‘Toughest team wins’ — UH slogan carries Cougars

Published 8:11 pm Thursday, March 27, 2025

INDIANAPOLIS — “Toughest team wins” is a slogan that’s been used for years around the University of Houston men’s basketball program.

It’s been printed on T-shirts, yelled to break huddles after timeouts, and written on the whiteboard inside visitor locker rooms.

It’s not just three words.

It’s a way of life.

“Just our culture,” said All-American guard L.J. Cryer, who is averaging 22.5 points in NCAA Tournament wins against No. 16 seed Southern Illinois-Edwardsville and No. 8 Gonzaga. “We pride ourselves on being tougher than the other teams, so we feel like whenever we go into road environments that’s the only way to get a win. We’ve had a lot of success doing that, and we’re going to keep that formula.”

Houston (32-4) faces one of its toughest road tests of the season Friday against fourth-seeded Purdue (24-11) in the Sweet 16 at Lucas Oil Stadium (9:09 p.m., TV: TBS).

Of the four teams in the Midwest Region — which also includes No. 2 Tennessee and No. 3 Kentucky — the top-seeded Cougars and their fanbase have the farthest to travel at more than 1,000 miles. Meanwhile, Purdue will make a 70-mile drive south on Interstate 65 to Big Ten country in what will be a home game for the Boilermakers.

Kentucky (189 miles) and Tennessee (380 miles) are also close in proximity, putting the Cougars at a disadvantage even as the tournament’s No. 3 overall seed. It’s a similar situation as 2023, when UH, also a No. 1 seed, was forced to play a second-round game against Auburn in Birmingham, Ala.

Coach Kelvin Sampson said he hasn’t mentioned the regional’s location at all this week.

“I don’t talk to my team about that stuff,” Sampson said. “We’re playing a really good team in Purdue. They’d be tough to beat no matter where we play them. We’ve got a tremendous challenge in front of us.”

UH is battle-tested for the moment after going 10-0 on the road this season, the only unbeaten team in Division I, with tough wins at Kansas, Arizona, Texas Tech and UCF.

“It’s everything,” guard Emanuel Sharp said of the Cougars’ “toughest team wins” approach. “This is what this program is built on. As long as we’re the toughest team we usually come out on top in games.”

It’s hard to argue with the results. The average margin of victory in road games was 10.5 points.

Purdue offers another tough challenge as the Cougars make a sixth straight appearance in the Sweet 16, the longest active streak in the nation after beating Gonzaga 81-76 in the second round. The Boilermakers feature plenty of experience with four starters back from last year’s team that reached the national title game, among them first-team All-American point guard Braden Smith and 6-foot-9 forward Trey Kaufman-Renn, an honorable mention selection who averages 20.3 points and 6.5 rebounds.

“They’re the whole package,” Sharp said.

Since reaching the Final Four in 2021 — a path that included games at Lucas Oil Stadium — the Cougars have advanced beyond the Sweet 16 just one time (2022 against Villanova). The past two tournaments have been derailed by a combination of injuries and hot-shooting opponents as the No. 1-seeded Cougars lost in the region semifinals to Miami in 2023 and Duke in 2024.

“The games are tough wherever you play,” Sharp said. “We could play Purdue in Fertitta (Center) and it would still be a tough game. It’s Purdue at the end of the day. We just have to come out with the right mindset.”

That was the case against Gonzaga, which was considered under-seeded at eighth. That made the second-round matchup of college basketball’s two winningest programs the past eight seasons feel like a Sweet 16 or Elite Eight showdown.

The Cougars built a 14-point lead only to watch the ‘Zags rally in the second half, wiping out most of a double-digit lead in the final 2 1/2 minutes. UH struggled with Gonzaga’s 1-3-1 press and went the final 4:29 without a field goal, needing a late defensive stop and some free throws to finally pull away.

UH point guard Milos Uzan said the Cougars were “a little too passive” down the stretch.

“You get momentum in the tournament, it’s hard to get it back,” Uzan said. “You could feel the pressure and the momentum in the game shift a little bit.”

Forward J’Wan Roberts said the close call was an important lesson as the Cougars enter the second weekend of the tournament.

“Biggest thing I got out of that (game) is when you have a good team on the ropes, you’ve got to kill them, because everybody is good,” Roberts said. “When you get a lead in March Madness, you’ve got to keep that lead. You never know what can happen

All the teams are good now, especially down to 16 teams. Anything can happen. Any chance we get to put a team away you’ve got to take it.”

Two more wins and the Cougars won’t have to worry about far-away regional destinations.

The Final Four?

It’s in San Antonio.

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