Kelvin Sampson calls Houston's ending 'incomprehensible' - ESPN

SAN ANTONIO — Nearly an hour after Houston coach Kelvin Sampson walked off the court amid flurries of Florida-colored orange and blue confetti, he stood in front of a black curtain in a hallway at the Alamodome.

Sampson, 69, faced a phalanx of television lights that illuminated him at his most crushing professional low. The lights shined on his close-cropped hair, which is more salt than pepper, and white stubble peeked through his face as midnight quickly approached.

With his arms folded across his chest and an NCAA National Final pin adjacent to the UH logo on his gray polo, Sampson distilled the disappointment of Houston squandering a 12-point second-half lead and ending the national title game with four consecutive turnovers in a 65-63 loss to Florida.

«There's a lot of teams that are not built for six straight wins,» Sampson said, referring to the number needed to win the NCAA tournament. «This team was, this team was built, this team had the character and the toughness and the leadership. This team was built to win this tournament, and that's why it's so disappointing. We got here and had a chance and just didn't get it done.»

The scene unfolded as the inverse of Houston's stunning comeback win over Duke in the national semifinal. On Monday, the Cougars wilted in the final minute, somehow not having a ball touch the rim on the final three possessions.

Nearly 48 hours after scoring the game's last nine points in 33 seconds to stun Duke on Saturday, Houston managed to lose a game it controlled throughout and trailed for only 63 seconds.

Florida's first lead in the second half came with 46 seconds remaining. Sampson called it «incomprehensible» that the Cougars couldn't get a shot off on the final two possessions, as