A four-game win streak for the UH women’s basketball team came to an end in gut-wrenching fashion on Wednesday night, as the Cougars fell to Memphis 45-44 at Fertitta Center.
The first quarter was a low-scoring affair, something that became a constant throughout the matchup. The Cougars held the lead for most of the period, catching momentum in the final few minutes to lead 13-7 at the end of quarter one.
Graduate student forward Tatyana Hill led the Cougars in the first quarter, scoring six points on 3-for-5 shooting including two consecutive layups to finish the quarter.
The Cougars turned dominant in the second quarter, propelled largely by the play of senior guard Tiara Young, who scored seven points in the quarter.
UH entered halftime comfortably, leading Memphis 26-14.
Young and Hill each led UH in scoring in the first half, scoring seven and six points, respectively.
Both squads struggled from the field, with the Cougars shooting under 32 percent and Memphis shooting roughly 28 percent.
While UH extended its lead to as large as 14 points early in the third period, Memphis began cutting into the deficit on an 8-2 run. The Cougars’ lead was trimmed to 32-26 entering the final quarter.
In the fourth quarter, it was redshirt senior guard Britney Onyeje who carried the UH offense, scoring eight points.
Onyeje’s performance wasn’t enough to slow down the momentum Memphis had built in the previous quarter.
After a 3-pointer from Onyeje that extended the UH lead back to double-digits, Memphis put together a run that managed to tie things up with just under three minutes to play.
UH managed to hold onto the lead going into the final minute, until – with under 30 seconds to play – Memphis hit a clutch 3-pointer to give it a 45-44 lead.
UH was unable to get another chance, losing 45-44.