Houston drops 11 spots in national college basketball rankings
It has been a tough start to the season for the Houston Cougars (4-3).
A preseason Final Four favorite, the Cougars have struggled to close games. Last week they lost overtime games to Alabama and San Diego State. Houston's other loss was 74-69 to Auburn on Nov. 9 in a game that came down to the final seconds.
Granted, the competition has been elite, but Kelvin Sampson's team is used to winning big games. Houston won the Big 12 last season and earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The bulk of that team is back, including preseason national player of the year candidate LJ Cryer.
"We've got a lot of guys who can play better than they're playing," Sampson said after the Cougars' 85-80 loss to Alabama.
In the latest college basketball rankings, released Monday, Houston tumbled 11 spots in the AP Top 25 poll to No. 17. They also fell 11 spots in the Coaches Poll to No. 18.
Defending without fouling has been a problem for Houston this season. They committed 21 personal fouls in the 73-70 loss to San Diego State, and the Aztecs shot 27 free throws — 10 more than Houston. In their loss to Alabama, the Cougars committed 30 fouls and both Emanuel Sharp and Milos Uzan fouled out.
The Cougars return to the court Saturday with a home game vs. Butler. They won't be tested again until Big 12 play starts on Dec. 30 vs. Oklahoma State.
Here is the latest AP Top 25 college basketball poll:
AP Top 25 Poll
Dec. 2, 2024
1. Kansas (35)
2. Auburn (26)
3. Tennessee
4. Kentucky
5. Marquette
6. Iowa State
7. Gonzaga
8. Purdue
9. Duke
10. Alabama
11. Wisconsin
12. Oregon
13. Florida
14. Cincinnati
15. Baylor
16. Memphis
17. Houston
18. Pittsburgh
19. Illinois
20. North Carolina
21. Oklahoma
22. Texas A&M
23. Ole Miss
24. San Diego State
25. UConn
Also receiving votes: Michigan State108, Arkansas 104, Texas 97, Michigan 95, Arizona State 89, Indiana 72, Drake 58, Xavier 33, Utah State 28, Louisville 27, West Virginia 26, Clemson 25, BYU 24, Dayton 24, Texas Tech 22, Nebraska 22, Mississippi State 20, Ohio State 19, Maryland 13, UCLA 13, Creighton 12, Saint Mary's 11, Georgia 10, St. John's 7, Loyola Chicago 4, Florida State 3, DePaul 3, UC Irvine 2, Columbia 2.
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Ben Sherman has been covering the sports world for most of his journalism career, including 17 years with The Oregonian/OregonLive. One of his favorite memories was covering the 1999 Fiesta Bowl - the first BCS National Championship Game - at Sun Devil Stadium.