Houston’s Kelvin Sampson Had Brutally Honest Comment About Terrible Final Play

Andy Nesbitt | Apr 8, 2025

Houston's Kelvin Sampson spoke about the failed final play after the game. / @NCAA

The Houston Cougars had a great chance to win their first NCAA men's basketball title on Monday night but they coughed up a lead late in the second half and then failed in mind-boggling fashion to a get shot off on their final possession before losing to Florida, 65-63, in San Antonio.

The final possession will likely haunt Houston for quite some time. It was a mess from the start, as they took a lot of time to get into their set and then there wasn't a ton of movement to the hoop. Guard Emanuel Sharp went up to take a three-pointer with just under five seconds left but when a defender got on his way he opted not to shoot and instead dropped the ball. He couldn't touch it after that and time ran out.

Here's how that played out:

"FLORIDA IS BACK ON TOP OF THE COLLEGE BASKETBALL WORLD!" pic.twitter.com/IeLecOAcSb

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) April 8, 2025

Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson spoke about that play after the game and he didn't hold back.

"At the end you’ve got to get a shot," he said. "You’ve got to do better than that. ... He probably should have shot faked that."

Here's his full breakdown of the play:

"We have a set where it's a stack or gate... We thought if we get Emanuel to shot fake and get downhill... he probably should've shot faked that."

— Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson on the final play of the National Championship Game vs. Florida pic.twitter.com/KJx91Tzu1p

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) April 8, 2025

What a brutal end to such a great season for Houston.

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