Houston’s heartbreak is piling up and Kelvin Sampson is working out of time: ‘This was the 12 months proper right here’

SAN ANTONIO — Forty-one minutes after Houston left the ground following their first loss in 66 days, its locker room was opened to the media. Within the church-like quiet Monday night time, you might have heard a chin drop. 

“I am sorry,” guard Terrance Arceneaux mentioned by means of tears dealing with the ground, towel draped over his head. “I am unable to do that proper now.”

“F—,” a disembodied voice roared from a again room. 

That voice was by no means recognized. Possibly it did not matter. Houston had been on such a roll it was nearly laborious to examine what the Cougars can be like after a loss. As you’ll anticipate, it was not good or nice or significantly enlightening. 

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Most of these 41 minutes have been spent with Cougars crying their eyes out after shedding to Florida 65-63 within the nationwide championship recreation.  

“It was very emotional,” Houston coach Kelvin Sampson mentioned. “Going into tonight this group was 35-4. We’ve not misplaced a recreation since I do not know what month it was.”

It was Feb. 1 and since then Houston had gained a nation-leading 18 in a row below each sort of situation. Late Monday night time, the Cougars appeared destined. They hadn’t misplaced in regulation because the third recreation of the season 5 months in the past. 

That future was hammered dwelling within the Closing 4 with the inspiring comeback Saturday towards Duke. However the merciless irony was Monday’s outcome was the direct reverse of that outcome. 

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Towards Duke, the Cougars trailed by 14 with lower than 12 minutes to play. Within the NCAA Event closing, Houston was up by 12 with lower than 16½ minutes to play. Then, like Duke, the underside fell out of the Cougars. From that time on the Cougars made solely seven subject targets, none within the final 2:29.

In truth, the Cougars have been in a position to get off solely two photographs within the closing 2 ½ minutes.  

The Cougars who normally managed the paint, the tempo and the sport noticed their season finish. Florida took benefit and Cougars in all places wept. 

The coach who turns 70 in six months thought his group might win if it held Florida to lower than 70. It did that, holding the Gators to their second-lowest whole of the season. However Florida gained a nationwide championship in a recreation it led for all of 64 seconds. 

Now it’s important to marvel if Sampson will ever recover from the nationwide championship hurdle, regardless of how good his group could also be subsequent 12 months. Age might be the largest issue. Sampson is 69 and made it clear earlier than the sport that if the Cougars gained, this would not be a walk-off to retirement. 

However Sampson has been to 3 Closing Fours and one championship recreation that ultimately ripped the soul from his group and possibly the person himself. 

“Not me. I by no means make it about me …,” Sampson advised CBS Sports activities. “You hope you may get again, there isn’t any ensures. I recognize having this chance with this group. Simply disappointing we did not play higher down the stretch. I am extra pissed off about that proper now.”

Sampson has devised the protection that’s yearly one of the best within the nation. Sampson was the creator of a recreation plan that held Kahman Maluach,  Duke’s 7-foot-2 freshman NBA Draft lottery decide, to no rebounds for the primary time in his profession within the Closing 4. Sampson was the coach who made the strategic choice to not foul Duke, down six late in Saturday’s semifinal. That basically was the distinction within the recreation when the Blue Devils could not determine learn how to get the ball in. 

He was the person who overruled the dialogue within the huddle after Purdue had rallied from 10 down within the Midwest Regional semifinal in entrance of a pro-Boiler crowd in Indianapolis.

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The play is named “51”. That night time towards Purdue it was value 1,000,000 bucks. 

He was the coach who devised the scheme that held Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. to 11 factors, one in every of his lowest outputs of the season. Had Florida misplaced, Clayton would have been the goat. As a substitute, he was the Closing 4’s Most Excellent Participant. Go determine. 

We already advised you what Sampson walked into when he took the job in 2014. We additionally advised you the explanation why Houston could have been one of many few jobs obtainable to him. 

Possibly a nationwide championship ought to have been destined when you think about how the Cougars obtained right here. They’re 34-5 of their first two seasons within the Massive 12. 

However the irritating endings are actually piling up for Sampson. There was the 2021 nationwide semifinal loss to Baylor within the COVID-19 bubble. 

In 2022, a 12 months after Marcus Sasser helped lead this system to its first Closing 4 in 37 years, he and teammate Tramon Mark missed many of the season with accidents. With an opportunity to return to the Closing 4, the Cougars misplaced within the Elite Eight to Villanova.

In 2023, Sasser damage his groin within the American Athletic Convention Event. The Cougars misplaced within the Candy 16.

Final season, Jamal Shead, the Massive 12 Participant of the Yr, famously suffered an ankle harm in a Candy 16 loss to Duke. 

Will Sampson ever get to the promised land?

“This was the 12 months proper right here,” Houston ahead J’Wan Roberts mentioned. “Shit, I really feel like he had an opportunity to do it however we did not. How a lot ever longer that he’s right here I pray that he has one other alternative, an opportunity to get again to Monday night time once more.”

The field rating did not make sense from a Houston perspective. Within the event, Houston held opponents to a mixed 125 factors under their scoring common. Florida scored 25 lower than its 85.3-point common on Monday. The Gators turned the ball over a minimum of 12 occasions in all six event video games. 

The Cougars’ fabled protection pressured Florida into 13 turnovers on Monday. The Gators’ guards, Clayton and Alijah Martin, shot a mixed 5 for 20. 

Clayton shot solely 3 of 10 from the sphere, but in addition made the largest defensive play of the sport forcing Emanuel Sharp to double clutch on what would have been a game-winning 3-pointer with the ultimate seconds ticking away. Sharp was pressured to drop the ball after Clayton rose to dam his shot. As a substitute of choosing up the ball and being known as for touring, Sharp let the ball bounce away. The Gators lunged for the free ball and the clock ran out on Houston’s season.  

Clayton made it a degree to congratulate Sampson. 

“The largest message [to the team] was, be upset that you just misplaced,” Sampson mentioned, “and it was very emotional for everyone — however don’t be upset in your effort.”

Sharp by no means did come out to talk to reporters. 

“We needed to soak in what simply occurred and understand that the season was over,” Roberts mentioned. 

Ultimately, there have been quite a lot of glassy eyes in that unhappy, unhappy lockerroom. They have been both about to cry or have been recovering from doing simply that. 

A person who was one victory shy of 800 in his 36-year profession might solely shake his head. The one message written on Houston’s whiteboard was the ultimate document. 

“35-5”.

The Cougars did not must be reminded.