Houston Cougars Coach Shares Opinion on Iowa State Cyclones Homecourt Atmosphere

The Iowa State Cyclones have one of the best homecourt atmospheres in the country when hosting teams at Hilton Coliseum.

That was on full display recently in marquee matchups against the Kansas Jayhawks and Houston Cougars. Both teams were ranked inside the AP Poll Top 10 when visiting Ames, and both left with the same result: losses.

The Cyclones defeated the Jayhawks 74-56 over the weekend before a quick turnaround against the Cougars two days later. They had the advantage of being home for both contests, with both being on national television.

Hilton Magic is real, and something even opposing coaches are in awe of. After his team lost on Big Monday, Kelvin Sampson had only praise for Hilton Coliseum and the fan base.

Kelvin Sampson praises Hilton Coliseum atmosphere

Houston Cougars head coach Kelvin Sampson watching on. — Feb 16, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Houston Cougars head coach Kelvin Sampson watches his team play the Iowa State Cyclones during the first half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

“We have a ton of respect for TJ, and his program and this fanbase,” Sampson said while speaking to reporters after the game. “I don’t know what it looked like on TV, but any time you get Hilton Coliseum on TV — that’s usually pretty good for the Big 12.”

It is one thing to see and hear the crowd on television watching a game. Being inside Hilton Coliseum has to be quite intimidating even for the most experienced of teams.

A year ago, Houston was in the national championship game against the Florida Gators. This is a team loaded with talented players, but that wasn’t even enough to go into Ames and come away with a victory.

It was a magical evening at Hilton Coliseum with Iowa State trailing by 10 points with about seven minutes remaining in the game. They would end the game on a 17-4 run to come away with a 70-67 victory.

Multiple players stepped up in the come-from-behind win. Jamarion Batemon knocked down two 3-pointers during the stretch and was on the court for virtually all of crunch time, earning the trust of head coach T.J. Otzelberger.

Sixth-year senior Nate Heise knocked down a corner 3-pointer with just over a minute left in the game that was essentially the game-winning shot, putting the Cyclones ahead 69-67.

Work still remains for Iowa State, which has five regular-season games remaining before the Big 12 tournament and the NCAA Tournament. There is still a chance for them to secure a regular-season conference title, now one game behind the Cougars in the standings.

Three of those games are on the road, where the Cyclones will be looking to create some of that magic that emanates throughout Hilton Coliseum.