Houston guard L.J. Cryer (4) is helped to his feet by the rest of the team during the first half an NCAA college Men’s Basketball match, Friday, Nov. 22, 2024 in Houston, Texas. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar
No. 6 Houston men’s basketball arrived in Las Vegas, Nev., Sunday afternoon to prepare for the Players Era Festival tournament, which will be held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
The Cougars will face off Tuesday at 7 p.m. against No. 9 Alabama and Wednesday at 11:30 p.m. against Notre Dame. There will also be a third placement game on Saturday to be determined.
The bracket has two groups, with four teams in each group. The impact group consists of Houston, Alabama, Notre Dame and Rutgers. The power group features Creighton, San Diego State, Oregon and Texas A&M.
The teams will be ranked based on performance and will play their respective seeds in the other bracket.
Seeding is determined by overall record, but in the event of a tie, the seeding will be based on head-to-head record, total point differential, total points scored, and total points allowed.
Each school will receive a million dollars towards its booster-funded collective just for participating in the tournament.
An additional prize is set aside for the top four teams. The champion will receive $1.5 million, second place will receive $1.25 million, third place will receive $1.15 million, and fourth place will receive $1.1 million.
On off-days, teams will participate in many NIL-related activities, such as a sponsor meet-and-greet, an appearance at a golf tournament, and a pre-tournament banquet. The team will also have a team dinner with the families.
Many players plan to treat this dinner as Thanksgiving and spend time with their loved ones.
“I’m excited I’ll have a lot of my family there and get to see my siblings,” freshman guard Mercy Miller said. “It’s exciting that I get the chance to spend time with them and play in front of them.”
Even with an exciting week of events in the big city of Las Vegas, Houston is locked in on their ultimate goal of winning the tournament.
“I’m super excited that we have the opportunity to do something special,” senior guard L.J. Cryer said. “We play good teams, so we are going out there trying to get wins.”
Scouting Alabama
The Cougars match up first against the Alabama Crimson Tide. The all-time record between the programs is even at 3-3.
Alabama has won the last two matchups against UH, including the most recent game in the 2022-2023 season, where they defeated the Cougars 71-65.
The Crimson Tide is led by senior guard Mark Sears, who led the team last year with 21.5 points per game and helped Alabama reach the final four.
Another threat for Alabama is senior forward Grant Nelson. He leads the team this season with 14.2 points per game. Standing at 6’11”, Nelson also averages 7.2 rebounds per game and plays strong defense.
The other two starting guards are much different in terms of experience.
Fifth-year senior guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. has plenty of college basketball experience. He played his first three seasons at Cal State Fullerton and is in his second year at Alabama. This season he is averaging 12.8 points and 2.2 assists per game.
Freshman guard Labaron Philon has made an immediate impact. This season, he has averaged 12.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 5.2 assists. He has recorded 34 points, 12 rebounds and 13 assists total in his last two games.
Alabama’s final starter is senior center Clifford Omoruyi. At 6’11”, he averages 9.0 points per game and leads the team in rebounds.
Alabama is known for its offensive firepower and three-point shooting. This season, they have also improved in defensive efficiency, so they will be a tough matchup to any opponent.
The Crimson Tide are 4-1 this season, with its lone loss being against Purdue.
Scouting Notre Dame
Houston’s next game is against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. They are also 4-1, with their first loss last week against Elon.
Leading the scoring for Notre Dame is sophomore guard Markus Burton with 21.4 points per game. He is tied for 17th in the national in points per game and also averages 5.4 rebounds and 5.2 assists.
Sophomore guard Braeden Shrewsberry follows in scoring with 14.8 points per game. He also shoots 50% from the floor and averages 3.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists.
The final starting guard is senior Matt Allocco. He played his first three years at Princeton until he transferred to the Fighting Irish over the summer. This season Allocco has averaged 8.0 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.
The two starting junior forwards are Tae Davis and Kebba Njie. Davis is a strong force standing at 6’9” and averages 12.4 points and 5.4 rebounds. Njie plays more as a center with his 6’10” presence. He leads the team in blocks and averages 8.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game.
Notre Dame relies heavily on their starting rotation, with the bench not recording significant playing time.
Led by head coach Micah Shrewsberry, the Fighting Irish are still transitioning into a new system after losing head coach Mike Brey, who had been there since 2000.
The Cougars are 4-1 this season, with their only loss being against No. 11 Auburn. Houston will face two experienced teams and must play well to reach its goal of winning the tournament.
“This is an opportunity for us to play some of the best teams in the country in the early season,” Sampson said. “The Players Era Tournament has great teams, coaches and players, and we appreciate the chance to compete in its first year. It will be a great way for our program to test itself.”
