Forward Tatyana Hill scored 11 points to go along with 11 rebounds in the victory for UH women’s basketball over SMU on Sunday. | Sean Thomas/The Cougar
Houston’s women’s basketball team grabbed its second consecutive road win with a narrow 60-55 victory over SMU on Sunday afternoon.
UH opened the scoring in the game on a jumper by sophomore guard Laila Blair, which fueled a quick 6-1 run lead less than three minutes into the game.
The Cougars’ lead reached as many as seven points in the first quarter. The first quarter ended with a 14-9 Cougar lead.
The second quarter saw both teams come out with increased offensive consistency. The quarter began with an SMU jumper that brought the UH lead down to just 14-11.
After another UH bucket, both teams went on a scoring drought lasting over two minutes that was broken by an SMU basket that brought the game back down to just three points, 16-13.
Nearly halfway through the second quarter, senior guard Dymond Gladney knocked down the first Cougar 3-pointer of the game on a fastbreak to make the game 19-13.
In the final minutes of the first half, UH extended its lead to nine points at 29-20, largely thanks to the squad’s improved 3-point shooting from the first quarter.
The first half ended with UH leading 29-24. In the second quarter, the Cougars improved their shooting to a convincing 6 for 11 mark that was highlighted by three 3-pointers.
The third quarter was defined by much of the same, as the two teams continued to trade punches with very little separating the two.
UH kept a narrow lead throughout the quarter, holding on despite having some shooting woes, shooting 4 of 13 in the third quarter. UH entered the fourth quarter with a narrow 40-38 lead.
To open the final quarter of play, redshirt junior guard Britney Onyeje drilled a 3-pointer to expand the lead to 43-38. SMU immediately answered with a pair of free throws to make it a three-point game.
At the 7:28 mark in the fourth quarter, SMU scored a layup that made their deficit just one point. This would be the closest the Mustangs would get to taking the lead from the Cougars as UH answered with an 8-0 run to build the lead up to 53-44 with under two minutes to play.
The Cougars held off the late comeback effort from the Mustangs, securing a 60-55 win in Dallas.
The Cougars were led by three double-digit scorers in the win led by redshirt junior guard Britney Onyeje 13 points.
Junior forward Bria Patterson and senior forward Tatyana Hill posted double-doubles with Patterson scoring 12 points and pulling down 11 rebounds and Hill scoring 11 while also grabbing 11 boards.
