Latest news with #Tugler
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Houston's Kelvin Sampson Gets Major Roster News After Season
As the men's NCAA Tournament moved along into its later rounds, the Houston Cougars seemed to be the little engine that could, especially after they upset Duke, a team many picked to win the national championship, in the Final Four. But with all the marbles at stake, Houston fell apart against Florida and blew a late lead on the way to a crushing 65-63 loss. Houston Cougars head coach Kelvin Lysaker-Imagn Images Houston recently got some bad news when guard Damian Dunn left to join Pittsburgh, but on Wednesday, it found out one of its major frontcourt players will be staying put. Advertisement Joseph Tugler, one of Houston's defensive stalwarts, will be returning to the Cougars for the 2025-26 season, and that is good news for the program and head coach Kelvin Sampson. Tugler averaged 5.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.9 blocks and 1.0 steals in 21.7 minutes a game this past season. He was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, and the 6-foot-8 forward also took home the Lefty Driesell Defensive Player of the Year Award, which is given annually to the best defender in Division I college basketball. He's a classic hard-hat player who is strong at 230 pounds, and his 7-foot-6 wingspan causes havoc for opposing teams in the paint. Advertisement In that Final Four contest against the Duke Blue Devils, Tugler had eight rebounds and four blocks in 25 minutes. In the second round of the tournament, he logged 10 points, 11 boards and two rejections against Gonzaga. Related: Conference Player of the Year Transfers to Big Ten Powerhouse
USA Today
07-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
On a team of unsung heroes, Joseph Tugler stands out as Houston nears March Madness title
On a team of unsung heroes, Joseph Tugler stands out as Houston nears March Madness title Show Caption Hide Caption Florida and Houston set to compete for NCAA title and this is how they got here USA TODAY Sports' Paul Myerberg is on site in Houston to preview the national championship game between Florida and Houston. Sports Seriously SAN ANTONIO – When Houston basketball brings a recruit to campus, one of his first stops is a wall near the Cougars' strength training area. On it, program legend Hakeem Olajuwon's likeness stretches its arms to full width. This is where Houston measures wingspan. One of the key talking points surrounding Houston's run to the national championship game Monday night has been coach Kelvin Sampson's remarkable roster development. In an era defined by player movement and dollar signs, Sampson has maintained a relatively healthy, stable locker room. Four of his five starters Monday returned from last season, with a combined 13 years of experience at Houston among them. Because Sampson tends to win through smart scouting and intensive development, there's a temptation to paint his program as a perpetual underdog. Houston is anything but. The Cougars are the result of decades spent refining the process of building, improving and winning with a basketball team suited ideally to its coach. Joseph Tugler, the unsung hero of Saturday's semifinal win against Duke, is its posterchild. 'Around our program, if I say, 'That's JoJo being JoJo,'' Sampson said, 'everybody would understand.' Houston's Joseph Tugler is blend of smarts and toughness The day Tugler first visited the Olajuwon wall, he measured 7-6 ½. Asked Sunday, a Houston basketball staffer wasn't sure exactly how far The Dream stretches in full. A cursory Google search suggests Olajuwon's wingspan topped out at 7-6. Tugler insists his isn't quite that wide. But that day, Tugler — affectionately known as JoJo — reached so far the Houston staff asked to measure his mother's reach too. She stretched to 6-7. These are the traits Sampson knows he needs. There's a reason why, when Tugler signed, Sampson went out of his way to say Houston pushed for his commitment before the summer grassroots circuit, knowing he'd blow up. Wingspan is crucial to Sampson's preference for blitzing ball screens. Tugler's footwork moves his 6-8, 230-pound body like a guard would. And he can jump a second time for the rebounds opponents are still trying to secure on their first. 'When I watched JoJo play before we recruited him,' Sampson said, 'his second jump is the best, and this includes the NBA. I've never had a kid second jump like him. His third jump is as good as most people's first.' Tugler is like Houston — all toughness and tools and togetherness and brains. One of his sisters has a Ph. D. Tugler found his in basketball, skipping with friends between the four rec centers within reach of his neighborhood growing up. If one was closed, Tugler just kept moving until he found an open court. The result: a remarkably smart basketball player, and a tough one too. After Tugler made the game-winning pass to point guard Milos Uzan in the Sweet 16 win over Purdue, Sampson described his sophomore forward as 'instinctively instinctive.' Uzan called Tugler 'a dog, on and off the floor.' When Sampson lines his team up for the famous loose-ball drill he runs a few times a year, Sampson sometimes tells Tugler to sit out because, as Tugler put it, Sampson 'knows what he's gonna get from me.' To a man, teammates talk about Tugler like a winner, which is convenient because that's what he's become. 