Kelvin Sampson and the Houston Cougars are headed to the national title game. Thanks to a whirlwind comeback victory over the Duke Blue Devils in the Final Four, Sampson will coach in his first national championship game and Houston has a shot at its first national title.

The end of Saturday's 70-67 win over Duke will be talked about for a long time in college basketball circles and may very well go down as the best game of this year's March Madness. Perhaps, above all, it is a landmark moment for Houston basketball as Sampson finally gets to the mountaintop with a shot at a title and basketball immortality.

Speaking to Tracy Wolfson and surrounded by his players after the game, Sampson took his version of a victory lap by bluntly calling out the lack of love for his Houston team.

"I hear what people say," Sampson said. "'Duke this. Duke that.' Duke's great. Jon Scheyer is awesome. But don't sleep on Houston. Don't sleep on Houston. We weren't 34-4 playing in the Toy Poodle League."

It's a great night for the Cougars and for Sampson.

Now, a date with Florida awaits on Monday to see who will emerge as the 2025 NCAA champions.

More March Madness on Sports Illustrated


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Kelvin Sampson Calls Out Lack of Love for Houston After Stunning Comeback Win vs. Duke.

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