University of Houston Athletics
Cougars Head East for Matchup With Memphis
1/4/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
HOUSTON -- The Houston Cougar Women's Basketball team hits the road for a short one-game road trip, to continue American Athletic Conference play against the Memphis Tigers, on Tuesday, Jan. 5, at Elma Roane Fieldhouse, in Memphis Tenn. Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m.
Fans who can't join the Cougars in Memphis on Tuesday can follow the game through a variety of outlets. Free live audio is available at UHCougars.com/wbbradio, with Jeremy Branham on the call. Also, live statistics will provide an up-to-the-second numerical breakdown, while the official Twitter account of Houston Women's Basketball, @UHCougarWBB, will post periodic updates. | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | TWITTER
Houston (4-9, 0-2) dropped their American Athletic Conference home opener falling 75-66 against Temple on Jan. 2. Houston holds a 3-2 record on the road this season including three straight wins from Dec. 5 to Dec. 17.
Memphis (7-6, 1-1) opened American Athletic Conference play with an 82-58 loss at Temple in Philadelphia, Pa., on Dec. 30. However, the Tigers rebounded for an 83-67 win at home over Tulane on Jan. 5. Memphis holds a 6-2 record at home on the season.
THE STARTING FIVE
Here are five names, numbers, news items and storylines that you need to know about Houston's game against Memphis.
COMING ON STRONG- After missing the first half of the year due to transfer rules, sophomore guard Chyanne Butler has exploded on the scene averaging 6.5 ppg and shooting 40 percent from the 3-point line.
HERE AND THERE - Tuesday's contest marks the seventh straight game where the Cougars have rotated between home and away. The Cougars have not had successive home games since Nov. 19 and 22.
SERIES OF STREAKS - Memphis won the first nine games in the all-time series, but since then the Cougars are 13-7 when meeting the Tigers including a 73-67 win in the American Championship first round in 2014.
Marche' Amerson - Senior Marche' Amerson averaged 13.5 points per game when the Cougars met the Tigers last season.
BACK TO THEIR WAYS - Houston will look to get back to their winning ways on the road. The Cougars began the season 3-1 in true-road games before falling to Tulane in the American Conference opener.
HOUSTON ONE-SHOTS
Here's the one thing you need to know about each member of the Houston roster:
#1 - Chyanne Butler - Butler scored a career-high 14 points and had four assists in the American Conference home opener against Temple.
#2 - Jacqueline Blake - Blake exploded for her first career double-double Dec. 7 at Incarnate Word, with 11 points and 13 rebounds.
#3 - Bianca Winslow - Winslow returned from a seven-game injury absence on Dec. 12 vs. UNLV and led the Cougars with four assists.
#5 - Dionna Collins - A finalist for the 2014-15 WBCA Junior College Player of the Year award, Collins will redshirt in 2015-16 due to NCAA transfer requirements.
#10 - Cenecia Newman - Newman was instant offense at the Lone Star Showcase, scoring 12 points in just 20 minutes of court time.
#12 - Brianne Coffman - Coffman will redshirt in 2015-16 due to NCAA transfer requirements. She spent her first two collegiate seasons at Oklahoma State.
#15 - Alecia Smith - Smith graduated with a B.S. in kinesiology Dec. 17. Later that night, she scored six points in Houston's win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
#21 - Jessieka Palmer - Palmer erupted for six 3-pointers and a career-best 25 points against No. 24/23 George Washington on Nov. 26.
#22 - Marche' Amerson - Amerson needs 43 points to become the 23rd member of Houston's 1,000-point club.
#23 - Serithia Hawkins - Hawkins earned her second career double-double in the team's 75-66 loss to Temple. She tallied 12 points and 10 boards to go along with two assists.
#24 - Mariah Mitchell - Mitchell finished just one rebound shy of her first career double-double when she scored 11 points and had nine boards against Temple.
#25 - Kierra Graves - Graves matched a career-high when she scored 12 points to finish as one of four Cougars in double-figures against Temple.
#32 - Sharayla Brown - Brown scored the first four points of her collegiate career Nov. 26 against No. 24/23 George Washington and made her first start Dec. 5 at Rice.
