UH’s Sampson lauds Weaver’s defense
AUSTIN — Texas could not pull off the upset against No. 4 Houston, but the Longhorns scrapped to take the Cougars into overtime Monday night.
“We compete at the University of Texas to win, and I know our guys tried to do that tonight at a very high level,” Texas coach Rodney Terry said. “No disappointment in their effort and their want to win tonight at home. But again, we’ll keep working hard and keep trying to get better in this league.”
Although his numbers against UH — five points, two rebounds, two assists and one steal — might not pop out on a stat sheet, Chendall Weaver played a large role in taking UH down to the wire. Texas held a substantial lead in the middle of the second half, and Weaver created a lot of that momentum. As UH’s Emanuel Sharp started to charge down the court, Weaver forced a turnover and drew a foul on Jamal Shead that led to two made free throws.
Weaver’s efforts garnered high praise from UH coach Kelvin Sampson after the Cougars’ 76-72 OT win.
“I think their best defensive guard is Weaver,” Sampson said after the game. “He knows how to use his athleticism. There’s a lot of guys that are athletes that would have to study to pass a blood test (because) they don’t know how to use their athleticism. He really uses athleticism well. He’s got a low base. Great feet. He might’ve had something to do with the shot Jamal took at the end of regulation.”
Shead missed a 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left in the second half that would have given the Cougars the lead.
“When you have a kid like him setting the standard, that makes the other guys better. So I’m not taking anything against the other kids, but I’m gonna sit here and give a big shout-out to the Weaver kid,” Sampson said.
Weaver, who transferred from UT Arlington last offseason, has settled nicely into the sixth-man role for Texas. He may not be scoring for the Longhorns as much as he did for the Mavericks, but Weaver is still making an impact.
“He’s been big for us all year,” Texas guard Max Abmas said. “Even in practice, I mean, just the energy he plays with. That defensive mentality that he plays with, he’s really just embraced his role.”
While Weaver is shining on defense, his coach has plans for him to make an impact on offense in the future.
“You’ll see him grow over the course of his career here at Texas,” Terry said. “He’ll be a guy that will shoot the ball. He’ll become a pretty good shooter as well. It’ll be something that he will work really hard on this spring, this summer and become a really good shooter. I think his ball-handling in the spring and summer will be something that will take another step for him as well. I think he’ll continue to grow and be a regular player in our program.”
Next up for Weaver and Texas (14-7, 3-5 Big 12) will be No. 25 TCU on Saturday at Fort Worth.