University of Houston Athletics
Road Trip Begins on Saturday at Cincinnati
1/30/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
| HOUSTON (6-14, 1-8 AMERICAN) at CINCINNATI (5-15, 2-7 AMERICAN) | |
|---|---|
| Home Game Tickets | BUY Tickets • Tickets Info |
| Questions? | Fan Guide |
| Date/Time | Saturday • 1 pm CT |
| Location | Fifth Third Arena • Cincinnati, Ohio |
| Live Video | American Digital Network |
| Live Audio | UHCougars.com Jeremy Branham, PxP |
| Live Stats | |
| Series History | Cincinnati leads, 11-5 |
| Game Notes | • Houston Notes • Cincinnati Notes • The American Notes |
| Social Media |   |
HOUSTON - The University of Houston women's basketball team opens a two-game road trip on Saturday afternoon when they face the University of Cincinnati. Tipoff at Fifth Third Arena is scheduled for 1 pm CT.
The American Digital Network will carry a live video broadcast of Saturday's contest. Also, a free live audio broadcast is available through Houston's Stretch Internet Portal, with Jeremy Branham on the play-by-play call. Live Twitter updates can be accessed throughout the game by following the official UH women's basketball account, @UHCougarWBB.
Houston enters the weekend with a 6-14 (1-8 American Athletic Conference) record after taking a 63-46 loss to Tulane on Jan. 27. Juniors Tyler Gilbert and Alecia Smith led the Cougars with 13 points apiece in the game
Cincinnati has lost their last four games, including a 56-44 defeat at Memphis on Jan. 28. Marley Hill was Cincinnati's top contributor, with 11 points and 11 rebounds in the loss.
The Bearcats hold an 11-5 advantage over the Cougars in 16 previous meetings. Cincinnati won the first matchup of the teams this season, a 76-73 double overtime thriller on Jan. 7 at Hofheinz Pavilion. Jessieka Palmer had a monster effort, with 19 points and 14 rebounds, while Moesha Kinard came off the bench to score 13 points on 4-for-4 shooting.
 | LAST TIME OUT |
JANUARY 27 • TULANE 63, HOUSTON 46 | Final Stats | Photo Gallery
Houston led for over nine minutes in the first half before falling to Tulane, 63-46, on Jan. 27 at Hofheinz Pavilion.
Houston outrebounded the Green Wave, 41-32, and they matched a season high with 17 offensive boards.
Gilbert and Smith each scored 13 points to lead Houston, while Gilbert added 10 rebounds and three blocked shots.
Demetria Foreman came off the bench to turn in an amazing defensive performance, with seven steals. The total was a career high and the most by a Cougar since the 2012-13 season.
Bianca Winslow played a career-high 38 minutes and turned in eight points and four assists. Marche' Amerson set season highs with eight rebounds and two blocked shots.
| JOIN THE CLUB |
Two Cougars reached statistical milestones against Tulane. Smith made her 100th career 3-point field goal late in the second half. She is the seventh Cougar to reach the milestone. Gilbert, meanwhile, tallied her 60th career block against the Green Wave. She is one of only 10 Cougars to record the feat.
| DEVELOPMENT FACILITY WEBCAM GOES LIVE |
Watch
The Cougars will have a new Basketball Development Facility to call home in 2015-16, and fans can now watch the construction of the facility live, 24 hours a day. To view progress of the construction, fans can click on uh.edu/infotech/services/webcam/.
Designed by DLR Group and Page, the new Development Center is located adjacent to Hofheinz Pavilion at the corner of Cullen Boulevard and Holman Street on the UH campus. Construction on the $25 million facility is expected to be completed by August 2015
The 53,000 square-foot facility will provide the environment that the Houston Men's and Women's Basketball student-athletes need to excel throughout the season in all areas. The first level will house a dedicated practice court for each team as well as sports performance and sports medicine areas, which will be used by both programs.
The second level will feature the teams' areas, which include locker rooms and academic/film theaters. The team rooms contain spacious, modern lockers, multiple video screens for television and comfortable furniture. The third level will hold office space for both Men's and Women's Basketball coaching and support staffs.
| COUGAR VETERANS CLIMB PROGRAM RECORD BOOKS |
Houston's junior class has three members who are making their marks on the Cougar women's basketball record books.
