- UH women’s basketball improved to 5-5 with its win over Louisiana on Sunday afternoon at Fertitta Center. | DeAundre Billingsley/The Cougar
After an up and down battle between both teams, the Houston women’s basketball team defeated Louisiana 63-51 to improve to 5-5 overall on the season.
A hot start by the Cougars saw them jump out on an 8-2 run before the Ragin’ Cajuns closed the deficit to 8-6 shortly after.
Another 5-0 run by UH pulled some distance nearing the midway point in the quarter, as the Cougars led 18-14 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, UH struggled to get their offense going as all momentum swung to the Ragin’ Cajuns’ defense, limiting the Cougars to eight points.
Despite the slow second quarter, the Cougars found themselves only down by three at halftime 29-26.
Heading into the third, UH flipped the script defensively and fought its way back into the game on both sides of the ball.
The Cougar’s defense translated on the offense with a 12-2 run to lead 38-31 led by seven points from sophomore guard Laila Blair.
The Cougars regained a firm 42-37 lead as they held the Ragin’ Cajuns to eight points in the third quarter.
Both teams exchanged scores early in the fourth quarter before the Cougars managed to pull away briefly with a 50-42 lead with 5:23 left in the fourth quarter.
A small comeback bid late in the game by the Ragin’ Cajuns fell short as the Cougars closed out the game at 63-51.
Junior guard Britney Onyeje led the way for the Cougars on the scoresheet with 16 points, three rebounds, and one assist, while seven players reached five or more points on the day for UH.
Senior forward Tatyana Hill finished the game with a team-leading 10 rebounds along with five points and three assists.
UH shot 66.7 percent from the field in an encouraging display to bring it back to .500 on the season.
