Kelvin Sampson isn’t even trying to pretend.
The coach of Houston (25-3, 12-3 Big 12), whose team has soared to the No. 1 ranking with a Big 12 championship in sight, isn’t treating Saturday’s matchup against Oklahoma (19-9, 7-8) in Norman, Okla., as just another contest.
“It’s not a normal game,” Sampson said.
Sampson spent 12 seasons as Oklahoma’s coach, leading the Sooners to three Big 12 tournament championships, one regular-season title, 11 NCAA Tournament appearances and a Final Four.
Saturday will mark his first game back as an opposing coach since he left to take the Indiana job in 2006.
When Sampson took over for Billy Tubbs in 1994, Oklahoma had missed the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons.
With a style much different than Tubbs’, the Sooners were quickly back to making tournaments regularly.
“I was replacing a legend,” Sampson said. “The culture was there, it was just on pause. I just hit play.”
Ahead of Saturday’s matchup, Sampson got particularly emotional when asked about Ryan Minor.
Minor, who played for Sampson at Oklahoma from 1992-96, died Dec. 22 after a battle with colon cancer.
“You just have all these flashbacks of who he is and what he represents,” Sampson said, pausing for about 15 seconds to collect himself. “One thing I notice about getting old is you cry more. When I was younger that didn’t happen.”
There’s plenty surrounding Saturday’s game other than just Sampson’s return.
The Cougars have won six consecutive games and are a game ahead of No. 8 Iowa State for the conference lead with three games remaining in the regular season.
Houston reserve forward JoJo Tugler could continue to be limited with an ankle injury. Tugler, averaging 3.8 points and 4.1 rebounds in 16 minutes off the bench, had two points in 10 minutes in Tuesday’s 67-59 win over Cincinnati.
Sampson said Tugler’s injury could open the door for an increased role for 6-foot-9 redshirt freshman Cedric Lath.
“We’re still evaluating that,” Sampson said.
Lath has appeared in 16 games this season but hasn’t played more than five minutes in any game.
While the Cougars aim to keep their momentum going, the Sooners are looking to grab some back coming off Wednesday’s 58-45 loss at Iowa State.
Oklahoma has lost three of its past four, with all of its losses coming to top-12 opponents.
It doesn’t get any easier against Houston, who is not only first in the rankings but also first nationally in scoring defense, holding opponents to 56.2 points per game, and field-goal percentage defense, allowing 37.7 percent.
The Cougars also average 10.4 steals per game, among the top 10 nationally.
“Iowa State and Houston to me are the two that physically get up in you more than anybody in the country,” Sooners coach Porter Moser said.
The Sooners didn’t handle that physicality well against the Cyclones, committing 14 turnovers, being outrebounded 40-35 and shooting just 32.6 percent.
Moser made his first starting lineup change of the season Wednesday, inserting Rivaldo Soares for Otega Oweh.
Saturday’s game is the only regular-season meeting between the teams.
–Field Level Media