'Some of the stuff he does, you just can't teach. He has natural instincts. He always does extra,' L.J. Cryer, Houston's leading scorer, said. 'He doesn't care about his stats or anything like that. He just cares about winning.' Joseph Tugler at best in biggest moments This shouldn't be surprising. Tugler was a four-star, top-70 prospect in his class per the 247Sports Composite. When he committed to Houston he did so over interest from Texas, TCU, SMU, Kansas State and Tulsa. Yet the idea of a coach being able to differentiate between stars and skills has somehow become foreign in the fast-moving world of college basketball roster management. Sampson's process being old school doesn't make it underdog. College basketball still took notice this season. Tugler won Big 12 defensive player of the year, as well as the Lefty Driesell Award, given annually to the best defensive player in Division I. Sampson broke one of the cardinal rules of grammar for him Sunday, calling Tugler 'a unique, unique player.' That's not the only rule Tugler's convinced Sampson to break this weekend. Normally, when one of his players receives a technical foul, Sampson benches him out of principle. But when Tugler drew a one-shot tech late Saturday against Duke, for touching the ball while it was still in the inbounder's hands, Sampson changed course. 'He was so apologetic, almost in tears. I couldn't even get on him,' Sampson said. 'That was born out of effort and wanting to do the right thing.' The right thing came soon after, when Tugler — repaying his coach's faith — blocked Kon Knueppel's layup to prompt the possession that cut the lead to three, then flushed home Mylik Wilson's missed 3-point shot to trim it to one. Houston would score the next four points and win the game. 'I love coach not giving up on me, because I know I'm not going to give up on the team,' Tugler said. 'When it comes down to it, JoJo, it's a dumb foul. Just got to make up for it for sure.' Here's the last thing Sampson knows when he sees, what you can't measure with a bench press or on a wall. His players don't shrink from big moments. Tugler reset himself so quickly after the tech. Emanuel Sharp's 3-pointer. J'Wan Roberts' free throws. The comeback against Purdue. At Kansas. Against Duke. Throughout this tournament run, Sampson has framed himself as the folksy elder statesman, spinning yarns about Jud Heathcote as easily as he talks about recruiting McDonald's All Americans. It masks a coach operating at the top of his game, even if he's closer to the end of his career than the beginning. And it's from players like JoJo Tugler that excellence reflects. Players like JoJo Tugler who might just be poised to deliver America's most underappreciated college basketball program its long-awaited first national title. Follow IndyStar reporter Zach Osterman on X: @ZachOsterman.
USA Today
06-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Joseph Tugler injury update: Houston F turns ankle, returns to game vs. Duke
Hear this story Houston basketball's Joseph Tugler suffered an apparent ankle injury early in the Cougars' Final Four matchup with Duke on Saturday in San Antonio. Tugler, one of 10 finalists for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year this season, was shown working out his ankle on the sideline's training bike after tweaking his ankle. Tugler was attempting to deny a pass to Duke's Khaman Maluach before coming down awkwardly on his ankle. The 6-foot-8 forward is averaging 5.5 points with 5.9 rebounds per game this season, but his averages don't show his impact on the floor. Tugler would be quite the loss for Houston, given his defensive versatility and expected impact on Cooper Flagg, the Naismith and Wooden Award winner this season. Tugler has started 32 of Houston's 39 games this season. He later returned to the court midway through the first half, but his effectiveness will be covered closely throughout the rest of the game after the tweak. Here's what to know of Tugler's injury on Saturday: Joseph Tugler injury update Tugler landed awkwardly on his ankle in the first half of Houston-Duke in the Final Four on Saturday. He stayed on the sideline and was shown working through the ailment on the training bike. The 6-foot-8 forward attempted to deny a pass to Maluach early in the first half but twisted his ankle as he landed on the court. It's seemingly good news he never went to the locker room, however. Tugler later reentered the game with 11:51 left in the first half, but it'll be interesting to see if the ankle tweak limits the star defender's impact at all.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
