The Cougars were led by sixth-year head coach Kelvin Sampson as members of the American Athletic Conference.

Houston finished the 2018–19 regular season 29–2, including an AAC-best 16–2 record in conference play.

The Cougars earned the #3 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA tournament, where they went 2–1, advancing to the Sweet Sixteen before falling 62–58 to Kentucky.

Shortly after the conclusion of the 2018–19 season, Kelvin Sampson agreed to a six-season contract to remain Head Coach at Houston.

[1] Sources: The AAC media poll was released on October 14, 2019, with the Cougars tied for first place with the Memphis Tigers.