HOUSTON – Houston Cougars sophomore guard Nate Hinton bought into head coach Kelvin Sampson’s winning culture.
Sampson said Hinton naturally stepped up as a leader after the team lost three seniors this season.
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Hinton averages 10.7 points per game and a team-leading 9.4 rebounds. This season, he has recorded eight double-doubles.
“He just plays hard, sometimes borderline reckless," forward Fabian White Jr. said regard Hinton’s on-court energy. "But, we have always fed off his energy. He just plays like his head is cut off.”
KPRC 2 caught up with Hinton to get to know more about him. Here is the one-on-one interview.
KPRC 2: What about the way you guys are playing right now are you most proud of?
Hinton: “We are trying to get better every single game, and if we take a loss like in the losses we have had, we don’t come back and do the same thing. We try to keep our confidence and keep in mind the things we have done to keep going. We have slipped in a few areas, but we have to get right back on track.”
KPRC 2: I spoke with Caleb Broodo and White about how much of a family this year’s team is. What is the difference between this year and last year?
Hinton: “I can’t really compare last year to this year’s team cause it’s two different teams. But, the culture is still the same. Everybody is all close, everybody is together. Everybody is around the same age range now, versus last year having seniors. A lot of times a lot of things are our first time going through. We experienced a lot of things for the first time together.”
KPRC 2: Coach Sampson said you are a great rebounding guard. I asked him what the next evolution of your game. He said, “decision making.” What would you say the next evolution of your game is?
Hinton: “I would say decision making and just learning from the mistakes that I make and improve on them. The game is always an imperfect game but trying to take what you have done and evolve on the things you have done. And just keep moving forward.”
KPRC 2: Who are some of the players you looked up to and wanted to model your game after?
Hinton: “Russell Westbrook, a little bit of Patrick Beverley, a little bit of T-Mac. Definitely Kobe Bryant obviously! Players like that. Gary Payton, defensively just having the mindset.”
KPRC 2: I definitely see the relentless energy when you play like Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverley. Where does that relentless energy come from that you play with?
Hinton: “It’s just my motor, I got a high motor. It is knowing that it is a competition, and you got to win. It is winners and losers. Losing doesn’t feel good. So it is just having that mindset of just going out there trying to win.”
KPRC 2: What can you guys do to reach the team’s goal of winning the conference? Then eventually the ultimate goal of winning the NCAA Tournament?
Hinton: “Just keep getting better every single day. We are not putting ourselves in a box. But (we) have to keep pushing each other, keep getting better every single day. Coaches come up with great game plans. We just have to fix the areas we need to fix and on to the next one.”
KPRC 2: What is it about playing at home? You guys have been so good since you been here and have only lost three games at home.
Hinton: “The energy. Just the arena. Looking around and you can see the excitement that it brings. The fans, the cheerleaders and all the supporters. The Cougar Brass. Everybody just brings a lot of energy to us. It’s a great feeling to be around!”