University of Houston
1-5
Rice
0-6
Houston Earns Fifth Straight Win over Rice
12/5/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
HOUSTON â€" Marche' Amerson hit a 3-pointer with :15 remaining to lift the University of Houston Women's Basketball team to a 62-59 victory over crosstown rival Rice on Saturday afternoon at Tudor Fieldhouse. The victory is Houston's fifth in a row over the Owls.
"This victory shows that the University of Houston runs this town," Houston head coach Ronald Hughey said. "It also shows the people of this city that our team is not the same old Houston. We're getting back to the glory days. It's going to take one day at a time, one possession at a time, but we are willing to grind every second to make it happen."
Houston trailed, 59-58, when they forced a Rice turnover with :41 seconds left in the game. With the shot clock running low on the ensuing possession, senior Alecia Smith drove the lane. When the defense collapsed, Smith connected with Amerson in the right corner, and the senior drained her fifth 3-pointer of the night to make the score 61-59.
The Owls turned the ball over again on their next possession, and Houston hit one final free throw to help seal the deal.
 | THE BASICS |
Score: Houston 62, Rice 59
Records: Houston 2-5, Rice 0-7
Date: Saturday, December 5, 2015
Location: Houston, Texas (Tudor Fieldhouse)
| TURNING POINT |
Houston trailed by as many as nine points in the third quarter, and things looked bleak when two Rice free throws gave the home team a 57-51 lead with 4:55 remaining. But the Owls did not convert another field goal, and Amerson's 3-pointer made the lockdown defensive effort pay off for Hughey and the Cougars.
| TOP PERFORMERS |
Houston: Amerson came off the bench for the first time this season and responded with a 5-for-10 day from long distance, leading the Cougars with 15 points. The five 3-pointers are a new career high for the Rudder, Texas, native.
Tyler Gilbert added 12 points to go with a career-high 14 rebounds, including 11 offensive boards, while Serithia Hawkins chipped in 13 points and eight boards.
Rice: Maya Hawkins was 5-for-11 from downtown and led all players with 21 points, while Shani Rainey grabbed eight rebounds.
| INSIDE THE BOX SCORE |
- Rice did not make a field goal in the final 8:59 of the game, as Houston forced the Owls into misses on their final six attempts.
- Houston shot 38.1 percent (24-for-63) from the field, 34.8 percent (8-for-23) from 3-point range and 66.7 percent (6-for-9) from the free throw line.
- The Owls finished 43.9 percent (18-for-41) from the floor, 36.8 percent (7-for-19) from distance and 72.7 percent (16-for-22) from the charity stripe.
- The Cougars dominated the glass, collecting 43 rebounds to Rice's 27.
- UH tallied 25 offensive rebounds and has 51 offensive boards combined over the last two games, including their 26 against No. 25/21 Iowa on Nov. 28.
- Houston boarded an astounding 58.1 percent of their misses, as Rice finished with just 18 defensive rebounds.
- Smith and Jessieka Palmer led the Cougars with four assists each.
- Half of Houston's points (31-of-62) came from reserves.
- The Cougars won the first quarter, 19-14, but Rice took the next two, 20-13 and 14-9. Down 48-41 after three quarters, Houston took the game with a 21-11 rally in the fourth period.
- Houston trailed at the break, 34-32, after withstanding a 16-3 Rice run that spanned the middle portions of the half. Gilbert led Houston with six points at intermission despite not playing in the second quarter due to foul trouble.
| NEWS & NOTES |
- Smith hit her lone 3-pointer of the game with 1:09 left in the second quarter. The trifecta was her 125th as a collegian, which ties Roxana Button (2008-12) for sixth in Houston history.
- With five 3-pointers, Amerson now has 84 for her career, which boosted her from 11th to eighth in Houston history in just one night.
- Amerson also crossed the 3,000-career minute mark on Saturday.
- Gilbert's double-double was the first this season by a Cougar and the fourth of the senior's career.
- Freshman Sharayla Brown made her first career start Saturday, while Mariah Mitchell was in the first five for the first time this season. Mitchell drained a pair of 3-pointers and scored eight points to go with three steals.
- Houston is now 52-10 all-time against the Owls, including a 23-5 mark on the Rice campus.
- Houston's five-player senior class of Amerson, Gilbert, Palmer, Smith and Bianca Winslow will end their collegiate careers with a perfect 5-0 record against Rice.
- Including last season's 59-58 victory, Hughey is 2-0 against Rice in his head coaching career.
| UP NEXT FOR THE COUGARS |
It's a short turnaround for Hughey's team, as they face Incarnate Word on Monday, Dec. 7. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT in San Antonio, Texas.
Houston returns to Hofheinz Pavilion Dec. 12, when they take on UNLV. Tickets are available at UHCougars.com/tickets as the Cougars and Runnin' Rebels share the court for the first time since Dec. 22, 1994, a 77-64 Houston victory.
| $50 SHASTA PASS NOW AVAILABLE |
The Houston Fan Experience Headquarters is proud to offer the Shasta Pass for the 2015-16 athletic season. For only $50, Cougar fans can purchase one Shasta Pass, which allows season-long general admission entrance to all Houston Women's Basketball, Volleyball and Softball home games.
The Shasta Pass offers Houston fans a substantial savings as single-game tickets start at $8 for all four sports. Fans can save $126 alone during the Houston fall sports seasons. To purchase a Shasta Pass, CLICK HERE.
| 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.
--UHCougars.com--
