# 1989–90 Houston Cougars men's basketball team

The 1989–90 Houston Cougars men's basketball team represented the University of Houston as a member of the Southwest Conference during the 1989–90 NCAA men's basketball season. The head coach was Pat Foster, and the team played its home games at the Hofheinz Pavilion in Houston, Texas.
The Cougars played in the NCAA tournament for the first time in three seasons, and lost in the opening round to UC Santa Barbara, 70–66. Houston finished with a record of 25–8 (13–3 SWC).

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Nov 15, 1989* | | at Wichita State Preseason NIT | W 67–66 | 1–0 | Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas |
| Nov 16, 1989* | | at No. 25 St. John's Preseason NIT | L 69–76 | 1–1 | Alumni Hall Queens, New York |
| Nov 30, 1989 | | Hawaii Pacific | W 102–47 | 2–1 | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Dec 2, 1989* | | Nevada | W 109–68 | 3–1 | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Dec 5, 1989* | | DePaul | W 65–42 | 4–1 | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Dec 9, 1989* | | at Virginia | L 54–72 | 4–2 | University Hall Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Dec 13, 1989* | | Stephen F. Austin | W 69–56 | 5–2 | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Dec 16, 1989* | | at Toledo | L 60–62 | 5–3 | John F. Savage Hall Toledo, Ohio |
| Dec 18, 1989* | | at Northeastern | W 72–68 | 6–3 | Matthews Arena Boston, Massachusetts |
| Dec 28, 1989* | | vs. Coastal Carolina Holiday Classic | W 82–79 | 7–3 | USF Sun Dome Tampa, Florida |
| Dec 29, 1989* | | at South Florida Holiday Classic | W 87–78 | 8–3 | USF Sun Dome Tampa, Florida |
| Jan 3, 1990 | | No. 14 Arkansas | L 78–82 | 8–4 (0–1) | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Jan 6, 1990 | | at Rice | W 84–69 | 9–4 (1–1) | Tudor Fieldhouse Houston, Texas |
| Jan 10, 1990* | | Iowa State | W 83–82 | 10–4 | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Jan 13, 1990 | | Texas Tech | W 83–63 | 11–4 (2–1) | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Jan 17, 1990 | | at Baylor | W 78–74 | 12–4 (3–1) | Ferrell Center Waco, Texas |
| Jan 20, 1990 | | at TCU | L 73–89 | 12–5 (3–2) | Daniel-Meyer Coliseum Fort Worth, Texas |
| Jan 22, 1990 | | at No. 12 Arkansas | L 89–100 | 12–6 (3–3) | Barnhill Arena Fayetteville, Arkansas |
| Jan 24, 1990 | | SMU | W 64–47 | 13–6 (4–3) | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Jan 27, 1990 | | Texas A&M | W 108–90 | 14–6 (5–3) | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Jan 30, 1990 | | at Texas | W 102–93 | 15–6 (6–3) | Frank Erwin Center Austin, Texas |
| Feb 7, 1990 | | Rice | W 84–67 | 16–6 (7–3) | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Feb 10, 1990* | | Notre Dame | W 93–82 | 17–6 | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Feb 14, 1990 | | at Texas Tech | W 74–71 | 18–6 (8–3) | Lubbock Municipal Coliseum Lubbock, Texas |
| Feb 17, 1990 | | Baylor | W 83–77 | 19–6 (9–3) | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Feb 21, 1990 | | TCU | W 82–62 | 20–6 (10–3) | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| Feb 24, 1990 | | at SMU | W 71–63 | 21–6 (11–3) | Moody Coliseum Dallas, Texas |
| Feb 28, 1990 | | at Texas A&M | W 100–81 | 22–6 (12–3) | G. Rollie White Coliseum College Station, Texas |
| Mar 5, 1990 | | Texas | W 84–79 | 23–6 (13–3) | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, Texas |
| SWC tournament ||||||
| Mar 9, 1990* | (2) | vs. (7) Rice Quarterfinals | W 90–81 | 24–6 | Reunion Arena Dallas, Texas |
| Mar 10, 1990* | (2) | vs. (3) Texas Semifinals | W 89–86 | 25–6 | Reunion Arena Dallas, Texas |
| Mar 11, 1990* | (2) | vs. (1) No. 9 Arkansas Championship | L 84–96 | 25–7 | Reunion Arena Dallas, Texas |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| Mar 15, 1990* | (8 SE) | vs. (9 SE) UC Santa Barbara First Round | L 66–70 | 25–8 | Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, Tennessee |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. SE=Southeast region. ||||||

## NBA draft

| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 2 | 30 | Carl Herrera | Miami Heat |