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University of Houston
East Carolina
Houston Holds Off East Carolina In Overtime, 64-60
2/4/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 4, 2006
GREENVILLE, N.C.- Lanny Smith scored 20 points and Ramon Dyer registered his third straight double-double to lead the University of Houston men's basketball team to a 64-60 overtime victory at East Carolina on Saturday, February 04 in Williams Arena at the Minges Coliseum.
Smith scored 12 of his points in the first half to help the Cougars overcome a 12-0 start in which Houston missed its first seven shots and had two turnovers in the first five minutes of the game.
Oliver Lafayette hit a three-point from the left wing to get Houston on the board and ignited a 14-0 run by the Cougars to pull Houston in front with 10:47 left to play in the opening period. After both teams exchanged three-point field goals, the Pirates regained a 31-17 lead in the next five minutes.
After Sam Anderson and Dyer hit back-to-back jump shots on Houston's next two possessions, Smith hit back-to-back treys as the Cougars back to within 33-27 with 1:46 left to play in the first half.
Lafayette made the first of his two free throws on Houston's next possession before East Carolina's Tyronne Beale made to free throws to make the halftime score 35-28.
In the second half, Houston stormed out of the locker room and hit five of their first eight three-point shots to open up a 52-43 lead with 10:32 left to play. But the Cougars managed to score just four more points during the rest of regulation, allowing East Carolina to tie the score on a three-point play by Jeremy Ingram when he scored a lay-up and free throw after being fouled with 1:46 remaining in regulation.
Both teams failed to score as the second half ended with a 56-56 tie.
On the first play of the overtime period, Anderson fouled East Carolina's Corey Rouse on while they were fighting for a rebound. Rouse made both free throws to give the Pirates a 58-56 lead.
Dyer hit a three-point shot from the left baseline on Houston's next possession to put the Cougars in front for good, 59-58 with 4:20 left to play.
On East Carolina's next possession, Jahmar Thorpe fouled Rouse again, but he missed both of his free throws. Brian Latham scored a lay-up to put Houston up 61-58 with 3:39 left to play.
The Pirates closed within 61-60 when Taylor Gannon hits a jump shot after grabbing a long offensive rebound.
Smith hit the first of his two free throws to extend the lead to 62-60 with 2:39 left to play.
Neither team could score until the eight-tenths of a second was left when Dyer hit both of his free throws to give the Cougars their fourth straight Conference USA victory after they began league play with a 1-3 record.
Lafayette also had 18 points, six rebounds and three steals for the Cougars.
The win moved Houston into fourth place in the league standings behind Memphis, UAB and UTEP with a 5-3 C-USA record. The Cougars also improved to 14-6 overall this season. Houston closes out its non-conference schedule next Tuesday night at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi before returning home to play host to SMU next Saturday night in Hofheinz Pavilion at 7:00 p.m.
