University of Houston Athletics
Lady Cougars To Battle Bearcats Sunday on ESPN2
1/18/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 18, 2003
Cincinnati, Ohio - The University of Houston women's basketball team will continue its campaign for a 2003 Conference USA Championship as it faces Cincinnati Sunday afternoon. The contest between the Lady Cougars (9-5, 1-1 C-USA) and Bearcats (12-3, 2-0 C-USA) will air on ESPN2 with tip-off at the Shoemaker Center set for 2 p.m. CST.
Houston has won four of its last six and is coming off a 90-78 loss Friday to C-USA opponent Louisville at Freedom Hall. The Lady Cougars are led by All-American Chandi Jones (5-10, G), who leads the conference and is second in the nation in scoring, averaging 27.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per contest.
Cincinnati, the defending C-USA Tournament Champion, was picked to finish first alongside TCU in the conference this season and is led by junior Valerie King (5-10, G).
The Bearcats lead the all-time series against the Lady Cougars 8-1 and are 11-0 at home this season. Houston's lone victory over Cincinnati came just a year ago when it prevailed 89-78 in overtime at Hofheinz Pavilion. The teams then met in the 2002 C-USA Tournament, where the Bearcats won 78-74 to knock off Houston and go on to win the league championship. Cincinnati defeated St. Peter's and lost to South Carolina in the 2002 NCAA Tournament while Houston made its way through the WNIT and lost to Oregon by a bucket, 54-52, in the championship game.
Should the Lady Cougars win Sunday, it will be the school's first-ever win - by either the Houston men's or women's basketball programs - at the Shoemaker Center.
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