hoop-la

Celebrate Houston hosting the NCAA Men's Final Four at this jammin' hoops party

Snap photos with the NCAA Men's Championship trophy at the Fan Jam.

Photo courtesy of HLOC

This has been another banner year for college basketball in the Bayou City. The University of Houston men’s team reached the Elite Eight before a tough loss to Villanova. Meanwhile, Texas Southern University netted another tourney appearance.

Things get even hotter next year, as Houston will host the NCAA Men’s Final Four showdowns. Games run on April 1 and 3, 2023 at NRG Stadium, with UH, TSU, Houston Baptist University, and Rice University making history as the first quartet of institutions to host the Final Four. This is Houston’s fourth turn city hosting the event, having previously crowned national champions in 1971, 2011, and 2016.

To celebrate the win for the city, fans are invited to Discovery Green Park on Friday, April 15, from noon to 4 pm to catch the Fan Jam Truck, an interactive pop-up truck that’s making its way from New Orleans (home of the recent championship) to Houston.

At the free event, visitors can snap pictures with the NCAA Men’s Final Four trophy, and enjoy Pop-A-Shots, giveaways, mascot appearances, a reading nook, and more, per a press release. Mayor Sylvester Turner will welcome the crowd while UH and TSU bands trumpet tunes.

The event is hosted by the Houston Local Organizing Committee (HLOC), the group responsible for bringing the Final Four to Houston in 2023.

“Houston is an amazing sports town,” Holly Kesterson, HLOC president, tells CultureMap, “and there’s nothing better than seeing our hometown teams having success on a national stage. University of Houston has an exceptional history in men’s basketball dating back to the 1980s with Phi Slama Jama, so it’s great to see that type of excitement and energy around college basketball coverage once again.

“Texas Southern University also had an impressive run, making it all the way to the early stages of March Madness this year. We are excited to follow all of our host institutions next year including Rice University and Houston Baptist University.”

While the celebration is free, attendees are encouraged to bring books for elementary school students, which will be used in the upcoming Read to the Final Four literacy program for area third-grade students.

College hoops devotees are encouraged to show up and snap those pics with the trophy — perhaps it could be foreshadowing for a local team’s run?

“Not to get too ahead of ourselves,” says Kesterson, “but the potential of having a hometown team in the running for the Men’s Final Four in 2023 adds to the excitement in our community.”

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Catch the Fan Jam Truck at Discovery Green Park, 1500 McKinney St. from noon to 4 pm. Free.

families festivals downtown

money woes

Houston has 2nd most financially distressed residents in America

Photo by Adrian Newell on Unsplash

Houstonians are feeling the financial stress in 2026.

A new study has confirmed what many Houston residents are already feeling: Houston has one of the highest shares of people in financial distress in the nation.

Houston ranked No. 2 in WalletHub's just-released report, "Cities with the Most People in Financial Distress," which analyzed 100 of the largest U.S. cities across nine personal finance metrics: average credit scores and year-over-year changes; the share of residents with accounts in distress and year-over-year changes; the average number of accounts in distress; year-over-year change in bankruptcy filings from September 2024 to September 2025; and "debt" and "loans" search interest indexes.

For the purpose of this study, WalletHub defined "financial distress" as having a credit account in forbearance or with deferred payments.

Chicago, Illinois led the nation with the No. 1 most financially distressed residents, and Las Vegas, Nevada rounded out the top three.

According to the report's findings, Houston residents signaled a "strong need for borrowing" after having the highest search interest nationally for terms like "debt" and "loans." Houstonians also had the 10th highest increase in bankruptcy filings from September 2024 to September 2025.

"Houston has a high share of the population with accounts in distress compared to most other cities, at over 8 percent, and it also has a high number of accounts in distress per person," the report said.

Here's how WalletHub broke down the rest of Houston's overall ranking:

No. 32 – Credit score rank
No. 35 – Average number of accounts in distress rank
No. 39 – People with accounts in distress rank

High unemployment rates and inflation are major factors contributing to most Americans' financial woes, the report said, and rising property taxes can create an even bigger burden for homeowners and renters alike. Texas residents may feel a greater burden than residents elsewhere in the country after the Lone Star State was dubbed the No. 1 most most financially distressed state in America in 2025. And digging oneself out of the "downward spiral" isn't easy, according to WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

"You may get temporary relief from your lenders by not having to make payments, but all the while interest will keep building up, making the debt even harder to pay off," Lupo said.

Though no Texas city is feeling the financial squeeze as much as Houston, three more of the state's biggest cities also ranked among the top 10 most financially distressed places in America: Dallas (No. 4), San Antonio (No. 6) and Austin (No. 9). Fort Worth ranked 12th overall.

The top 10 most financially distressed cities in the nation are:

No. 1 – Chicago
No. 2 – Houston
No. 3 – Las Vegas
No. 4 – Dallas
No. 5 – Los Angeles
No. 6 – San Antonio
No. 7 – Atlanta
No. 8 – New York
No. 9 – Austin
No. 10 – Phoenix

finance wallethub houston

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money woes

Houston has 2nd most financially distressed residents in America