What Kelvin Sampson said about Iowa State, ‘College GameDay’ coming to Houston
It will be a Top 10 matchup inside Houston’s Fertitta Center on Saturday.
Houston, ranked No. 5 in the nation, takes on No. 8 Iowa State in a huge Big 12 Conference matchup that will be nationally televised by ESPN. That same network will also be conducting its weekly “College GameDay” show that morning from the Fertitta Center.
Without a doubt, Saturday should be a special one for the Cougars (22-4, 14-1), who lead the Big 12 by two games with five regular-season games remaining. On Thursday, Kelvin Sampson talked about the matchup, as well as “College GameDay” coming to the Fertitta Center.
22-4
— Houston Men's Hoops 🏀 🐾 (@UHCougarMBK) February 20, 2025
14-1 @Big12Conference
On to the next one!
Presented by @continentaltire
The Smart Choice in Tires
NEXT – @espn @CollegeGameday covered by @StateFarm,
9 am SATURDAY, Fertitta Center
• vs #8/8 Iowa State, 1 pm SATURDAY, Fertitta Center#ForTheCity x #GoCoogs pic.twitter.com/aNjY0hq7nG
On the arrival of “College GameDay” to the Fertitta Center
“Well, number one, they’re coming because the basketball program has had great success and we’ve been really good this year. That’s why they’re here. It’s always a compliment, a star in your feather, if ESPN wants to come to your campus and highlight your basketball program.
“Now, because of that, I think it’s a tremendous infomercial for everything associated with the basketball program, the university, the city, the Fertitta Center, our students, our passion, all of the pomp and circumstance that makes college basketball the great game that it is.
“The fact that they chose our program, and Iowa State’s already had one, too (at home earlier this month against TCU), so you’ve got two of the best basketball programs in the country. I think it’s great for ESPN, I think it’s great for college basketball and it’s a great opportunity for our program.”
Kelvin Sampson on Houston's 12th straight road win: 'Unbelievable accomplishment'
On what makes Iowa State’s defense unique
“Their system is a lot different. They trap from the baseline, we come from the middle, that’s an obvious one. They help off the corners, we don’t, that’s another obvious one. I think the most important thing on defense is not your system; it’s not how smart you are in putting your system together. It’s how hard you can get your kids to compete. That trumps anybody’s system, and I think that’s what makes Iowa State special.
“With (sophomore forward Milan) Momcilovic in the lineup, I think they’re 18-1, and the one loss was where they were up 16 versus Auburn, so this is one of the top three or four teams in America. Their size, their schemes, but they’ve got tough dudes, man. (Tamin) Lipsey, (Keshon) Gilbert, (Curtis) Jones, Momcilovic; all veterans, they’ve been there multiple years with (Iowa State coach) TJ. (Otzelberger). But what Iowa State’s done is they’ve done really good in the portal. Teams that do good in the portal understand who will fit, I think character-wise, personality-wise.”
Houston keeps receiving a high ranking from one college basketball analytics website
On what else makes Iowa State a difficult matchup
“Their size. (Dishon) Jackson is 6-(foot) 11 and 280, Jefferson’s 6-9 and 250, Momcilovic is 6-9, 6-10 and 225, so 6-11, 6-9, 6-9, 6-10 whatever up front, then they bring in a 6-10, 260-pound kid off the bench in (Brandton) Chatfield. Jones is 6-4, Gilbert’s 6-4; they’re just really long and really big.
“I think they were plus-15 on the boards last Saturday against Cincinnati. We played them three times last year, first time playing them this year and Iowa State’s got a great team but they also got one of the best programs in America.”
On Iowa State’s starting rotation
“One of the things that makes them unique is their best scorer comes off the bench in Curtis Jones. If he was on another team, he’s a guy that could lead the nation in scoring. But he comes off the bench, and that just speaks volumes to how talented they are.
“All coaches know how to put their roster together, but I would say some are probably better than others, and I think T.J. has been masterful in his roster management and getting exactly what he wants in each position. Tamin Lipsey is the ultimate point guard defender and facilitator. Gilbert and Momcilovic have great size and shot-making ability, and they’re tough and they guard.
“I’ve just started the last couple of days watching Jefferson, Jackson, Chatfield and (Nate) Heise; those guys are all new. But they bring Curtis Jones off the bench; he’s a guy that can be Player of the Year in this league easily. But their size, they’re huge, and they’re so well-coached; they’re so good in what they want to do.
“Last year, they were probably defense-first, defense-second, and then they would just beat you with shot-making. Now, it’s their pace, and you can tell there’s an emphasis on playing faster and get more possessions, but they’re still tough defensively and a great offensive rebounding team. When you prepare for a Top 10 team, you’re fighting a lot of battles up in there.”
Big 12 basketball power rankings: Houston stays in solid shape after win at Arizona
On national TV commentators and their constant praise of Houston, usually calling them “the toughest team in the nation”
“When you’re established in that, it’s not easy. I think the thing that probably goes unnoticed about programs is the more you see them, the more you take them for granted, especially if they’re winning a lot. There’s a tendency to not respect the things that they do good that you wind up talking all the time about what they’re not good at.
“When people see us only occasionally, they focus on what we do good, but when people see us all the time, they just banter back and forth about how bad we are at this, or we don’t have this or we don’t have that. So it’s refreshing in a lot of ways, because I think that’s the thing we’ve always wanted to be known for is we wanted the team to have that, and to be able to do that every year with our roster turning over, I think speaks volumes of our staff and about how collectively our returning players embrace that part of our culture.
“They wind up doing as good a job of holding kids accountable in the summer and fall before I get going full-bore with them, and it makes it easier. And that’s something that’s very difficult to achieve one time, with one team. But we’ve got something special here that I never take for granted.”
