Whew! Sunday night certainly was scary for Houston Cougars fans.
A terrific season and dreams of a national title for the Cougars were in serious jeopardy of ending after Texas A&M rallied from a 10-point deficit over the final 1:26 to force overtime in a second-round game. Texas A&M sent the game into overtime by making a 3-pointer just before the buzzer sounded to end regulation.
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But the Cougars showed their mental toughness, regrouping in overtime and outlasting Texas A&M, 100-95, to advance to this weekend’s regional in Dallas.
First up is a Sweet 16 matchup against Duke at roughly 8:40 p.m. Friday night, with the winner playing either Marquette or N.C. State on Sunday for the right to go to the Final Four in Arizona.
Here are three key questions as the Cougars prepare to head north.
1. What are the big problems that Duke presents?
The biggest problem Duke will present to Houston is sophomore forward Kyle Filipowski, a likely lottery pick in this summer’s NBA draft who might be the best big man the Cougars have faced this year.
The 7-foot Filipowski is a multi-skilled scorer who can rack up points from the perimeter and in the paint. He can also be a dominant rebounder and shot blocker.
Surrounding him are a quick group of guards who can be deadly 3-point shooters. Jeremy Roach, Jared McCain and Caleb Foster are all shooting over 40% from 3-point range this year, while Tyrese Proctor is shooting 36.5. Defending the perimeter was something Houston did well all season, but this might be one of the biggest challenges the Cougars have faced all year.
2. Can the near collapse against Texas A&M prove to be a positive?
It’s certainly possible. Usually any team that makes a deep run in the NCAA tournament has to survive scares against lower seeds or situations that put the season in jeopardy sooner than hoped. Surviving such a moment against the Aggies could be beneficial the rest of the way.
Houston missed key free throws late against Texas A&M and saw how a team can quickly get back in the game with desperation 3-pointers and free throws earned through unnecessary fouls. It should be a lesson to not repeat mistakes if Houston is in that situation again.
3. Will Houston have a home-court edge playing in Dallas?
Houston obviously will by geography given it’s a three-hour trek to Dallas. But beyond that, the Cougars also should because of how fans of the other programs in the region traditionally travel.
Duke is obviously a huge brand name, but it still a smaller school that won’t necessarily have fans in droves at a distant location unless it’s for a Final Four. Marquette is not a national brand name and is a smaller school than Duke. N.C. State is a bigger school and has a loyal base of quality fans, but likely won’t have a big quantity of fans in Dallas.
If programs that always have lots of fans travel en masse such as Kentucky, Kansas, Purdue or Arizona were in the region, it might be a different story. But that’s not the case, so this weekend should definitely have a home-court flavor for the Cougars.