Kelvin Sampson had 4-word message after comeback win over Duke

Kelvin Sampson is into the NCAA Tournament championship game for the first time ever, and it’s thanks to a big comeback by his Houston Cougars.

Houston came back from down 14 points with just over eight minutes left and beat the Duke Blue Devils 70-67 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday night. Duke fans likely thought they had the game in hand leading by double-digits with eight minutes to play, but Houston kept chipping away until they finally took the lead with 19.6 seconds left on two free throw makes by J’Wan Roberts.

Houston closed the game on an 11-1 run to claim the stunning victory. The win left Houston coach Sampson sharing a four-word message about his team: “Don’t sleep on Houston.”

Sampson shared his message during a postgame interview with CBS’ Tracy Wolfson.

“I hear what people say. ‘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,” Sampson said.

Houston went 19-1 playing in the Big 12, and they are now 35-4. They will face another 35-4 team in the championship game in the Florida Gators.

"Don't sleep on Houston. Don't sleep on Houston."

Kelvin Sampson joins @tracywolfson after @UHCougarMBK's SENSATIONAL comeback. pic.twitter.com/MBNhy5FqCb

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) April 6, 2025