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The Houston Cougars finished the 2014-15 season in the bottom three of the American Athletic Conference standings, but head into the 2015-16 season with high hopes and an experienced roster.
Leading scorer Jherrod Stiggers is gone, but four other players who averaged at least 27 minutes per game will return. The offense will go through Devonta Pollard and Danrad Knowles, but the return of L.J. Rose, who missed a huge portion of last season due to a foot injury, will have a major and immediate impact for this team. Rose, who led the team with 5.3 assists per game last season, will be able to get other players more involved in the offense and hopefully help this team have more than just two players scoring in double digits per game.
In non-conference play, the Cougars will face the Rhode Island Rams and LSU Tigers in their most difficult matchups, but every other game looks to be winnable. The Murray State Racers are significantly less talented than usual, and no other team on their non-conference slate looks to stand a chance at making the 2016 NCAA tournament.
In conference play, expect Houston to be anywhere from a bottom-feeder in the AAC to a top-five team. I do not expect them to compete with the likes of the Connecticut Huskies, Cincinnati Bearcats and Tulsa Golden Hurricane, but they have the potential to beat almost every other team in the conference. That being said, they could also be the team that loses several disappointing close games to opponents they should beat and finish near the bottom of the conference. I would wait until a few weeks into the season before making a solid judgement.
Houston is a good team with a solid roster, but I am not sure they are ready to take the step necessary to make the 2016 NCAA tournament.
Taylor Sturm is a Featured Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TSturmRS, like him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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