HOUSTON — Ray McCallum, in his second year as the University of Houston's coach, has to remind himself to be patient and consider his program's progress.

        Last season, Houston started 3-10 and didn't win its seventh game until Feb.21. This season, the Cougars are 7-6 entering today's matchup with 10th-ranked Cincinnati, the hottest team in the country with a 14-game winning streak.

        “It's just going to take time for us to build ourselves up, and that's what we're working to do,” McCallum said. “In terms of a time- table, you just don't jump up and all of a sudden start beating top-10 and top-20 teams. It's a process.”

        Houston, picked to finish sixth in the seven-team Conference USA National Division, has played one of the toughest schedules among the league's teams (it ranks 54th in the Ratings Percentage Index).

        It opened with No.11 UCLA and No.1 Kansas in Maui and also has played — and lost to — Texas Tech (13-1), LSU (10-4) and North Carolina State (12-3).

        Its only other defeat came at Saint Louis in the Cougars' conference opener (67-64). On Tuesday night, Houston won at Tulane (69-66).

        Nine of the Cougars' 13 games have been decided by seven or fewer points. They are 4-1 at home and lead the league in field-goal percentage (.498); UC is No.1 in field-goal percentage defense (.359).

        One thing that could hurt Houston against one of the country's best defenses: It averages 17.2 turnovers a game.

        McCallum is trying to get his team to improve upon its 6-10 C-USA record from a year ago, which was the best in school history.

        “I think we're having a much better understanding of how to play the game,” he said. “I've asked the guys to make a bigger commitment in the offseason to start with. We're trying to really emphasize defense and rebounding, and we're doing those better.”

        The Cougars have five players averaging in double figures, led by three guys who have started every game: 6-foot-8 junior forward George Williams, 5-10 senior guard Dominic Smith and 6-8 senior forward Patrick Okafor.

        Houston is also getting a boost from guard Kevin Gaines, a transfer from Michigan who has moved into the starting lineup, and forward Louis Truscott, a transfer from Nebraska who has started 11 games.

        “We think they're bigger than they've been and they've got more of them than they've had before,” UC coach Bob Huggins said. “When they play George Williams at small forward, it creates big-time matchup problems for everybody but particularly for us because we basically play three guards.”

        Houston's last postseason appearance was the 1993 National Invitation Tournament. Its last NCAA berth was in '92. That's a far cry from the “Phi Slamma Jamma” days in the early 1980s, when the Cougars went to three consecutive Final Fours, including a loss in the 1983 championship game to North Carolina State and in the 1984 final to Georgetown.

        They have had only one winning season since 1992-93, averaging just 10.3 victories over the next eight seasons.

        “I had no idea where we were when I came in,” said McCallum, whose teams went 126-76 in seven years at Ball State and never had a losing record. “I guess I can say we started from ground zero, and I don't think any people would question that. We're just trying to build a solid foundation here.”

UC foe aims for patience UC's Williams revels in homecoming Women: UC 77, ECU 52

Today's games look like... last week's
Wild-card weekend kicks off in Philly
O'Leary, banished by Irish, lands with Vikings
SULLIVAN: Selig's loan
Baseball notebook
Spiders want to take step up from Cinderella status
Women: Xavier 68, Fordham 63
2001-02 Coach of the Year candidates
College hoops e-mail with Perry and Schmidt
Enquirer Tipoff page
Familiar faces meet in Miami-Akron game
Five questions with Duke's Carlos Boozer
How 'sweet' it is
South Carolina between UK and 1st SEC victory
UK allows Stone to play at Louisville
Bellisari begins DUI sentence
CCHA: Miami beats Ferris 1-0
Biggs back, 'Clones win
Mighty Ducks edge 'Dogs
Turfway Park: Prather finalist
Iverson hangs 37 on Spurs
Leafs tie Caps
Coming up this week
Moeller problem 'not new'
CovCath rolls behind Bain
La Salle survives Moeller
Reading plays as a team when it counts
Sycamore nips Lakota West
Kentucky boys roundup
Ohio boys roundup
How Enquirer poll teams fared
Tristate area scores
Indiana boys basketball scores
Indiana girls basketball scores
Kentucky boys basketball scores
Kentucky girls basketball scores
Ohio boys basketball scores
Ohio girls basketball scores