Entire Houston Cougars Basketball Team Tests Positive for COVID-19

Even as the vaccine begins distribution this week to healthcare workers across the country and we can all see a light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel, we are reminded daily just how quickly and completely it can spread. And getting through this college basketball season is going to be a herculean task.

Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson has revealed that all 15 members of the Cougars men’s basketball team have tested positive for COVID-19 at some point since the summer.

Getting Ready for Alcorn State

The sixth-ranked team in the nation hasn’t played since Dec. 5 because of COVID-19 but is scheduled to play Alcorn State on Sunday. It has been practicing with just six players this week, but Sampson is hopeful that they will have up to eight or nine eligible players by game time after two or three more complete their quarantine requirements.

Houston is 4-0 on the season, and, despite not having played since a win over South Carolina, it has maintained its high national ranking and its eighth-place ranking on the Dunkel Index. Even undermanned as severely as they will be, the Cougars will remain heavy favorites against the Dunkel Index’s 299th-ranked Alcorn State Braves.

How Has This Happened?

With frequent testing and protocols in place, how is it that the entire basketball team has tested positive? The biggest reason is that this is a very contagious virus. But reason number two may be the culture at the University of Houston. 

You may remember that back in June, the Houston football team was one of the first to return to campus for offseason workouts. But it did so with a unique plan in place - only test the players and coaches that exhibited symptoms. 

It didn’t take long for a wave of positive tests to hit the team, and all workouts got shuttered. The Houston football team had hoped to play a full 11-game schedule in 2020 but ultimately had four games canceled due to COVID-19.

As for the basketball program, Sampson was forced to sit out that Dec. 5 contest because of COVID-19, so he hasn’t coached his players in a game since November.

Other COVID-19 Cancellations

The scope of the problem at Houston is unprecedented, but the Cougars are far from the only big-time program facing cancellations.

Saturday’s matchup between Villanova and Virginia has been called off because Virginia won’t be cleared to practice until Saturday. This is the fourth straight game that Virginia, the Dunkel Index’s 35th ranked team, has lost to COVID-19. 

The Cavaliers have added a replacement game against Gonzaga for Dec. 26. The Bulldogs are currently ranked fourth by Dunkel.

Positive tests for South Carolina have canceled Saturday’s game against in-state rival Clemson. South Carolina first announced positive tests after its road game against Houston, not coincidentally.

The loss of the annual rivalry game between South Carolina and Clemson due to the pandemic comes just a few months after the annual football game between the two wasn’t played for the first time in 111 years.

For Dunkel Index picks on upcoming college basketball games, check out our NCAA basketball picks page.