Welcome to March: Freshmen shine as Houston routs Idaho in NCAA Tournament opener

Coach Kelvin Sampson is intentional about many things, including the players he handpicks to sit beside him at the postgame podium.

After Thursday’s NCAA Tournament opener, it happened to be Houston’s two starting freshmen: guard Kingston Flemings and forward Chris Cenac Jr. 

“I wanted them to experience this. I like the fact Kingston thought it was pretty cool his name is up there,” Sampson said. 

Flemings thought it was cool enough that he wanted to take the nameplate back with him, before being told he had to wait for Saturday.

“Freshmen. Such a freshman move,” Sampson jokingly chimed in.

Sampson acknowledged the naivety of Flemings being part of what makes him special, with a plethora of new experiences still ahead of the 19-year-old. 

On Thursday night, he and Cenac could scratch experiencing March Madness off the list, with at least one more contest ahead.

By game’s end in a 78-47 thrashing of No. 15 seed Idaho at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Flemings had finished with a team-high 18 points on 8-12 shooting, alongside six rebounds and four assists.

Cenac hauled in a career-high 18 rebounds in just 25 minutes of action. 

Through the first 20 minutes, both had combined to shoot a spotless 8-for-8 from the floor.

This was all after the pair “were a little nervous” early on, according to Sampson during a first-half interview, pointing out they had never been on a stage like the NCAA Tournament. 

The calming force? A man who has witnessed five of them and played in four. 

After early jabs from Idaho had Houston trailing 12-9 6:20 into the game, redshirt senior guard Emanuel Sharp knew the remedy.

He drained a right-wing 3-pointer he was fouled on, making the subsequent free throw to complete the four-point play.

The next possession? Another 3-pointer. A minute later? His third 3 triple in less than two minutes.

The sequence played a part in draining Idaho’s early rhythm, as Houston would go on an ensuing 24-3 run and later an 11-0 run near the end of the first half, heading into intermission with a 48-24 lead while shooting 60% from the floor and 71.4% from beyond the arc.

Houston held Idaho to a lowly 28.6% from the floor across the entire game, with four of the Vandals’ four starters shooting 33.3% or worse.

Cenac’s rebounding was a key reason, as 17 of his 18 total rebounds were on the defensive glass. It aided in limiting Idaho’s second-chance points, as it only had six the entire game.

“Yeah, I mean, just playing to my strengths. I knew that they don’t really crash the offensive boards like that, so you know there were going to be opportunities,” Cenac said. “Just staying confident and going every time.”

Idaho’s drop coverage defensively allowed Flemings to play into his strengths as well, with 14 of his 18 points coming off of mid range jumpshots.

Flemings, Sharp, redshirt junior forward JoJo Tugler, senior guard Milos Uzan and sophomore guard Mercy Miller all finished with double-figure scoring for Houston. 

“Kingston and Chris started day one. Kingston I don’t think has missed a practice all year or a workout or a lift or anything, shooting session,” Sampson said. “He never misses. He’s never late. His character is elite. Chris’ character is elite, as is all our kids. That’s always been our secret sauce.”

In the days leading up to the game, Sampson emphasized respecting Idaho and any other first-round opponent he has encountered. He noted they are all either conference champions or had a “really good year.”

Idaho was no different, as it won four games in five days to win the Big Sky Tournament to punch its ticket to the NCAA Tournament.

The win sets Houston up for a round-of-32 rematch against Texas A&M from two years ago on Saturday at 5:10 p.m., with an opportunity for the Cougars to extend their nation-best Sweet 16 appearance streak on the line.