"Don't want to coach a team that doesn't cry": Kelvin Sampson makes his feelings known on Houston squad following collapse vs Florida 

The Houston Cougars, coached by Kelvin Sampson, are heartbroken after their loss on Monday, April 7. In the NCAA national championship game of this year's national tournament, the squad could not finish the job to win their first national title after being edged by the Florida Gators by two points, 65-63.

Per journalist Chris Baldwin, Sampson made his feelings known on his team after their collapse in the dying minutes of the fixture. For him, their cries just goes to show how much passion they have.

"The fact that they're in there crying tells you how much they care. I don't want to coach a team that doesn't cry. That means I'm recruiting the wrong dudes. The freshmen that didn't even get to play are in there wailing," Sampson was quoted as saying.

The Cougars charged to an 11-2 run to start the second half of the winner-take-all fixture against the Todd Golden-coached Gators, through which they nabbed a 12-point edge, 42-30. Florida clawed their way back, however, as in the final possession of the hotly-contested matchup. Houston could not get a shot off as the final buzzer sounded for a two-point defeat.

Sampson and Co. round the 2024-2025 campaign with their program's first national title game since 1984, finishing with an overall record of 35-5, 19-1 during Big 12 conference play.

Mylik Wilson says him and his team wanted to win it all for Kelvin Sampson badly

During the locker room interviews per Chris Baldwin, fifth-year guard Mylik Wilson, playing in his final year of college basketball, was asked about how much Kelvin Sampson and the program meant to him, especially considering that this is his last stint under his tutelage.

"Mean a lot to me, like a dad to me. I learned so much from him, just everything. I'm so grateful to be in his program, to even be coached by a hall-of-fame coach like coach Sampson. He taught me a lot that I can take out of basketball. Life lessons forever I'm gonna remember. I'm just thankful, he believed in me and his coaching staff," Wilson shared. (0:23)

He then stressed how much he and his teammates wanted to win it for their tenured mentor to recognize his credibility as a coach.

"We just wanted to get it down for the city, for his program. I just wanted to get it down with coach Sampson, man. How hard he works, man, nobody believes how hard he works especially for his age," Wilson said. (1:40)

In his last stint of collegiate hoops, Wilson averaged 5.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.2 steals per contest for the Sampson-coached Houston Cougars whom he spent the last two seasons with.