HOUSTON – The University of Houston Men’s Basketball program begins the 2020-21 season tied for No. 18 in the USA TODAY Coaches’ Preseason Poll, which was released Thursday morning. The Cougars collected 203 points to tie with Florida State.
This was the second preseason national poll in which the Cougars found themselves among the nation’s Top-20 leaders. Houston earned 438 points in the first poll of the year from the Associated Press to stand at No. 17.
It was the first time since November 1983 that the Cougars were ranked among the Top 25 in the AP preseason poll.
Under the leadership of Head Coach Kelvin Sampson, the Cougars have been a regular in the national polls. Houston has been ranked for a total of 30 weeks during the last three years and finished among the Top 25 leaders in each of the last three polls.
Houston broke into the Top 25 midway through the 2019-20 season and remained there for nine straight weeks. The 2018-19 squad was ranked for 16 consecutive weeks, rising as high as No. 6 in the USA TODAY Coaches’ poll, while the 2017-18 team entered the Top 25 late and stayed there for the rest of the season.