The Houston basketball team put together an impressive performance Saturday to defeat Arkansas. Despite the result, Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson thinks the Razorbacks have what it takes to win the always-tough SEC.
“They’re going to get better and better. I think Arkansas has as good a chance as anybody to win the SEC this year,” Sampson said, per Whole Hog Sports.
"They’re going to get better and better. I think Arkansas has as good a chance as anybody to win the SEC this year."
Houston coach Kelvin Sampson was complimentary of Arkansas following the Cougars' 94-85 win in Newark: pic.twitter.com/nb8KA3kgux
— WholeHogSports.com (@wholehogsports) December 21, 2025
Houston defeated the Razorbacks in an offensive battle, 94-85. The Cougars forced 12 turnovers on Arkansas, with 10 coming in the first half of the contest. The Cougars built a 20-plus point lead, before Arkansas surged back to keep the game somewhat close.
“Coming out the second half, we wanted to spread them and drive them and then play off penetration, and we had enough shots and got to the rim,” Sampson said, per the outlet. “Sometimes you can win games doing that.”
Arkansas shot themselves in the foot. The Razorbacks missed 14 free-throw attempts, to finish the game at 60 percent from the charity stripe. It had Arkansas head coach John Calipari pulling out his hair.
“We’ve been a great free throw shooting team,” Calipari said. “How many did we miss today? We missed 14.”
The Razorbacks fell to 9-3 on the season, following the loss. Arkansas has played a brutal non conference schedule, with several games against top 25 teams. The club's other losses this season came to Duke and Michigan State.
“This is the only one that I never felt we had a chance,” Calipari said after the Houston game, per Pig Trail Nation.
Houston is now 11-1 after the win, and riding a five-game win streak. The Cougars next play Middle Tennessee on December 29. Arkansas next plays James Madison on December 29.