#33 - Tyler Gilbert - Gilbert had a block in the Tulane game to become the sixth player in Houston history to tally 100 career blocks.
#35 - Taylor Gilbert - Gilbert received a medical hardship redshirt due to career-ending knee injuries. She remains on scholarship and is an active part of team functions.
LAST TIME OUT • JAN. 5, 2016 • TEMPLE 75, HOUSTON 66 | Final Stats
Houston dropped its American Athletic Conference home opener, 75-66, Jan. 5 against Temple.
Freshman guard Serithia Hawkins earned her second career double-double tallying 12 points and 10 rebounds, including four on the offensive glass, before fouling out late in the game. Sophomore guard Mariah Mitchell added a season-high 11 points and a career-best nine rebounds, while sophomore Chyanne Butler also added a career-best 14 points.
After a sluggish first quarter, the Cougars trailed 17-3 heading into the second frame. However, Houston would come roaring back in the final three quarters, eventually taking the lead for the first time in the game on a 3-pointer by senior Marche' Amerson to bring the score to 57-54 with 5:50 remaining in the game.
After Amerson's 3-pointer gave the Cougars the lead, Temple answered back just 20 seconds later to tie the game at 57 apiece when Feyonda Fitzgerald connected with a shot from behind the arc of her own. From there the Owls closed the contest on an 18-9 run. Fitzgerald finished the contest with 23 points.
Houston had four players in double-figures. Junior guard Kierra Graves matched a career-high with 12 points along with Butler, Hawkins and Mitchell's performances.
SERIES VS. MEMPHIS
Houston is 13-16 all-time against the Tigers, including an 4-8 mark in Memphis.
Memphis claimed victory each of the two times the team met during the 2014 season including an 84-49 win at Elma Roane Fieldhouse on Jan. 24, 2015.
Memphis won the first nine games in the all-time series, however the Cougars have responded to win 13 out of the last 10 contests against the team from Memphis.
THE COACHES
Houston head coach Ronald Hughey is in his second season at Houston, with a career record of 10-33. He is 0-2 all-time against Memphis.
Hughey accumulated a 163-154 (.514) career record in 10 seasons as an NCAA Division I assistant coach at South Carolina State, South Carolina, UCF, Rutgers, Texas and Florida State. He is a veteran of seven postseason tournaments (6 NCAA, 1 NIT) including two NCAA Second Rounds (2013, 2014), four NCAA First Rounds (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012) and one WNIT Second Round (2008).
A vaunted recruiter, Hughey orchestrated multiple national top-15 recruiting classes at both Texas and Florida State. At Houston, he signed an eight-player recruiting class in 2014-15, including two NJCAA All-Americans and four players rated as 3-star recruits by ESPN Hoopgurlz.
Hughey brought five more highly regarded recruits into the Houston program in the early 2015 signing period. Included in the group is Lufkin, Texas, native Natasha Mack, the first ESPN Hoopgurlz national top-100 recruit of his head coaching tenure.
Memphis head coach Melissa McFerrin has a 115-92 record 13 games in her eighth season as a head coach of the Tigers. McFerrin is 165-162 all-time as a head coach.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
Memphis is 7-6 on the season and split their first two American Athletic Conference matchups after losing to Temple 82-58 on Dec. 30, and beating Tulane 83-67 on Jan. 2. The Tigers have won three of their last four games dating back to a 64-61 win over Central Michigan on Dec. 15.
Senior guard Ariel Hearn paces the Tigers on the offensive end averaging 14.1 points per game and 3.0 assists per contest. Hearn was named American Athletic Conference Player of the Week on Dec. 21.
Senior forwards Asianna Fuqua-Bey and Brianna Wright each like to crash the boards for Memphis. Fuqua-Bey leads the Tigers averaging 6.8 rebounds per game, while Wright is close on her heels at 6.4 boards per contest.
The Tigers shoot on average 40.8 percent from the field (318-780) while also allowing opponents to shot 40.8 percent (321-786).
KEY STATS FOR HOUSTON
After ranking at the bottom of The American in rebounding last season, the Cougars are starting to assert themselves on the glass. UH is outrebounding their opponents by 1.1 boards per game.
