10 teams with the best chance to reach Final Four in 2023-24
9. Houston Cougars
Last year, Houston went an impressive 33-4 and was a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament before getting bounced earlier than expected in the Sweet 16 by Miami (FL). Marcus Sasser, Jarace Walker and Tramon Mark were all double-digit scorers for the Cougars, but have all left the program for the NBA or another college team. While that would likely lead most programs to take a step back, that is not expected for the Cougars who enter the year ranked No. 7 in the nation.
Houston does return star guard Jamal Shead and some other contributors from last year including J鈥橶an Roberts and Emanuel Sharp. However, it鈥檚 the talent Kelvin Sampson has added that should make them a Final Four contender. That includes guard Damian Dunn who averaged over 15 points at Temple last year, and LJ Cryer who was also a 15-point-per-game scorer at Baylor. The Cougars will once again have some tremendous guard play and will need it as they play their first season in the Big 12. Doing so should have them more battle tested come March, which could propel them to the Final Four for the second time in four years.
