Perfection and champions would be an accurate description for the UH women’s basketball team after this weekend.
The Cougars had already attained the regular-season Conference USA Championship, but added onto their success by winning their 16th consecutive game to be spotless in conference play.
Saturday’s game against Tulane was a nail-biter, as the Cougars had to fight to force overtime. But the 1,106 fans present made their impact felt — and the crowd from the women’s game was more active than the quiet bunch at the men’s game.
The Cougars should be a lock for the NCAA Tournament. They have shown they can put a string of wins together. A run to the Sweet 16 or even farther could provide UH with more attention nationally.
When words like champions and undefeated can be mentioned, it is a sure sign that things are on the up-and-up for sports at the University.
UH could follow the blueprint of schools like Baylor, Connecticut and Tennessee by having a contending women’s basketball team every season. Baylor has turned around its athletics program in several sports, and women’s basketball helped establish the foundation for success.
But even though UH has a winning product, it does not necessarily translate to fan support. Most sporting events on campus are not able to match the buzz that is garnered during football season.
The men’s basketball game had a much different mood, as Rice easily beat the Cougars 72-57.
The announced attendance for the men’s game of 3,473 was close to the average of other home games this season and was nonetheless disappointing.
UH does not have anything that comes close to resembling loyal student fans. A stadium that is more than half empty for a rivalry game speaks for itself. It is almost as if the student body is protesting something by not showing up for basketball games — maybe it’s the concession prices at Hofheinz Pavilion?
There could always be more support from alumni, but they cannot shoulder the load by themselves. Students have to play their part if we want people to take our athletics program seriously, or UH will be forever labeled as a B-rate sports school.
