, Houston had the lead by two. Ultimately, the Cougars would never relinquish it.

Jenkins scored 35 points and pulled down 10 rebounds to lead the Roadrunners, who fell to 2-7 on the season and 0-5 on the road. UTSA is 0-2 in neutral site games. Tiara Young led the Cougars with 21 points.

Records

UTSA 2-7
Houston 3-9

Individuals

Scoring: UTSA — Jordyn Jenkins 35, Elyssa Coleman 15, Kyra White 12, Alexis Parker 11. Houston — Tiara Young 21, Laila Blair 20, Bria Patterson 15, Tatyana Hill 10.

Rebounding: UTSA — Jenkins 10, Coleman 5, White 5. Houston — Tatyana Hill 12, Tiara Young 4.

Team stats

Field goal percentage: UTSA, 32-61, 52.5. Houston, 28-66, 42.4.
Rebounds: UTSA, 44. Houston, 29. Offensive rebounds: UTSA, 13. Houston 10.
Turnovers: UTSA, 36. Houston, 22. Steals: UTSA, 12. Houston, 16.

Coming up

Conference USA opener for UTSA at Louisiana Tech, Dec. 29; UTSA at UAB, Dec. 31.