Sources: Kelvin Sampson a leading candidate for University of Houston job
Houston Rockets assistant coach Kelvin Sampson has emerged as a leading candidate to become the head coach at the University of Houston, multiple sources told Yahoo Sports.
Sampson is expected to meet with school representatives soon to discuss the job. Sources told Yahoo Sports that Houston is determined to hire a proven winner at the major level of college basketball.
Sampson took Oklahoma to the 2002 Final Four and had 18 straight winning seasons as coach at Washington State, Oklahoma and Indiana. His teams at those schools advanced to the NCAA tournament 13 times. He also earned both programs NCAA probation for impermissible calls to recruits, and in 2008, the NCAA imposed a five-year show-cause order on Sampson for his role in the violations.
Sampson has interviewed for several NBA head coaching jobs in recent years and is well-regarded within NBA circles.
Another name being mentioned for the University of Houston job is former UAB and Indiana coach Mike Davis. Davis took Texas Southern to the NCAA tournament this season as a No. 16 seed. Bruce Pearl also surfaced as a potential candidate, but he was hired at Auburn last week.
The University of Houston job opened up Monday when James Dickey stepped down after four years as coach. Dickey was 64-62 in his career at Houston.
