HOUSTON (AP) 鈥� Houston is in the Sweet 16 , and this trip might be its sweetest yet.
The second-seeded Cougars meet No. 3 Illinois Thursday night in the South Region semifinals at Toyota Center, the home of the Houston Rockets that sits just over two miles from their campus.
Though it鈥檚 technically a neutral site, the Cougars, last year’s national runners-up, consider it a home game.
鈥淵eah, 100 percent,鈥� Houston forward Joseph Tugler said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e at the crib.鈥�
And how does he expect the crowd to be?
鈥淟it,鈥� Tugler said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 it. Can鈥檛 hear nothing. You ain鈥檛 gonna hear nothing out there.鈥�
While some coaches have complained in the past when matched up in the tournament with a team essentially playing at home, Illinois coach Brad Underwood had no gripes.
Underwood recalled a time during his first head coaching job at Dodge City Community College when he drove the team in a van more than 900 miles from its campus in Kansas to a tournament in Arizona.
鈥淚f you had told me back then that I鈥檓 getting to coach basketball in the Sweet 16 and play Houston, I would sign up for it, I would crawl to get there,鈥� Underwood said. 鈥淚f we want to beat them, no matter where we play them, we would have to play great. Guess what? We鈥檙e going to have to do that tomorrow. And I think they鈥檙e going to have to play well if they want a chance to beat us.鈥�
Though Houston is thrilled to be playing so close to home, the Cougars know that a favorable location won鈥檛 mean anything if they don鈥檛 play well. In last year’s Sweet 16, Houston met Purdue in Indianapolis, which is just over an hour from the Boilermakers’ campus.
鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 really give you too much of an advantage, honestly,鈥� the Cougars’ Milos Uzan said. 鈥淓very team here is good. … I think we just continue with the same preparation and live with the results.鈥�
Houston beat Idaho and Texas A&M in the first two rounds, and
Illinois is in the round of 16 for the second time in three seasons. Underwood led his team to the Elite Eight in 2024.
The Illini rely on their powerful offense and are ranked 17th in the country in scoring at 84.7 points per game. As has long been the case under coach Kelvin Sampson, the Cougars win with defense, ranking second in the nation by limiting opponents to 62.2 points a game.
Both squads are led by fabulous freshman guards. Keaton Wagler averages 17.8 points a game to lead Illinois, and Kingston Flemings averages 16.2 points for Houston.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e both, I would say, mature beyond their years in terms of poise,鈥� Underwood said. 鈥淎nd, obviously, the successes both those young men have had this season are pretty paralleled in terms of their growth and what their impact鈥檚 been on their team.鈥�
Nebraska and Iowa renew their Big Ten rivalry
Nebraska and Iowa have long been rivals but Thursday night鈥檚 matchup will be their first in March Madness. The Cornhuskers are having their most successful season to punch their ticket to Houston.
Iowa to reach the Sweet 16. Adding to the rivalry is that former Iowa player Pryce Sandfort is now starring for Nebraska.
The Big Ten squads have met twice this season, with each winning once.
鈥淚t鈥檚 obviously pretty intense, both teams care about their sports, and I think it鈥檚 any sport you play, Iowa-Nebraska, it鈥檚 going to be high-level intense and people care about it a lot,鈥� Iowa鈥檚 Bennett Stirtz said. 鈥淪o, it will be a packed out arena and just looking forward to it.鈥�
Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg said the rigors of the conference have prepared both teams for this challenge.
鈥淟et me just say this about the Big Ten: They have six teams in the Sweet 16. That鈥檚 phenomenal,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd … it prepares you for this moment playing against that quality of opponent night-in and night-out. I鈥檓 just really happy for the league. It鈥檚 been a fun ride, it鈥檚 a grind to get through it. But it鈥檚 going to be fun to see hopefully multiple teams in the Final Four.鈥�
___
AP March Madness bracket: and coverage:
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
