Before Jon Scheyer coached his first game as Duke’s head coach, he coached a game against Houston as Duke’s head coach.
Only kinda.
And then he led the Blue Devils against Houston in last year’s Sweet 16.
That was real.
Duke and Houston, for teams that haven’t played very often, are creating a bit of history.
The Blue Devils and Cougars have only played once — last year’s Sweet 16, a win by Duke. But they also had a closed-door scrimmage against Houston before Scheyer’s first season at the helm, in the fall of 2022.
Deeper into the layers of familiarity is Houston coach Kelvin Sampson’s roots. The 69-year-old is a Pembroke State University graduate (now UNC Pembroke) who grew up in Pembroke. Despite being in coaching since 1979, Sampson has never coached in the state of North Carolina.
Here are five things to know about Houston ahead of Saturday night’s Final Four game:
1. Take aim
We’re going to get to Houston’s defense soon enough.
But what stands out and makes this Houston team different than any of the previous 10 seasons under Sampson?
Elite 3-point shooting, in the form of a 39.7% clip on 3-pointers.
It’s the third-best 3-point percentage in the country — only Villanova and North Dakota State were better (and just barely, at 39.9% and 39.8%, respectively).
Out of the previous 10 seasons with Sampson at Houston, the Cougars’ best 3-point clip was 39.4% in 2016-17. But that was only 16th in the country and it was eight years ago.
Over the past five seasons, Houston’s average national rank in 3-point percentage was 149th. The best finish was four years ago, the last time the Cougars were in the Final Four; and that was a season 3-point percentage of 34.8%, which was 115th in the country.
Having three guards shoot over 40%, and getting more than three-quarters of 3-point attempts from them this season, makes the explanation here a simple one (more on those guards below).
2. They’re No. 1
Duke spent some time with the No. 1 defensive ranking on KenPom this season; now the Blue Devils have the No. 1 offensive rating (and the fourth-ranked defense).
Houston ascended to the top of defensive efficiency rankings and it’s hardly a surprise; the Cougars finished last season with the No. 2-ranked defense and have ...
