GAMEDAY THREAD! Houston vs Cincinnati at the Fertitta Center - Sunday @ 3pm on ESPN (W 65-58)

Coach Cronin is a class act. I liked his subtle dig at the AAC refs.

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Haha still my favorite quote of the game thread. We may have to look elsewhere when Kelvin decides to retire. :joy::rofl:

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Hey cougar fans. Had to stop by. After that game, it was great. While I certainly think the AAC refs have been terrible all year and they missed some really easy calls (out of bounds and shot clock violation for example), it doesn’t take away that you have a terrific team and got the win.

Congrats. I love watching your team (well not when playing them ;)) and I have always thought Sampson was a terrific coach. You have a lot of guys that play hard. We’ll see you in march and I hope for a different outcome. But enjoy the season and good luck in the NCAA.

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Kellen Sampson should be the heir apparent at UH. If Tillman Fertitta decides to bump CKS over to the Rockets, then I’d be fine with Kellen taking the reins at UH. He is a good recruiter, he has charisma, he would be a smooth transition from CKS, and he is learning the pillars of success from CKS, i.e., defense, effort, and getting kids to buy into the culture of winning. I hope we keep CKS for as long as he wants to coach at UH. I hope we can keep Kellen before another program hires him away. Kellen will be an excellent head coach. For now, I hope he stays with CKS and we make a serious run at the Natty.

Go Coogs. Peace.

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Cincycpaw - loved the effort and intensity of your Cincy team yesterday afternoon @ Houston. Cumberland was a man among boys. He has the “IT” factor. Broome, Johnson, and Brooks left it all on the court. If Houston and Cincy played 10 times, I think there would be an even split. Yesterday was a great atmosphere in Houston. Two solid teams playing hard and taking the game down to the last minute. It will be tough for Houston to escape @ Cincy with a W. Cumberland has the game to carry the Bearcats during March Madness. Much respect for the Bearcats.

Go Coogs. Peace.

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Sampson would not take the job. The first time Harden ball watches on defense and gives up a layup Sampson would explode.

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Coog2088 - true enough. I hope you’re right. I want to keep CKS for as long as he wants to be here. I do not watch the NBA
I forgot that most NBA players don’t play defense. :smile:

Go Coogs. Peace.

Saw CKS n Kellen having a very animated discussion very late in game when I watched replay when I got hm from the game. It was like Kellen was shaking his hand that gotta do this n then Dad was right back at him. Just gets intense during big tight games. Sure they are good! Actually good to see!

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Or the first time Sampson benched Harden for lack of effort, Fertitta would explode!

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Sampson molds young men who still say “yes ma’am” to their mothers. At his age I think if the NBA were his thing he would have stayed there and had his agent get him interviews.

I don’t speak for the man and he’s perfectly capable but it appears that molding young men into great team players is his professional sweet spot and life’s calling.

I can actually picture him as an administrator in the twilight of his career.

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Sampson already coached Harden as an assistant and they seemed to have a great relationship.

In any event, I can’t see Tilman angering Coog nation by hiring CKS for the Rockets. Also, MDA isn’t remotely on the hot seat, so I’m not sure where this premise even comes from.

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Consider how Sampson responds when Hinton or Deeky misses a defensive assignment. Sampson’s coaching style is a better fit for younger men, not grown professionals.

Kelvin’s not going to the NBA. He’s said numerous times that he enjoys developing kids into men, both on and off the court. In addition, he has stated that a big part of his decision to take the UH job was the fact that his father had told him that he was much better suited for being a college coach.

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I hope all of you are 100% correct. I want CKS to stay at UH for as long as he wants to be here. After that, Kellen can have the reigns. That said, if the NBA knocks on your door and offers you a Brinks truck full of money, you will listen to the offer. That is just reality. I’m not saying CKS would leave, but he should listen. I have no idea if CKS has any interest in the NBA. I don’t watch the NBA so I don’t care about the Rockets situation. But, Tillman Fertitta attends UH basketball games. He sits front and center. He can clearly see that CKS gets 100% effort from his kids on the fundamentals of defense and rebounding. Why wouldn’t he want that same result from his pro franchise? If not the Rockets, I’m sure other NBA franchises will inquire about CKS. He has too strong of a resume to pass him by without at least asking if there is any interest. If that happens, UH can push back, give him as much money as we can afford, give him job security, and he can be the King of Cullen Blvd. That’s all I was saying above. And, yes, I hope all of you are right and CKS wants to be lifer at UH. I love his style of coaching, I love the type of players he recruits, and there is something about CKS that just “fits right” at UH. I can’t put my finger on it, but it’s there. He is just the right guy to lead UH men’s basketball. Defense first, rebounding, and playing 100% max effort is the right fit at UH. CKS talks the talk and he walks the walk. And, this Coog fan loves it.

Back on topic
enjoyed the W over a tough Cincy team. Finish the regular season strong. Win the AAC conference tournament. Onward and upward in March Madness where we make a strong run
who knows where we will end up
I’m all in for a Natty.

Go Coogs. Peace.

I don’t think he wants to coach professionals that don’t feel the need to be coached. He has a great gig going on Cullen, make good money and more with incentives along with occasional raises. His son is next to him, his daughter works in the department.

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Tilman isn’t going to construct a new stadium almost out of whole cloth, invest his energy in turning the program around, put his name on the marquee, then turn around and throw the whole thing into upheaval for personal gain. That won’t happen
and is in contradiction to 200 years of business history in the U.S. (re: the ethical considerations of sitting on corporate BOD’s).

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Wanna keep our coach? Keep Kellen and Lauren here and happy. That is the key. They both have done such good jobs at their respective positions they’re open to poaching.

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Dan gets it.

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Unfortunately, the price of retaining CKS has increased this year. Not saying he doesn’t deserve it, but the delay in getting the deal done is going to cost us much more. Suitors are sniffing around. If he leaves, it won’t be to the NBA. The big dollars given to football haven’t gone unnoticed.

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UH has to decide whether they want to win big or roll the dice. While no one is going to be 23-1 after 24 games year-in and year-out, but Kelvin can maintain the level of play we’ve seen the last couple of seasons. On the other hand we just doled out roughly $8M for the football program. I just smh at the references of our fans that we can get back to the level of play of 2015, and that we will be making annual trips to NY6 bowls. It’s not going to happen under the current college football landscape. Herman couldn’t even maintain it for 2 years.

I can’t remember if it was on this site or another but really found it amusing to one of our fans stating that if we can’t retain Kelvin, then we should be able to replace him with a coach of the same level. I wish they had identified who they think that is.

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