Sophomore guard Dymond Gladney (left) finished with six 3-pointers in the thrilling win against Tulane and 29 points in the contest. | Jiselle Santos/The Cougar
The Cougars rallied back from a 16-point deficit to defeat the Green Wave in overtime 66-60 Saturday afternoon in New Orleans.
Tulane came out firing, knocking down three consecutive 3-pointers in the opening two minutes of the first quarter to take an early 9-0 lead. The Cougars responded to the Green Waves’ quick start and cut their deficit down to five on senior forward Dorian Branch’s 3-pointer.
Tulane reacted to Houston’s run with a strong finish to the period, closing out the first quarter with a 7-0 run to extend their lead to 22-10.
In the second quarter, Tulane increased its lead to 16, its largest of the game.
But the Cougars responded, locking down on defense and slowly chipped away at Tulane’s lead. Sophomore guard Dymond Gladney led Houston’s offense with eight second-quarter points, which was more points than the entire Tulane team scored in the quarter.
Behind the strong second-quarter performance both offensively and defensively from the Cougars, Houston cut Tulane’s lead to 29-24 by halftime.
The third quarter was a lot like the second quarter. The Cougars held Tulane to only six points in the period, and the offense clicked as Houston knocked down four 3-pointer, three of which were by Gladney, and took the lead for the first time in the contest.
After three quarters, Houston led 42-35.
In the fourth, Tulane battled back and tied the game at 53 with just under a minute left in regulation.
In the final minute of the fourth, both teams had a chance at a potential game-winning shot, but neither team was able to convert.
Tied 53-53 after four quarters of play, the game went into overtime.
In the extra period, Houston quickly jumped out to a seven-point lead. Tulane had one last comeback push, but Gladney and junior guard Julia Blackshell-Fair knocked down clutch free-throws to seal a 66-60 Cougars’ victory.
Gladney led the way with 29 points, including six made 3-pointers. Junior forward Maya Jones came off the bench and scored 13 points. Blackshell-Fair added nine points and 10 boards.
With the win, Houston improves to 11-11 on the season and 4-4 in conference play. The Cougars return to action Wednesday night at the Fertitta Center to take on the SMU Mustangs.
