How to Watch No. 8 Houston Cougars vs No. 14 Arkansas Razorbacks
In this story:
Houston Cougars basketball is wrapping up the non-conference schedule, and they face another test against a strong SEC team in No. 14 Arkansas at the Never Forget Tribute Classic.
Houston has scheduled some formidable opponents over the last few years in its non-conference slate, and Arkansas will be the last one for this season. The Cougars dropped one spot in the AP poll to No. 8 even after a dominant week of basketball, thrashing both Jackson State and New Orleans at home by 42 points each.
UH put up 99 points in their last win, their highest score in over three years. The challenge will be much higher on Saturday against the Razorbacks and John Calipari.
Here’s more information on Houston’s matchup against Arkansas.
How to Watch Houston Cougars vs Arkansas Razorbacks
Who: Houston Cougars (10-1) vs Arkansas Razorbacks (9-2)
What: Never Forget Tribute Classic
When: Saturday, Dec. 22 at 4:30 p.m. CST
Where: Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey
TV/Streaming: CBS/Paramount+
TV Announcers: Rich Waltz (play-by-play), Steve Lappas (analyst), and Jon Rothstein (reporter)
Radio: 950 AM KPRC, the Varsity Network app, and Sirius XM Ch. 162 or Ch. 198 with Jeremy Branham (play-by-play) calling
Last Season: Houston accomplished arguably their greatest season in program history, as they went 35-5 and reached their first national championship game since 1984. The Cougars made it to their seventh Final Four, and won both the Big 12 regular season and tournament titles while going an undefeated 10-0 on the road. UH was 19-1 in the Big 12 overall and won back-to-back regular season trophies.
Arkansas made it to the Sweet 16 as a 10 seed, but lost to Texas Tech in overtime. The Razorbacks remarkably upset both Kansas and No. 2 seed St. John’s in their tournament run and ended the year with a 22-14 record to start the Calipari era.
Series History: Arkansas leads the all-time series 22-19. This Saturday will be the first time Houston has faced Arkansas since the 2017-18 season. The Cougars have won two out of the last three meetings, including the previous matchup. UH won 91-65 in Houston back in 2017. This series began in 1975 and the two programs played each other twice a year till 1991 as rivals in the Southwest Conference. Arkansas also has a 3-2 lead in neutral-site games.
Meet the Coaches
Kelvin Sampson, Houston: This is Sampson’s 12th season leading the Cougars and just crossed the 800 career win mark to start this season. Sampson currently has an 809-355 all-time record and has over 36 years of experience as a head coach at Houston, Indiana, Oklahoma, Washington State, and Montana Tech.
He is only one of 15 coaches to lead at least four schools to the NCAA tournament. The Cougars have gone to two Final Fours under Sampson and six straight Sweet 16’s going back to the 2019 season. Houston has won at least 30 games for four straight seasons, and the program is back to national excellence under him.
John Calipari, Arkansas: One of the most well-known coaching figures in college basketball, Calipari is in his second season at Arkansas and his 34th year overall. He was the head coach at Kentucky for 15 seasons from 2009-2024, where he led them to a national championship in 2012 and four Final Fours. Calipari is 844-277 in his career and is currently 31-16 at Arkansas. He is 17-3 against Houston in his career and 1-0 against Sampson.
What to Know About Arkansas
The Razorbacks have four Sweet 16’s in the last five seasons and are looking like a strong team this year. Arkansas jumped up three spots in the AP poll this week after an impressive road victory over No. 19 Texas Tech 93-86. They also beat No. 11 Louisville 89-80 earlier this month. Arkansas has won eight out of their last nine games.
Star freshman guard Darius Acuff Jr. leads the team with 18.2 points per game and over six assists. Senior forward Trevon Brazile is second with 15.1 PPG and leads the Razorbacks with 7.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. Arkansas also has a strong bench led by sophomore guard Billy Richmond and is deep in scoring, as six players reached double digits in their last win over Queens.
This will be a challenge for Houston in the Never Forget Tribute Classic.
Maanav Gupta is a staff writer for Houston Cougars on SI. He graduated from the University of Houston in the summer of 2025 with his bachelor’s in journalism and a minor in Spanish. Gupta spent three years at the student newspaper, The Daily Cougar, and also covered the 2025 Final Four and National Championship as Houston beat writer for College Basketball Review. He also has his own YouTube channel, Maanav’s Sports Talk, where he has interviewed professional athletes and broadcasters like Jim Nantz, Jose Altuve, J.J. Watt, Rich Eisen, and Alperen Sengun. Gupta was also a contributor to the Houston athletic program as a student. You can find Gupta on X, Instagram and TikTok @MGSportsTalk.