At Final Four, Houston stopping Duke's Cooper Flagg could come down to a stopper named Joseph Tugler
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Pretty much every basketball fan has heard of Duke's Cooper Flagg. Nowhere near as many have heard of Houston's Joseph Tugler. If the Cougars are going to spring an upset over the Blue Devils in the all-1-seed Final Four on Saturday, it will almost surely be because one of the country's best defenders, Tugler, played a big role in holding down the country's best overall player, Flagg. 'Take away his right hand, don't let him get into his spin move, make him earn his shot,' Tugler said, in ticking off Houston's version of a scouting report that is similar to what has been tried by Duke's 38 previous opponents, with minimal success. And this: 'I can guard anybody if I put my mind to it.' Coach Kelvin Sampson has a gritty team full of players like that. A team built around stifling defense might not put a ton of clips on the weekly highlight packages, the way Flagg and the Blue Devils (35-3) do. But a better illustration of what makes Houston (34-4) click might come from a viral video that shows a loose-ball drill the team runs, usually early in the season or, as the coach said, whenever someone needs it. It starts with a ball being pushed onto the court — or with a bricked free throw — and devolves into chaos, with players diving on the floor, jumping on each other trying to gain possession. Tackling, it appears from the video, is allowed. Tugler suggested that the losing 'team' has to run. Sampson was less concrete on the rules of the drill as its purpose. 'Everything is a competition,' the coach explained. 'But like our kids say, it's not for everybody. But it is for the ones that are here.' Asked to analyze Flagg's game, Sampson — in his 36th year coaching and at his third Final Four and second with Houston — started mentioning players his teams have faced over the years: Carmelo Anthony, Gary Payton, Jason Kidd, Paul Pierce. 'This guy is right there with them,' the coach said. 'It's hard to say what he's not good at.' Flagg, the 18-year-old freshman who is averaging 18.9 points and 7.5 rebounds, picked up the AP player of the year award on Friday, along with the Oscar Robinson Award to add to his quickly filling trophy case. He is virtually certain to be the top pick in the NBA draft later this spring. Last weekend, Flagg played arguably the best game of his short college career — a 30-point, six-rebound, seven-assist masterpiece in a Sweet 16 win over Arizona. Two nights later, he was off target but still ended up with 16 points, nine rebounds and three assists in a 20-point win over Alabama. Tugler's honors: Big 12 defensive player of the year and winner of the Lefty Driesell Award given by College Insider Inc. to the nation's best defensive player. Since joining the starting lineup in December, he's averaged 1.9 blocks a game. Some other Houston stats say a lot. The Cougars are rated first in the KenPom defensive efficiency category. On offense, they are ranked 360th out of 364 teams in possessions per 40 minutes, a figure that plays into the defense because the long possessions shorten games and cause teams to expend energy defending them. The Cougars lead the nation in field goal percentage allowed (38.2%) and points allowed (58.3). Duke coach Jon Scheyer, who has seen Houston in a scrimmage two years ago and in a 54-51 Sweet 16 win last season — before Flagg arrived — says the numbers don't fully do it justice. 'They have good individual defenders,' Scheyer said. 'But I think, by far, the best thing they do is how they have five guys always moving together.' Tugler described it that way, too. Always helping. Always moving together. Great defenders might not get as much love as the guys jacking up 3s, but Tugler doesn't mind. He says Houston's version of the '3' comes when it stops a team on three straight possessions. 'We call that the 'kill stop,'' Tugler said. 'After we get that third one, we always feel like, 'Let's take this over.'" Coach Heathcoate calling Sampson reminisced about his first head-coaching job at Montana Tech. He left Jud Heathcoate's staff at Michigan State and went 7-20 without winning a conference game in his first season. 'Jud calls up and said, 'Hey, Kel, I just want to congratulate you. You're the only coach ... that possibly could have taken Montana Tech from obscurity to oblivion,'' Sampson said. Ink for the win Scheyer was surprised to learn that Flagg's mom, Kelly, has entered a pact with other team moms to get tattoos to commemorate a Duke national title if there is one. Will the coach participate? 'I'm making my wife get a tattoo with them if that's what's going to happen," Scheyer said. 'I would even consider getting one if we win.' ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. Eddie Pells, The Associated Press
