1981–82 Houston Cougars men's basketball team

American college basketball season March 2026 August 2023 Basketball 1981–82 Houston Cougars University of Houston classic logo.png 100px Southwest Conference SWC 25–8 11–5 Guy Lewis 26th Terry Kirkpatrick Don Schverak Hofheinz Pavilion NCAA tournament Final Four The 1981–82 Houston Cougars men's basketball team represented the University of Houston in NCAA Division I competition in the 1981–82 season. This was the first of Houston's famous Phi Slama Jama teams, led by Rob Williams, Michael Young, Larry Micheaux, and future Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler. Another future Hall of Famer, Akeem Olajuwon, played sparingly off the bench that season. Houston, coached by Guy Lewis, played its home games in the Hofheinz Pavilion in Houston, Texas, and was then a member of the Southwest Conference. Roster 1981 Houston Cougars y yes Benny Anders y 32 G/F 6 5 188 Fr Bernice, LA Bernice HS Dan Bunce 50 C 7 0 235 So Conroe, TX Conroe HS David Bunce 52 C 6 11 225 Jr Conroe, TX Conroe HS Eric Davis 12 G 6 2 180 Sr Chicago, IL Senn HS Eric Dickens 14 G 6 1 168 Fr Houston, TX Madison HS Clyde Drexler y 22 F 6 6 205 So Houston, TX Sterling HS Reid Gettys y 44 G/F 6 6 190 Fr Houston, TX Memorial HS Larry Micheaux y 40 F/C 6 9 220 Jr Houston, TX Worthing HS Akeem Olajuwon y 34 C 7 0 235 Fr Lagos, Nigeria Muslim Teachers College Gary Orsak 30 F 6 7 200 Fr Alvin, TX Alvin HS Rodney Parker 10 G 6 0 200 Sr Houston, TX Davis HS Dave Rose basketball y 24 G 6 3 185 Jr Houston, TX Dixie College Lynden Rose y 00 G 6 3 175 Sr Nassau, Bahamas Springs HS Bryan Williams 54 F 6 7 215 Jr Inglewood, CA Palisades HS Rob Williams basketball y 20 G 6 2 175 Jr Houston, TX Milby HS Michael Young basketball, born 1961 y 42 F 6 6 210 So Houston, TX Yates HS https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/houston/1982.html Guy Lewis (Houston) Terry Kirkpatrick Don Schverak 1981–82 SWC men's basketball media guide, p. 24 Schedule and results |- !colspan=9 style=Houston Cougars| Regular season Nov 30, 1981 yes 1981 men West Texas A&M Buffaloes West Texas State Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 84–73 1–0 Dec 4, 1981 yes yes 1981 men Seton Hall Pirates Seton Hall Brendan Byrne Arena East Rutherford, New Jersey 85–87 OT 10,648 1–1 Dec 6, 1981 yes 1981 men St. Thomas University Bobcats Biscayne Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 106–74 2–1 Dec 8, 1981 yes 1981 men Texas Lutheran Bulldogs Texas Lutheran Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 145–78 3–1 Dec 12, 1981 yes 1981 men UTSA Roadrunners UTSA Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 105–69 4–1 Dec 15, 1981 yes 1981 men UC Santa Barbara Gauchos UC Santa Barbara Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 74–68 5–1 Dec 18, 1981 yes 1981 men Mississippi State Bulldogs Mississippi State Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas Kettle Classic 96–49 6–1 Dec 19, 1981 yes Iowa 6 Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas Kettle Classic 62–52The New York Times Houston 62, Iowa 52 https://www.nytimes.com/1981/12/20/sports/no-headline-139847.html December 20, 1981 June 14, 2020 7–1 Dec 28, 1981 yes yes 18 1981 men Purdue Boilermakers Purdue Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana Sugar Bowl Classic 59–58 8–1 Dec 29, 1981 yes yes 18 1981 men LSU Tigers LSU Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana Sugar Bowl Classic 73–69 9–1 Jan 4, 1982 18 1981 men Rice Owls Rice Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 63–61 10–1 1–0 Jan 9, 1982 yes 14 Texas Tech Lubbock Municipal Coliseum Lubbock, Texas 78–68 11–1 2–0 Jan 12, 1982 10 1981 men Texas Longhorns Texas 19 Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 83–95 11–2 2–1 Jan 16, 1982 10 SMU Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 66–67 