Gilbert has swatted 43 shots this season, the ninth-best one-year total in UH history. She now has 62 career blocks, 11 behind Rosheda Hopson (1994-96) for ninth all-time.
Smith ranks seventh in UH history with 100 career 3-pointers. She is bearing down on Roxana Button (2008-12), who knocked down 125 trifectas in her career.
Amerson has started 81 career games and is five short of Houston's career top-10. She is also just five treys outside the career 3-pointer list, with 71 total.
| COUGARS IN THE AMERICAN RANKINGS |
Three Cougars continue to rank among the top statistical performers in The American through games played on Jan. 30.
Palmer leads the Cougars in scoring and ranks 27th in The American with 10.0 points per game.
Gilbert ranks fourth in the league with 2.2 blocks per game, and her 6.2 rebounds are good for 16th in the league. The forward from Missouri City is the top-ranked Cougar in the NCAA Division I rankings, checking in 48th in the nation in blocks per game.
Smith led the Cougars in assists in 11 straight games from Nov. 29 - Jan. 7 and again on Jan. 24 vs. Memphis. The junior ranks fifth in The American, at 3.8 assists per game, and she is also listed ninth with a 1.3 assist/turnover ratio.
In American play, Gilbert leads the Cougars with 9.9 points and 7.9 rebounds per game. She ranks 28th in conference play in scoring and 9th in boards.
| SERIES HISTORY vs. CINCINNATI |
Cincinnati holds an 11-5 edge over Houston in 16 prior meetings. The Bearcats scored a win at Hofheinz Pavilion earlier this year, a 76-73 double overtime victory on Jan. 7.
Palmer tallied 19 points and 14 rebounds in the loss to Cincinnati on Jan. 7, while Gilbert came up with 14 points and Kinard scored 13 on 4-for-4 shooting. Hill led the Bearcats with 28 points and 13 rebounds and Jasmine Whitfield scored 24. The Bearcats rallied to win after Houston built a five-point lead in the first overtime period. | Final Stats The Cougars won their last trip to The Queen City, 48-39, on Feb. 8, 2014. Amerson paced Houston with 11 points, and Cincinnati shot just 28.3 percent. | Final Stats
| SCOUTING THE BEARCATS |
Cincinnati is 5-15 (2-7 American) after falling in their last four games. The Bearcats were upended by Memphis in their last contest, 56-44, on Jan. 28. | Final Stats
The last win for the Bearcats came on Jan. 10, a 70-54 home victory over UCF.
Cincinnati is 4-5 at home this season, with victories over Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Delaware and Detroit in addition to the UCF win.
For the season, Hill is Cincinnati's top producer, averaging 12.8 points and 9.6 rebounds per game. The forward has tallied eight double-doubles.
Shooting guard Ana Owens is knocking down over two 3-pointers per game and ranks second on the team with 12.6 points per game.
| THE HUGHEY DIFFERENCE |
New head coach Ronald Hughey earned his first American Athletic Conference victory on Jan. 3 with a 63-45 trouncing of SMU. The victory was the sixth of the season for Houston.
Last season, Houston did not earn their first American win until Feb. 9 against Cincinnati, and they didn't reach six total wins until the American Championship First Round victory over Memphis on March 7, in their 30th contest.
Statistically, the Cougars have seen marked improvements in scoring offense, scoring defense, field goal percentage, 3-point field goal percentage, assists, steals and blocks under Hughey.
| 2014-15 AWARDS TALLY |
Three Cougars have already earned spots on the American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll this season. Gilbert was the latest to receive the honor, on Jan. 19.
Palmer was honored on Nov. 24 after scoring a career-high 20 points in the win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, and Mariah Mitchell took home the award on Dec. 22 after scoring 15 points in the Nicholls State victory.
Mitchell and Amerson were both honored with spots on the Athletes in Action All-Tournament Team for their play at the event. Both players averaged 8.0 points per game at the tournament, leading the Cougars to a 2-1 record.
| HOME SWEET ROAD |
In the first season of the Hughey Era, the Cougars have repeatedly demonstrated their toughness by winning difficult games away from Hofheinz Pavilion. Through Jan. 30, Houston has already won five games away from their home court, including their first American win on Jan. 3 at SMU.
