The Prairie View A&M University men's basketball team continues its seven-game road trip with a 4 p.m. game Saturday at the University of Houston.
 
The radio pregame show on the Open Mic Broadcast Network begins at 3:45 p.m., with a live video stream on ESPN3.com. The official athletics website of Prairie View A&M Athletics, www.pvpanthers.com, will have links to listen live, watch live and get live stats.
 
The Panthers (2-5) are coming off a 95-50 loss Sunday at then #16-ranked Wisconsin. It ended a stretch of seven games in 17 days to open the season for PVAMU, and head coach Byron Smith said his team has benefitted from the week of practice.
 
"Anytime you can get back home, have these kids sleeping in their own beds, being in a familiar environment and just getting back to the nuts and bolts of it, the fundamentals, it's good," Smith said. "My goal is for everyday that we win, that we win the day, and we've improved. I feel in the last three days of us having practice since getting back from Wisconsin, I've seen improvement already."
 
Smith, along with assistant coach Derrick Daniels, return to the UH campus, where the former Cougar teammates had great careers. Smith was a two-time all-conference player and averaged nearly 17 points per game in his two seasons at Houston form 1989-91. Daniels was a four-year starter from 1988-92, and led the old Southwest Conference in assists as a junior.
 
"It's so cliché for coaches to say this, but I'm going to say it – it's just another game," said a smiling Smith, who also spent time there as Director of Operations from 1998-2000 on head coach and Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler's staff. "We'll have a lot of familiar faces there. I hope I don't get booed. My kids will be there, so I just hope the fans don't boo me. It's always neat and nice to return to a place you call home. There are a lot of good people there and a lot of fond memories."
 
The Cougars (5-1) are coming off their first loss of the season at LSU Tuesday under third-year head coach Kelvin Sampson. Houston has four players averaging in double figures, and is shooting just under 50 percent from the field as a team.
 
"It starts at the top," Smith said. "Kelvin Sampson is one of the top five or 10 coaches in the country. I have a tremendous amount of respect for him as a man and as a basketball coach. He's as good as they come, and I know they'll be prepared. They've got good basketball players, and are capable of putting numbers on the board. We know UH is going to come out with smoke coming out of their noses and ears. In their minds, they are catching us at the right time. We have to be up for the challenge."
 

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