Junior guard Julia Blackshell-Fair shot 67 percent from the field to score 23 points and added in seven assists and seven steals in the loss to the Bearcats on Tuesday. | Lino Sandil/The Cougar
Junior guard Julia Blackshell-Fair’s 23 points were not enough for Houston to overcome the Cincinnati Bearcats as the Cougars lost 74-65 Tuesday afternoon at Fertitta Center.
Sophomore forward Tatyana Hill carried the Cougars offense to begin the contest as she scored all 14 of Houston’s first-quarter points.
Defensively, the Cougars forced eight turnovers in the opening period, but the Bearcats 53.8 percent shooting in the quarter made up for it and allowed Cincinnati to hold a five-point advantage entering the second period.
The teams went back and forth exchanging buckets. Houston cut the Cincinnati lead to four right before halftime, but the Bearcats finished out the quarter strong and were up by seven at the break.
The Cougars came out of the locker room firing, opening the third quarter on an 11-3 run and taking a one-point lead over the No. 2 team in the conference.
The Bearcats responded to Houston’s run by outscoring the Cougars 13-6 over the final seven minutes of the quarter to regain the momentum.
In the fourth, Cincinnati extended its lead to 10 points.
Houston tried to mount a comeback and cut the deficit to four, but was unable to take over the lead again and the Bearcats left with the win.
Blackshell-Fair led the Cougars with 23 points shooting an efficient 10 of 15 from the field. Hill added 12 points and five rebounds.
With the 74-65 loss, the Cougars drop to 12-15 on the season and 5-8 against The American.
The Cougars’ next game is against SMU on Saturday afternoon in Dallas.
