Houston Cougars head coach Kelvin Sampson earns 600th career win vs. SMU
DALLAS, Texas (KTRK) -- There were no doubts Wednesday night that the UH Cougars had Kelvin Sampson's 600th career win in the bag.
The men's squad led the entire way in route to a 69-58 road win against the SMU Mustangs.
Corey Davis Jr. led the way with 20 points to go with four rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal.
Armoni Brooks came off the bench with 19 points.
Houston (17-1, AAC 4-1) face South Florida in Tampa on Saturday.
ORIGINAL STORY
Inside the University of Houston's Guy V. Lewis Development Center, visitors are greeted by Jacob Riis' Credo of the Stonecutter.
"A stonecutter hammers away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it," the wall reads, adorned by a massive stone and sledgehammer in a glass case below.
But while the credo mentions the rock splitting on the 101st blow, Houston Cougars head coach Kelvin Sampson has hammered away successfully 599 times.
Wednesday night, Sampson will go for his 600th career win against Houston's conference rival, the SMU Mustangs.
Sampson and the Coogs are in the midst of an incredible 16-1 season. Ranked top 25 nationally, Sampson doesn't just have the Cougars creating a new history, but he's also infused UH's past into their current identity.
It's been over 30 years since the infamous 'Phi Slamma Jamma' days that emphasized athleticism and speed. Now the Cougars are more well-rounded and complete, resembling an NBA-style of play in an ever-changing college basketball landscape.
Wednesday's contest will not only continue to vault Houston's basketball program back into glory, but prove that anything is possible when you display the stonecutter's patience.
With a win, Sampson will become the 57th coach in NCAA Division I men's basketball history to reach 600 wins, cracking a new career milestone.
But even Sampson knows it's not win number 600 that split his coaching stone. It was the 599 blows that came before.
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