The Houston Cougars men’s basketball team has nearly assured themselves a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2010 after taking down the fifth ranked Cincinnati Bearcats. Thomas Dwyer / The Cougar
Houston’s men’s basketball team earned a spot in the AP Top 25 poll for the first time since December 2005 on Monday after beating another top 10 team this past weekend.
The now 23rd ranked Houston Cougars defeated the 5th ranked Cincinnati Bearcats 67-62 Thursday in a close contest and beat the Temple Owls on Sunday to seal a place in the AP polls.
On January 20, Houston defeated the seventh ranked Wichita State Shockers to put themselves in the conversation for a spot and this win got them in.
Houston last ranking was 25th place and lasted one week.
The Cougars have four games remaining in the season against Memphis, East Carolina, SMU, and Connecticut and barring a catastrophic collapse, the team should go undefeated throughout.
The Cougars are also ranked 19th in NCAA’s RPI, one of the main metrics used to judge who earns a spot in the NCAA tournament, and 21st in ESPN’s BPI.
In Joe Lunardi’s ESPN bracketology, Houston is projected as a nine seed to play the eighth seeded Nevada Wolf Pack in the west bracket of March Madness.
The Cougars next game is away against the 16-11 Memphis Tigers on Wednesday and their next home game is on February 25 against East Carolina.
