Houston is ranked No. 1 this early in the season for the first time in program history.

Oakland comes calling on Wednesday knowing all too well what facing the top-ranked team in the nation takes out of a team.

Three years ago, the Cougars climbed to No. 1 on Nov. 28, 2022.

But Houston (2-0) catapulted past Purdue, last week's top-ranked team, which still received 36 first-place votes this week compared to 18 for the Cougars.

Houston coach Kelvin Sampson's team claimed the top spot because it had more No. 2 selections by pollsters than the Boilermakers.

Oakland (0-2) will play a different No. 1 team in consecutive games.

The Golden Grizzlies lost at Purdue 87-77 on Friday night. They fell at then-No. 7 Michigan 121-78 in the season opener on Nov. 3.

"I think we play the Pistons afte

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