Houston won just three games away from home in 2013-14, another example of Hughey's influence.
Hughey's team opened the season with a 46-42 road victory over North Texas on Nov. 14 in Denton, and they overcame a raucous on-campus environment to defeat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 68-66, on Nov. 21.
The Cougars also won two neutral site games at the Athletes in Action Classic in Lubbock. Houston took down UTSA, 56-53, on Dec. 19, and one day later they earned a 65-47 triumph over Nicholls State.
| #CHASINGGREATNESS WITH THE COUGARS |
Three student-athletes have signed to join the Houston program next season.
Chyanne Butler, a native of Costa Mesa, Calif., will transfer to Houston at the start of the spring 2015 semester and will play for the Cougars in 2015-16. The USC transfer averaged 17.0 points and 3.3 steals per game during her prep career. She was tabbed as the Class of 2014's 25th-ranked point guard by ESPN Hoopgurlz.
Sharayla Brown is a 6-3 post player out of Tulsa, Okla., and East Central HS. She averaged 12.0 points per game as East Central advanced to the championship game of the 2014 OSSAA Class 5A State Tournament.
Serithia "MoMo" Hawkins is a 5-10 guard from Moore, Okla., and Southmoore HS. She is ranked as the 69th-best Class of 2015 guard by ESPN Hoopgurlz, and she is a 3-star prospect. Led by Hawkins, Southmoore upset the top-ranked team in the state of Oklahoma, Edmond Santa Fe, on Tuesday evening.
| QUICK HITS |
- Winslow has dished 11 assists over three games since joining the starting lineup on Jan. 21 against USF
- Gilbert now has 13 multi-block games this season, including a six-block night in the last meeting with Cincinnati.
- A pair of Houston freshmen will be looking to duplicate their success from UH's last road game. Mitchell scored 14 points and Kinard added eight against Memphis on Jan. 24.
| UP NEXT FOR THE COUGARS |
Houston finishes their road trip on Tuesday, Feb. 3 when they face East Carolina. Tipoff in Greenville, N.C. is booked for 6 pm CT. ECU beat the Cougars, 87-46, on Jan. 10 at Hofheinz Pavilion.
The next home game is Saturday, Feb. 7 against Tulsa. The Cougars will host Dads & Daughters Date Day, with a ticket package for two available online for just $15. Giveaways include hats for the dads, pink flowers for daughters and a picture overlooking the Hofheinz court. | TICKETS
| STAY CONNECTED |
Fans can receive daily information and in-game updates by following @UHCougarWBB on Twitter. Fans can also catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team's Facebook page at facebook.com/UHCougarWBB .
| DADS & DAUGHTERS DATE DAY |
Houston will host Dads & Daughters Date Day on Feb. 7 at the Tulsa game. Dads can purchase a ticket bundle for two online for just $15. | TICKETS
The ticket bundle includes two tickets, a special hat for dads and a pink flower for daughters. Also, a photo station will be set up for dads and their daughter to take a special picture overlooking the Hofheinz court.
| NATIONAL GIRLS AND WOMEN IN SPORTS DAY |
The Cougars will celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day when they host Memphis on Wednesday, Feb. 11. Houston will also hold their Coogs for the Cure event on that night, raising money for cancer awareness.
The Feb. 11 women's basketball game will be a "Pay as You Wish" event, where Cougar fans can enter the game by making a donation in the amount of their choosing. Fans are encouraged to give generously, as a portion of the proceeds will benefit the Coogs for the Cure program, which is dedicated to the fight against cancer.
All Houston women's student-athletes will be in attendance, and the Cougars will honor their achievements on and off the court throughout the night. In addition, the first 250 fans will receive a Coogs for the Cure t-shirt, and the first 1,000 fans will receive a commemorative pink pom-pom.
Fans are encouraged to join the festivities and bring their group to be a part of the fun. For more information and to register your group, please contact Daniel Foster at dfoster3@Central.uh.edu or (713) 743-9453.
| STUDENTS - CHEER ON YOUR COUGARS! |
All UH main campus students are admitted FREE to regular season women's basketball home games with a valid student ID.
--UHCougars.com--
