The breakthrough imagined by Houston coach Ray McCallum never materialized.

Coming off an 18-win, NIT-bid season in which the Cougars doubled their victory total and aroused memories of the program's once-glorious pedigree, Houston slipped to a dismal 8-20 mark. The Cougars, who had distinguished themselves as a clutch offensive group, fell to last in Conference USA in scoring (58.2 points per game) and 13th in field-goal percentage (40.3).

But who foresaw the dismissal of point guard Kevin Gaines? Who expected George Williams to declare for the NBA draft (and not even get selected)? Who predicted Marcus Oliver's summer-ball knee injury, which ended his season? Those things all happened before the first jump ball.

"A lot of surprises," McCallum said. "But you have to keep pushing. You can't cry over things that go wrong."

Houston must get heavy contributions from its newcomers, rely on a stacked backcourt, hope someone emerges in the middle and somehow replace meal-ticket forward Louis Truscott, whose individual brilliance was all but wasted last season. That's a rather large shopping list.

FRONTCOURT

Were it not for Truscott, the Cougars might have been hopeless. Even with him, they were largely punchless.

McCallum believes he has a capable newcomer in junior college transfer Darrius Brannon, a smooth scorer and effective rebounder. "Maybe he's not as refined just yet, but Darrius is capable of doing a lot of the things that Louis did for us," McCallum said.

Brannon was part of McCallum's first recruiting class at Houston, but he didn't qualify academically and has resurfaced as a bigger, better prospect.

At center, there's concern surrounding senior Anwar Ferguson. No one questions his shot blocking. He was among C-USA's top interior intimidators. Ferguson can be pushed around, though, and McCallum wants to see a more physical approach. Some advanced offensive instincts would be nice, too.

"In this league, you've got to have a force in the middle," McCallum said.

For that reason, Ferguson might give way at times to freshman Elijah Miller and Andy Ikeakor, a beefy transfer from Tennessee who will become eligible following the fall semester.

Cedrick Hensley should feel encouraged by his freshman contributions. A big-time scorer who once had 101 points in a high school game, Hensley became more of an offensive factor for the Cougars as the season progressed. "He'll do nothing but get better and better," McCallum said.

Andrew Francis, a versatile freshman who can play multiple positions, also is available, along with sophomore Ramon Dyer.

BACKCOURT

The Cougars should get much of their scoring from Andre Owens, who will be better adjusted after an up-and-down indoctrination season. Owens, a transfer from Indiana, scored at least 20 points eight times and was effective going to the glass but at times seemed ill-suited for running the show at point guard. He had 10 turnovers against UAB and sometimes offset a fine shooting performance with mistakes. Now entrenched at shooting guard, he should have a clear role.

So should freshman point guard Lanny Smith. Handing control to a freshman might seem scary, but McCallum seems convinced Smith is up to the task. Veteran Houston hoops fans are expecting big things, too. Smith was selected as the Houston Chronicle Player of the Year -- ahead of two others who were early entrants into the NBA draft.

"I think Lanny knows the type of expectations people will have for him," McCallum said. "But he's a guy with all the true point guard skills, and we feel like he has what we really need at that position."

Oliver, who had displayed deadly long-range shooting before his injury, and junior Bryan Shelton are two other returning guards with some starting experience.

FINAL ANALYSIS

McCallum doesn't want to dwell on last season's finish, but he said somewhat wistfully, "We were on the verge of doing some things that haven't been done at Houston in a long, long time."

The Cougars should be entertaining and much better shooters than last season. To finish the job, though, they must have a more physical presence. If things go well, a solid backcourt could be ammunition enough to approach a break-even season in C-USA. Without a consistently powerful inside game, though, the postseason is a long shot.

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