Houston ranks near the top of the American Athletic Conference in blocks with an average of 3.3 rejections per contest. Senior forward Tyler Gilbert ranks third individually while averaging 1.4 blocks per contest.
Fresh off her second career double-double, freshman Serithia Hawkins continues to shine among American Conference Athletes. Hawkins ranks in the top-10 in rebounds per game (6.9) and offensive rebounds pergame (3.1). Hawkins also ranks 27th in the conference in points per game with 10.2. Her point and rebound numbers are tops in the conference among all freshmen.
MARCHE'S MARCH TO 1,000 POINTS
Amerson enters the Memphis game with 957 career points and is just 43 points shy of Houston's 1,000-point club. When she accomplishes the feat, Amerson will be Houston's 23rd 1,000-point scorer. Current Atlanta Dream standout Sancho Lyttle (2003-05) occupies the 22nd spot, with 1,092 career points, while Ann Moon (1977-81) checks in at No. 21 with 1,094 points.
MILESTONE WATCH
Amerson isn't the only Cougar who is climbing the Cougar record books in 2015-16, and her journey to 1,000 points isn't the only number to monitor this season. The senior from Bryan, Texas, enters the Tulane game fifth in Houston history with 101 career starts, sixth with 3,187 minutes and eighth with 95 made 3-point field goals and 319 3-point field goal attempts.
Smith is climbing the career 3-point record books, ranking sixth in made 3-pointers (127), fourth in attempts (515) and ninth in minutes (2,976). With two more 3-pointers, she will match Tye Jackson (2005-09) for fifth in Houston history in the category.
Gilbert climbed two spots on the Houston career shot-blocking charts with her three rejections in the UNLV game. She is now ranked sixth in school history with 101 blocks, and she's chasing Toni Mooney, who finished her career with 122 blocks, for fifth place. Gilbert became just the sixth player in Houston history with triple-digit blocks.
REGENTS APPROVE RENOVATIONS TO BASKETBALL ARENA
The University of Men's and Women's Basketball programs moved closer to a new competition home facility when school regents approved the start of the design process for the renovation of the Houston Basketball arena during its meeting Nov. 19.
Regents approved a project budget of up to $60 million with an anonymous donor pledging a $20 million gift to facilitate the arena's renovation.
Design work is scheduled to begin in March 2016 with construction starting one year later. Plans for the Cougars' home facility during the 2017-18 season have not been finalized and will be announced at a later date. The renovated facility is expected to be ready for game competition for the beginning of the 2018-19 season.
"This project has been long overdue, and we are grateful that Dr. Khator and our Board of Regents saw the need for this step with our basketball arena," Vice President for Athletics Hunter Yurachek said. "We look forward to starting the design process in the next few months and creating a facility that will provide the highest level of amenities to our fans and a significant home-court advantage for our Men's and Women's Basketball student-athletes."
Preliminary estimated capacity for the renovated arena will be reduced to 7,420 from its current seating bowl of 8,479. However, initial plans call for the court level to be raised three feet with fan seating moved closer to the court as part of an emphasis to improve the overall fan experience.
More than 2,000 premium seats will be developed to give fans the ultimate luxury seating options. That total includes a preliminary design of 1,750 club seats, 20 loge boxes with four seats in each, two open-air suites with 32 seats per unit and 90 courtside seats.
The arena's concourse level will be expanded to improve circulation with significant upgrades to the sound system, video board and arena seating.
Guy V. Lewis BASKETBALL CENTER NEARS COMPLETION | Live Webcam
The Houston Women's Basketball held their first full practice in the brand new Guy V. Lewis Basketball Center on Nov. 24, and they will move into the full facility in just a few short days. Once completed, the $25 million facility will be the home base for both Cougar hoops squads.
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.
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.
UP NEXT FOR THE COUGARS
Houston returns home following Tuesday's contest in Memphis, to face the defending NCAA National Champions UConn. The Huskies come to town Friday, Jan. 8 with tipoff scheduled for 8 p.m., CT. The matchup with UConn will air live on ESPN2.
$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 remaining Houston Women's Basketball and Softball home games.
The Shasta Pass offers Houston fans a substantial savings as single-game tickets start at $8 for all four sports. 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.
