(Picture credit score: Troy Taormina-Imagn Photographs)
No. 1 Houston has dominated each problem thus far this season.
Now comes the Cougars’ first recreation away from house. It is towards a ranked opponent, no much less.
Houston (3-0) will tackle No. 22 Auburn (3-0) on a impartial courtroom — maybe extra precisely described as a semi-neutral courtroom — on Sunday afternoon in Birmingham, Ala.
Cougars coach Kelvin Sampson mentioned he was excited to see how his younger workforce responds.
‘Everyone in some unspecified time in the future goes to must play a highway recreation,’ Sampson mentioned. ‘I selected this schedule to problem them. If we lose among the video games, they’re going to be taught from it. It isn’t the top of the world. In the event you win a few of these video games, you have to be taught from these, too.
‘… Enjoying in these environments goes to be new for freshmen. I am anxious to see how they react to all of it.’
Houston has posted double-digit wins over Lehigh, Towson and Oakland to start out the season.
Emanuel Sharp leads the workforce with 17.3 factors per recreation in his first three video games. Kingston Flemings is subsequent with 15.7 factors per recreation, and Joseph Tugler is averaging 10.0 factors.
Sampson credited Sharp with main his youthful teammates.
‘Emanuel has run the gauntlet, having redshirted, then coming off the bench as a freshman, shifting into the beginning lineup as a sophomore, establishing himself as a junior and now going into his senior 12 months,’ Sampson mentioned. ‘(He has) skilled nearly the whole lot he probably can expertise.
‘The profitable, the levels, the moments. Large video games, massive environments. He is seen all of it.’
Auburn is hoping to play spoiler because it takes the courtroom in its house state. The Tigers wanted time beyond regulation to win their first recreation towards Bethune-Cookman, they usually adopted up with lopsided wins over Merrimack and Wofford.
First-year coach Steven Pearl, who took the job from his father Bruce Pearl simply earlier than the beginning of the season, joked that he was prepared for a baptism by fireplace.
‘Unbelievable alternative, enjoying the No. 1 workforce within the nation,’ Pearl mentioned. ‘Fairly cool that it solely took me three video games to play the No. 1 workforce within the nation as a head coach. I am undecided if that is the quickest within the historical past of school basketball, however I really feel prefer it’s acquired to be shut.’
Six gamers for Auburn are scoring in double digits. Keyshawn Corridor leads the best way with 24.3 factors to go together with a team-high 11.0 rebounds per contest.
Nevertheless, Pearl mentioned he was most pleased with his workforce’s effort on protection.
‘I do not suppose Coach Sampson even is aware of this, however I watch what they do from a distance and I love what they do from a distance greater than in all probability anybody within the nation,’ Pearl mentioned. ‘Defensively, after we actually made an adjustment in how we guarded and the trouble that we performed with, plenty of it was from movie that I watched of Houston and the way aggressively they flew to the ball and impacted ball screens and simply tried to disrupt groups. …
‘I’ve a ton of respect for him, his workers and their program and the way they function. They’re the usual in faculty basketball.’
–Subject Stage Media
