ESPN’s Joe Lunardi on Houston: ‘Might very well be the best team in the country’
![Houston forward J'Wan Roberts (13) Houston forward J'Wan Roberts (13)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4307,h_2422,x_0,y_182/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/houston_cougars_on_si/01jhc2k9zmcs90n29y6a.jpg)
Without a doubt, Houston’s win at Kansas over the weekend attracted plenty of attention.
One of the top college basketball experts has definitely taken notice, and believes the Cougars are definitely national championship material.
Joe Lunardi, who does the Bracketology for the NCAA Tournament on ESPN.com, gave Houston lots of praise in the latest edition of his projected bracket, released earlier on Tuesday.
Houston rallied to outlast Kansas in double overtime, 92-86, last Saturday. The Cougars have now won 12 straight games and they lead the Big 12 Conference with a perfect 8-0 record.
Big 12 basketball power rankings: Miracle comebacks put Houston, Arizona at the top
Lunardi highlighted the Cougars in his bracket watch and said the following about them:
“Houston has averaged 31.25 victories over the past four seasons, adding two No. 1 seeds, a Final Four (2021) and an Elite Eight (2022) appearance along the way. The Cougars were so traumatized by the move to the Big 12 last season that they won the league by only two games.
“This season, they’re the last unbeaten team in a conference that could equal or better the eight NCAA bids it garnered in 2024. So, prior to Saturday’s miraculous double-overtime comeback at Kansas, why were the Cougars late to the party? A modest non-conference schedule featuring losses to the three best teams (Auburn, Alabama, San Diego State) created a profile that was heavy on potential and fairly light on performance.
How improbable was Houston's comeback win at Kansas?
“But since starting conference play, Houston might very well be the best team in the country. The Cougars are 8-0 in league play, winning by an impossible average of 18.8 points. Their Big 12 schedule has been kind, but no team rolls a power conference this way. We’re suddenly looking at a top-three team in NET, KenPom, BPI and BartTorvik.
“In other words: (Houston coach) Kelvin Sampson is right where he needs to be to contend for that elusive national championship.”
Kelvin Sampson has great answer about why Houston beat Kansas
Then, in Lunardi’s bracket projections on Tuesday, Houston is the No. 3 seed in the South Region, and is matched up in the first round against No. 14 Cleveland State in Wichita. The winner of that game would play the winner of the opening-round game between No. 6 Missouri and No. 11 New Mexico.
Auburn, which handed Houston one of its three defeats, is the top seed in the South, with the regionals being held in Atlanta. Purdue, last season’s national runner-up, is the No. 2 seed in the region.
Also on Tuesday, Houston moved up to the No. 2 spot in the latest NCAA NET Rankings, trailing only Auburn.