With Memphis losing to Temple on Sunday, the Cougars have taken over as No. 3 in the American. | Ajani Stewart / The Cougar
Both Cougar basketball teams hit the court this weekend but saw different results.
Men’s Basketball
The Cougars (18-7, 9-4) rolled past the Tulsa Golden Hurricane (12-12, 6-6) on Saturday night with a 73-64 victory, extending Houston’s winning streak to five games. With Memphis’ loss to Temple on Sunday, the Cougars moved to No. 3 in the American Athletic Conference.
Redshirt junior guard Rob Gray returned as the Cougars’ leading scorer with six 3-pointers and 28 total points. Redshirt senior guard Damyean Dotson, who had back-to-back record-setting games, wasn’t far behind Gray with 24 points and three 3-pointers.
In the first half, the Cougars dominated Tulsa with the score at 36-25 going into the break. In the last five minutes, the Cougars went on a 13-3 run with Gray accounting for eight points.
Tulsa outscored the Cougars by two points in the second half, but turnovers killed the Golden Hurricane’s chances. They turned the ball over 15 times, while the Cougars turned the ball over seven times.
The Cougars had 18 more attempted field goals and had a higher shooting percentage (43.1) than Tulsa (40.4). However, Tulsa went to the free throw line 22 times for 18 points, while the Cougars had only nine attempted free throws for five points.
Sophomore guard Galen Robinson Jr. led in assists with seven and steals with four.
From the bench, junior guard Wes VanBeck put up nine points, all from 3-pointers.
The Cougars return home to face off against the No. 19 SMU Mustangs (22-4, 11-1). SMU defeated the Cougars 85-64 the last time these two teams met in January. Tipoff is scheduled for Saturday at 5 p.m. in Hofheinz Pavilion. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
Women’s Basketball
The Cougars (9-16, 2-10) fell to the Cincinnati Bearcats (15-9, 6-5) on Saturday 71-62 at Hofheinz Pavilion. Houston remains at No. 10 in the American with East Carolina a game behind in last place.
The contest was the annual “Coogs for the Cure” game, where the Cougars wore pink jerseys to honor cancer survivors.
The beginning of the first quarter looked good for the Cougars, starting off 4-0, but Cincinnati dominated afterward. The Bearcats went on a 16-2 run with the score at 16-6 going into the first break.
In the second quarter, the Cougar offense found its rhythm and closed the point gap to 21-18. However, Cincinnati fired back from beyond the arc, sinking six 3-pointers in the quarter. Going into halftime, Cincinnati led 42-28.
The gap was too large for the Cougars to overcome as Cincinnati continued its dominance. The Cougars outscored Cincinnati in the fourth quarter by seven points, but it wasn’t enough to bring the game back within reach.
The Cougars had four players finish in double digits with freshman guard Angela Harris leading with 16.
Freshman guard Jasmyne Harris finished the game with 13 points, six rebounds and five assists.
Sophomore guard Serithia Hawkins put up her ninth career double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The Cougars travel to face off against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane (8-17, 4-8) for their next game. Tipoff is scheduled for Wednesday at 7 p.m.
