Kingston Flemings’ Fearless Wisdom and Kalifa Sakho’s Growing Reach Show How Much Better Kelvin Sampson’s Now No. 2 Ranked Houston Team Can Get

B IRMINGHAM, Ala. — Auburn’s last real chance at beating Houston, at toppling a top ranked team in the land that seems to be barely getting started, sees Tigers guard Tahaad Pettiford finally slip past Kingston Flemings only to be met by the 6-foot-6 Isiah Harwell and the 6-foot-11 Kalifa Sakho. Which is a lot like losing a bounty hunter by stepping into a SWAT van.

Harwell extends his arms straight up, not giving Pettiford a chance to draw a cheap foul, and the man from France uses his reach, which is plentiful (Sakho’s wingspan measures in at 7-foot-4), to block Pettiford’s pump fake setup shot from behind with one second left. Pettiford, a former five star recruit himself, will throw his arms up in disbelief. But Kelvin Sampson’s monster of a team is real. Even if it’s still in its in