Houston @ Tulane preview
Devlin Fieldhouse
Last Meeting ( Feb 2, 2022 ) Tulane 62, Houston 73
Sometimes, even Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson doesn't know how his team has done it this year.
The No. 14-ranked Cougars are 22-4 overall, 11-2 in the American Athletic Conference and have won six of their past seven road games despite having little to no depth with season-ending injuries to guards Tramon Mark and Marcus Sasser.
Yet, the Cougars keep winning and are still sitting atop the AAC standings going into their game at Tulane on Wednesday.
The Cougars are coming off a 76-74 double-overtime win at Wichita State on Sunday.
"We won (Sunday) how we have won a lot of games," Sampson said. "We kind of scrapped and clawed and figured it out."
Houston said he .hopes that fatigue won't be a factor against the Green Wave.
Against Wichita State, four starters played at least 35 minutes, with Jamal Shead playing 50 and Kyler Edwards playing 49.
There are concerns about the Cougars wearing down before March with a short bench, but Sampson is watching his team to fight through it.
"We've just got a bunch of tough kids," Sampson said. "These kids have been through a lot this year. It's been a tough year in a lot of ways. But winning six of the last seven games on the road, for this group, is pretty significant. This team has got some holes and no depth at the guard spot. But they just kind of keep fighting."
Edwards leads the Cougars in scoring at 13.6 points per game, followed by Josh Carlton and Fabian White at 12.0 points each.
The next test for Houston will be a Tulane team (12-11, 9-5) that is trying to make a late push for a postseason berth.
The Green Wave won their past two games, the latest being a 76-57 win at South Florida on Feb. 15.
Having a week to rest and prepare for what could be a tired Houston team could give Tulane an edge going in.
"We needed this game more than any game we've played in the last couple weeks," Tulane head coach Ron Hunter said following the win over South Florida. "I'm really proud of the guys. We still got four to get and we still have to keep playing. But I felt to even have a chance at the postseason we had to win the last two."
Tulane has a three-headed monster leading it offensively in Jalen Cook (18.1 points per game), Jaylen Forbes (16.7) and Kevin Cross (14.1).
The Green Wave are 8-3 at home this season and played the Cougars relatively tough in the first meeting between the teams on Feb. 2 at Houston.
Tulane was down only seven points in the final 3:36 before the Cougars pulled away at the end to win 73-62.
The matchup will feature two of the most efficient offenses in the league.
Houston in first in the AAC in scoring at 76.2 points per game, while Tulane is fourth at 73.9 points a contest.
--Field Level Media