University of Houston
9-4, 1-0
TCU (Ch. 51 KNWS)
7-7, 0-1
Lady Cougars Topple TCU in C-USA Opener
1/12/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 12, 2003
HOUSTON - All-American junior Chandi Jones posted her fifth double-double of the season and Nicole Oliver had a season and career-high nine steals as the University of Houston women's basketball team toppled TCU 64-50 in its Conference USA opener Sunday afternoon at Hofheinz Pavilion. The victory was the sixth in a row at home for the Lady Cougars (9-4, 1-0 C-USA), who defeated the Lady Frogs (7-7, 0-1 C-USA) for the first time since Feb. 14, 1996.
Jones, who leads the league and is second in the nation in scoring (26.5 ppg), posted her third consecutive and fifth double-double of the season with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Shondra Bush added 20 points and eight rebounds, scoring 12 of those points in the second half to lift the Lady Cougars to a 14-point win. Collectively, the scoring tandem of Jones and Bush accounted for 44 of Houston's 64 points. Oliver, the 2002 C-USA Defensive Player of the Year, was the leading defensive force for Houston, posting a career- and team-high nine steals.
TCU was led by Tiffany Evans who had a double-double of her own, shooting 7-10 from the charity stripe for 13 points and a game-high 14 boards. Sandora Irvin was the other Lady Frog to score in double figures, totaling 10 points, seven rebounds and a game-high six blocked shots.
Both teams got out to a slow start, scoring only four points apiece in the first five minutes of the contest. Houston capitalized on TCU turnovers and went on a 10-0 run in the next five minutes until TCU's Ashley Browning nailed a three-pointer to bring TCU within seven, 14-7. Houston maintained its defensive stance and held a commanding 12-point lead, 31-19, at the half.
TCU, who shot only 19.2 percent in the first half, began to chip away at the Houston lead early as Tricia Payne hit a trey to open the second. Jones, who posted 14 points in the first half, had two key steals in less than a minute to push her team to a 13-point lead at 10:52. Bush scored eight of her 20 points in the next three minutes and TCU could not regain momentum. Houston utilized the full-court press throughout the game and led by as many as 18 en route to a 64-50 final score and C-USA win.
Defense was key for Houston, who racked up 17 steals in the contest and scored 30 points on 26 TCU turnovers. The Lady Cougars scored 42 of their 64 in the paint including 14 fast break points. Houston, who was 0-2 last season against the Lady Frogs, is now 6-1 at home and 1-0 in C-USA.
The Lady Cougars will continue C-USA action as they travel to Louisville Friday to face the Cardinals at 6 p.m. Houston will then travel to Cincinnati to battle the Bearkats Sunday at 2 p.m. in a ESPN2 televised contest. Action will return to Hofheinz as Houston hosts Charlotte Jan. 24 at 2 p.m.