Fox Sports
04-04-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
At Final Four, Houston stopping Duke's Cooper Flagg could come down to a stopper named Joseph Tugler
Associated Press SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Pretty much every basketball fan has heard of Duke's Cooper Flagg. Nowhere near as many have heard of Houston's Joseph Tugler. If the Cougars are going to spring an upset over the Blue Devils in the all-1-seed Final Four on Saturday, it will almost surely be because one of the country's best defenders, Tugler, played a big role in holding down the country's best overall player, Flagg. 'Take away his right hand, don't let him get into his spin move, make him earn his shot,' Tugler said, in ticking off Houston's version of a scouting report that is similar to what has been tried by Duke's 38 previous opponents, with minimal success. And this: 'I can guard anybody if I put my mind to it.' Coach Kelvin Sampson has a gritty team full of players like that. A team built around stifling defense might not put a ton of clips on the weekly highlight packages, the way Flagg and the Blue Devils (35-3) do. But a better illustration of what makes Houston (34-4) click might come from a viral video that shows a loose-ball drill the team runs, usually early in the season or, as the coach said, whenever someone needs it. It starts with a ball being pushed onto the court — or with a bricked free throw — and devolves into chaos, with players diving on the floor, jumping on each other trying to gain possession. Tackling, it appears from the video, is allowed. Tugler suggested that the losing 'team' has to run. Sampson was less concrete on the rules of the drill as its purpose. 'Everything is a competition,' the coach explained. 'But like our kids say, it's not for everybody. But it is for the ones that are here.' Asked to analyze Flagg's game, Sampson — in his 36th year coaching and at his third Final Four and second with Houston — started mentioning players his teams have faced over the years: Carmelo Anthony, Gary Payton, Jason Kidd, Paul Pierce. 'This guy is right there with them,' the coach said. 'It's hard to say what he's not good at.' Flagg, the 18-year-old freshman who is averaging 18.9 points and 7.5 rebounds, picked up the AP player of the year award on Friday, along with the Oscar Robinson Award to add to his quickly filling trophy case. He is virtually certain to be the top pick in the NBA draft later this spring. Last weekend, Flagg played arguably the best game of his short college career — a 30-point, six-rebound, seven-assist masterpiece in a Sweet 16 win over Arizona. Two nights later, he was off target but still ended up with 16 points, nine rebounds and three assists in a 20-point win over Alabama. Tugler's honors: Big 12 defensive player of the year and winner of the Lefty Driesell Award given by College Insider Inc. to the nation's best defensive player. Since joining the starting lineup in December, he's averaged 1.9 blocks a game. Some other Houston stats say a lot. The Cougars are rated first in the KenPom defensive efficiency category. On offense, they are ranked 360th out of 364 teams in possessions per 40 minutes, a figure that plays into the defense because the long possessions shorten games and cause teams to expend energy defending them. The Cougars lead the nation in field goal percentage allowed (38.2%) and points allowed (58.3). Duke coach Jon Scheyer, who has seen Houston in a scrimmage two years ago and in a 54-51 Sweet 16 win last season — before Flagg arrived — says the numbers don't fully do it justice. 'They have good individual defenders,' Scheyer said. 'But I think, by far, the best thing they do is how they have five guys always moving together.' Tugler described it that way, too. Always helping. Always moving together. Great defenders might not get as much love as the guys jacking up 3s, but Tugler doesn't mind. He says Houston's version of the '3' comes when it stops a team on three straight possessions. 'We call that the 'kill stop,'' Tugler said. 'After we get that third one, we always feel like, 'Let's take this over.'" Coach Heathcoate calling Sampson reminisced about his first head-coaching job at Montana Tech. He left Jud Heathcoate's staff at Michigan State and went 7-20 without winning a conference game in his first season. 'Jud calls up and said, 'Hey, Kel, I just want to congratulate you. You're the only coach ... that possibly could have taken Montana Tech from obscurity to oblivion,'' Sampson said. Ink for the win Scheyer was surprised to learn that Flagg's mom, Kelly, has entered a pact with other team moms to get tattoos to commemorate a Duke national title if there is one. Will the coach participate? 'I'm making my wife get a tattoo with them if that's what's going to happen," Scheyer said. 'I would even consider getting one if we win.' ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. recommended