11–3 2–2 Jan 23, 1982 yes 19 Arkansas 15 Barnhill Arena Fayetteville, Arkansas 66–67 11–4 2–3 Jan 26, 1982 yes 1981 men TCU Horned Frogs TCU Daniel-Meyer Coliseum Fort Worth, Texas 82–85 11–5 2–4 Jan 30, 1982 1981 men Baylor Bears Baylor Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 99–78 12–5 3–4 Feb 1, 1982 yes 1981 men Texas A&M Aggies Texas A&M G. Rollie White Coliseum College Station, Texas 77–95 12–6 3–5 Feb 3, 1982 Texas Tech Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 83–80 13–6 4–5 Feb 6, 1982 yes SMU Moody Coliseum University Park, Texas 73–71 OT 14–6 5–5 Feb 8, 1982 yes Texas 12 Frank Erwin Center Austin, Texas 77–63 15–6 6–5 Feb 13, 1982 Arkansas 8 Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 55–53 16–6 7–5 Feb 16, 1982 TCU Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 74–65 17–6 8–5 Feb 20, 1982 yes Baylor Heart O' Texas Coliseum Waco, Texas 78–74 18–6 9–5 Feb 23, 1982 yes Rice Rice Gymnasium Houston, Texas 75–69 19–6 10–5 Feb 27, 1982 Texas A&M Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas 96–93 20–6 11–5 |- !colspan=9 style=Houston Cougars| SWC tournament Mar 5, 1982 yes yes 2 Texas A&M 3 Reunion Arena Dallas, Texas Semifinals 89–76 21–6 Mar 6, 1982 yes yes 2 Arkansas 14 1 Reunion Arena Dallas, Texas Championship 69–84 21–7 |- !colspan=9 style=Houston Cougars| NCAA tournament Mar 11, 1982 yes yes 6 MW Alcorn State 11 MW Mabee Center Tulsa, Oklahoma First round 94–84 22–7 Mar 13, 1982 yes yes 6 MW Tulsa 10 3 MW Mabee Center Tulsa, Oklahoma Second round 78–74 23–7 Mar 19, 1982 yes yes 6 MW Missouri 5 2 MW Checkerdome St. Louis, Missouri Sweet Sixteen 79–78 24–7 Mar 21, 1982 yes yes 6 MW Boston College 8 MW Checkerdome St. Louis, Missouri Elite Eight 99–92NORTH CAROLINA, HOUSTON REACH NCAA SEMIFINALS https://www.nytimes.com/1982/03/22/sports/north-carolina-houston-reach-ncaa-semifinals-eagles-suffer-99-92-setback.html The New York Times March 22, 1982 June 14, 2020 25–7 Mar 27, 1982 yes yes 6 MW North Carolina 1 1 E Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana Final Four 63–68 61,612 25–8 AP Poll Central Time MW Midwest region E East region NCAA tournament Midwest Houston 94, Alcorn State 84 Houston 78, Tulsa 74 Houston 79, Missouri 78 Houston 99, Boston College 92 Final Four North Carolina 68, Houston 63http://www.databasesports.com/ncaab/tourney.htm?yr=1982 RotoWire Fantasy Football, Baseball, Basketball and More Rankings 1981–82 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings AP 0 15 NR NR NR NR 18 18 14 10 19 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Coaches 0 15 NR NR NR NR 17 17 16 12 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR *ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game Random House 888–889 2009 978-0-345-51392-2 Awards and honors Rob Williams, 1st Team All-Southwest Conference Rob Williams, Midwest Regional Most Outstanding Player Rob Williams, All-SWC Tournament team Clyde Drexler, 2nd Team All-Southwest Conference Larry Micheaux, All Midwest Regional Team players drafted into the NBA Year Player Round Pick NBA club 1982 Rob Williams 1 19 Denver Nuggets 1982 Lynden Rose 6 136 Los Angeles Lakers 1983 Clyde Drexler 1 14 Portland Trail Blazers 1983 Larry Micheaux 2 29 Chicago Bulls 1984 Akeem Olajuwon 1 1 Houston Rockets 1983 Michael Young 1 24 Boston Celtics 1985 Reid Gettys 5 103 Chicago Bulls http://www.databasebasketball.com/draft/draftyear.htm?lg=N&yr=1982 1982 NBA Draft on Basketballreference.com 2009-04-22 usurped https://web.archive.org/web/20090731110805/http://www.databasebasketball.com/draft/draftyear.htm?yr=1982&lg=N 2009-07-31 References External links Jamfest for the Ages—2007 ESPN.com article commemorating Phi Slama Jama Category:Houston Cougars men's basketball seasons Category:NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Final Four seasons Houston Houston Houston Houston