Dunn learns quickly what’s required to play for Cougars
Damian Dunn did not have to wait long for his initiation into the University of Houston men’s basketball program.
Coach Kelvin Sampson kicked Dunn out of practice on the first day.
“Just a bad day on my end,” said Dunn, a 6foot-5 guard who transferred from Temple in the offseason to bolster a UH squad in search of another deep NCAA Tournament run. “We all have our bad days. But I probably had one of the worst ones out of everybody. That was a rough day for me.”
Louisiana-Monroe can relate.
Emanuel Sharp had a career-high 20 points, and Dunn added 18 — 14 coming in a dizzying fourminute stretch of the first half — as the Cougars blasted the Warhawks 8431 in their season opener Monday at Fertitta Center.
The 31 points tied for the third-fewest UH has allowed in program history. The Cougars beat Abilene Christian 54-31 on Dec. 2, 1947, and Monday’s point total was the fewest allowed since a 38-29 win over Texas A&M on Dec. 8, 1951.
UH set the school record in a 40-28 win over Oklahoma City on Jan. 26, 1946.
“You know how hard it is to hold a team to 31 points?” Sampson said. “That’s the story. That’s it. That’s hard to do.”
ULM, which plays in the Sun Belt Conference, was held to 14 points at halftime and did not eclipse 20 until the sixminute mark of the second half. UH threatened the school record until a layup by ULM’s Nika Metskhvarishvili with 3:44 left in the game.
ULM shot 28.2% for the game and committed 25 turnovers. The Cougars held a 46-30 rebound edge.
“I thought before the game coming in Houston was elite defensively,” ULM coach Keith Richard said. “Now, I think Houston is double elite defensively and probably has to be the best defensive team in the country. I’m impressed.”
Even the hard-top-lease Sampson was taken aback by the Cougars’ opening night defensive effort.
As he answered questions during the postgame press conference, Sampson leaned toward Dunn sitting beside him.
“Ever been on a team that held a team to 31 points?” Sampson quietly asked Dunn.
Dunn responded: “No.” Sampson playfully added: “How the hell did y’all beat us last year?”
Dunn has been familiar with UH’s defensive reputation for years. He scored 16 points in Temple’s 56-55 upset of the top-ranked Cougars last January at Fertitta Center.
So how did Temple beat UH?
“It was just a good day for us,” Dunn said with a smile. “Luck was on our side a little bit.”
The Cougars added Dunn, along with Baylor guard L.J. Cryer, through the transfer portal this offseason to help offset the loss of three key starters, among them NBA first-round picks Jarace Walker and Marcus Sasser. Coming off four straight Sweet 16 appearances, the Cougars were picked to finish second in their first season in the Big 12.
It didn’t take long for Dunn to learn some hard lessons.
“Told me to get out (of practice),” Dunn said. “Told me I wasn’t playing hard enough, that I wasn’t being tough enough.”
Defense has long been one of the pillars of any Sampson-led program, along with effort, intensity and rebounding.
“Our intensity that we play with here is unmatched,” Dunn said. “That’s our standard — to play with that high level energy and effort and toughness every day. When all of us are doing that at the same time, I think we can be scary.”
Dunn scored 14 consecutive points during one stretch as the Cougars built a 23-7 lead in the first half. He only played six minutes in the second half as Sampson emptied his bench. Sharp was 5-of-9 shooting and hit four 3pointers. Point guard Jamal Shead played about 10 minutes and Cryer, whom Sampson calls “the best shooter on the team” was 3-of-8 for seven points.
“This game is not about any one player,” Sampson said. “I don’t think anybody really stood out tonight. That’s kind of the strength of this team — we don’t depend on one guy.”
What is non-negotiable — even in early November — is defense. You don’t win 93 games over the last three seasons, most in the nation, without playing defense as tight as a Ziploc bag. You don’t make it a habit of extended stays in the NCAA Tournament without a defense that is tougher to crack than a safe. You don’t lead the nation in field-goal percentage defense (36.6%) and scoring defense (57.5 points) without an emphasis on defense.
“Our defense is our star,” Sampson said. “How we rebounded, how we defend. We’ve been doing this a long, long time. Before any of these guys were on this team. It’s our system. Everybody has a system. Everybody has a way they want to win games, but I’m not going to get carried away with how kids play in the month of November.”
A few months later, Dunn understands the expectations of playing for Sampson.
“Treat it as a lesson and come in the next day and be ready to work,” he said.