Houston & Gonzaga, College Basketball’s Winningest Current Era Programs, Finally Get Their Showdown — A 2nd Round Game That Feels Like an Elite Eight Battle

WICHITA, Kansas — Houston and Gonzaga, the two winningest programs by overall Ws in college basketball since the 2017-18 season, the current era’s standard bearers of the sport in some ways (outside of true champ UConn’s unmatched reign of titles), have been almost circling each other for years like wary title belt contending boxers. They almost played in the pandemic season of 2020-21 when both programs were looking for a game, but UH coach Kelvin Sampson ultimately decided against making his team fly to Washington late in the regular season. Both Houston and Gonzaga advanced to the Final Four that March, but ended up in opposite semifinals (with Houston falling to Baylor one game before the Zags did).

Well, the matchup true college basketball devotees have long wanted is happening now. Under the bright lights of the NCAA Tournament. In a second round game that feels like it almost should be a regional final. Now 31-4 Houston, the properly No. 1 seeded double Big 12 champions, versus the vastly under seeded No. 8 Zags on Saturday. For the first time.

Winner advances to another Sweet 16. Loser leaves in tears.

In some ways, Gonzaga helped further fuel the belief that drove Kelvin Sampson and his program builders to think they could transform a left for dead Houston program into a national elite power all those years ago. “They gave us  a lot of hope when we were building our program that you didn’t need to be in a power conference in order to chase down the titans of college basketball,” UH assistant coach Kellen Sampson tells PaperCity. “Just a lot of respect, but also a lot of gratitude.

“They paved the way for the next group of programs to get to their administration, to get to their fanbase and believe, ‘Hey, let’s double down on our basketball program because it can become something great.’ ”

Kellen Sampson is talking in a back corridor after having scouted Gonzaga’s 89-68 demolition of Georgia, a game in which Mark Few’s team absolutely blitzed their stunned SEC foe with a 27-3 start and showed every bit of its potential. Houston rolled over SIU Edwardsville 78-40 in its own first round game, with all 11 of Sampson’s active players getting to log at least eight minutes and no starter playing more than 25 minutes.

It’s about as feel good an NCAA Tournament opener as a No. 1 seed can have. But it won’t mean anything once this Houston v. Gonzaga epic college basketball war tips on Saturday night at 7:40 pm (TNT).

“The most games we can play (from now on) is five,” UH second unit energizer Mylik Wilson tells PaperCity after the Cougars ace step one in their NCAA Tournament mission. “So you’d better give it everything you’ve got when you’re on the court. Knowing this is my last year, you’d better give everything you’ve got if you want to be able to live with the results.

“This is going to be a game.”

“They gave us  a lot of hope when we were building our program that you didn’t need to be in a power conference in order to chase down the titans of college basketball.” — UH assistant Kellen Sampson on Gonzaga

UH’s Hard Won Round Of 32 Drama

Kelvin Sampson’s elite program has played some epic round of 32 games in its recent runs, with this game producing high drama. And then some.

— Then true freshman Tramon Mark’s crazy one-handed rebound and put back with 24.1 seconds left finished UH’s comeback against Rutgers in the round of 32 to make that 2020-21 Final Four run possible.

— Sampson’s Cougars beat Auburn in Birmingham, Alabama, essentially playing a second round NCAA Tournament road game as a No. 1 seed, a few years later.

— And who can forget the second round last March? Houston somehow beat Texas A&M 100-95 in overtime with seemingly half its team fouled out as deep reserves Ramon Walker Jr. and Ryan Elvin made huge plays down the stretch in the ultimate Sampson culture win.

This round isn’t for the faint of heart. Now, it’s Houston v. Gonzaga, a long awaited clash of the titans. With both programs having racked up 238 total wins over the last eight seasons, more than 20 Ws ahead of third place Duke. With both proud elite programs still seeking their first national championship. Now standing firmly in each other’s way for the first real time.

Pass the popcorn. And maybe the Pepto-Bismol.

“We’ve got a huge challenge of coming down the pipes here,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few says of Houston. “We’re playing a great team and a great program — much like ourselves — in this next game.”

No one needs to tell either of these two coaches that Gonzaga being under seeded is why this matchup is happening on the tournament’s first weekend. UH ranks third in the NET and Gonzaga’s eighth. In the respected Bart Torvik metrics, Houston’s No. 1 in America and the Zags are eighth. This is a second weekend game in everything but this bracket.

“I think that early in the year, they just lost some heartbreakers in close games,” Kellen Sampson tells PaperCity. “They were really similar to us. It’s not that they were ever out of the fight in any game they played. They just didn’t maybe close out some games which Gonzaga typically closes out.

“Which is why they’re an eight seed, not a two or a three seed. Which is what the metrics tell you they should be.”

This Houston team doesn’t complain though. It prepares. In this case that means getting ready for a point guard showdown between Gonzaga passing wizard Ryan Nembhard and UH tone setter Milos Uzan, who scores nine points in the first nine minutes of his first ever NCAA Tournament game. Uzan never gives a 16th seed any chance to catch its breath.

But Gonzaga is a whole different beast.

“I’m just trying to stay aggressive,” Uzan says. “. . .Just the same approach that we’ve had. We’re super consistent in our preparation. Going into the game with the same mindset, step by step, is how you have to look at it.”

Houston v. Gonzaga. It’s finally here.