The Cougars benefited from a balanced attack, including key contributions from players such as Roxana Button, in Saturday’s 74-62 win over Conference USA frontrunner Tulane at Hofheinz Pavilion. | Yulia Kutsenkova/The Daily Cougar
Conference USA leader Tulane wagered its six-game winning streak against UH on Saturday afternoon, hoping to hit lucky seven.
Lady Luck and Porsche Landry had other plans.
Landry’s dribble penetration and steady floor leadership down the stretch helped the Cougars knock off the Green Wave 74-62 at Hofheinz Pavilion.
After letting Tulane (22-6, 11-4 C-USA) dictate the tempo in the early going, Landry, who finished with a team-high 16 points, steadied the ship and got the Cougars (15-13, 9-6) out in front, 13-10, with 11 minutes remaining in the first half.
UH took that early momentum and never looked back, rolling to its third consecutive win at home.
“I think Porsche played really well today, especially defensively against (Roshaunda) Barnes,” UH assistant coach Wade Scott said. “She was able to get to the basket, and that created a lot of problems for them.”
Six Cougars scored in double figures, including Brittney Scott (12), Roxana Button (11), Lesslee Mason (10) and Jasmine Johnson (10).
But Courtney Taylor stood out the most, as she recorded her 13th double-double of the season with 10 points and 19 rebounds. The junior forward fell one rebound shy of breaking the UH single-game record.
“The balanced scoring makes everybody an option,” Scott said. “When we share the ball and find that ‘next’ pass, it makes our team a very good team.”
With only nine players to choose from due to injury, Scott relied on balanced playing time and consistency. He got his usual spark off the bench from Button, who scored a team-high 9 points in the first half to lead UH to a 37-23 halftime advantage.
In the second half, Landry went to work, knifing through the lane and taking it all the way to the rack on multiple occasions.
But Tulane doesn’t have the best record in the conference without reason.
Brown engineered the Green Wave’s furious comeback attempt with back-to-back 3s, including a long jumper from the corner that kissed the backboard like a trick shot on a pool table to close the gap to four with 8:23 remaining.
Tulane then opted to ratchet up their defense a notch with a swarming press.
But Landry wasn’t rattled. The Houston native broke down the trap and dished the ball to open teammates to push the lead back to double digits at the four-minute mark.
Brown tallied seven more points down the stretch, but it proved too little too late because the Cougars matched her basket-for-basket.
“Overall this is a huge win for us,” Scott said. “This puts us in a tie with SMU for third place, which puts more pressure on the next game.”
UH will finish the regular season against in-town rival Rice Thursday at Hofheinz Pavilion.
