University of Houston Athletics
This Week in Houston Athletics
11/20/2017 12:00:00 AM | General
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Last Week
Houston Men's Basketball went 2-1 in the Paradise Jam in Lynchburg, Va. The Cougars fell 84-80 to Drexel before defeating Liberty, 68-66, and Wake Forest, 78-73.
This Week
Houston vs. UIW | Saturday | 7 p.m. | H&PE Arena (Texas Southern) | Houston All-Access
Notes
Against Drexel, senior guard Rob Gray poured in a career-high 37 points in his season debut … Gray finished 13-of-21 shooting, including 5-of-8 from behind the 3-point line, and added six rebounds with four assists and a steal with no turnovers in 37 minutes … Junior guard Corey Davis Jr. grabbed the offensive rebound and banked in a layup with 0.3 seconds remaining to give the Cougars a 68-66 win over Liberty on the second day of the Paradise Jam … Gray once again led Houston with 19 points, while seniors Wes VanBeck and Devin Davis finished with 18 and 12 points, respectfully … In the tournament finale against Wake Forest, Gray scored 11 of the team's final 13 points in the final five minutes to lead the Cougars … Prior to the Paradise Jam, Gray was named to the John R. Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 … Chosen by a poll of national college basketball experts, the list is comprised of 50 student-athletes who are the early front-runners for college basketball's most prestigious individual honor … Season tickets for the 2017-18 campaign are on sale for fans … Fans can purchase Reserved season tickets for $200, while General Admission tickets are available for only $100 at uhcougars.com/tickets … As the former Hofheinz Pavilion is transformed into the $60-million Fertitta Center, the Cougars will play their 2017-18 home games inside Health & PE Arena on the campus of nearby Texas Southern University.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Last Week
Houston Women's Basketball concluded the Preseason Women's NIT with a pair of wins, defeating Milwaukee, 74-59, and New Orleans, 78-66.
This Week
Houston at Boston College | Wednesday | 5 p.m. CT | Boston
UMass Thanksgiving Tournament
Houston vs. Liberty | Friday | 2 p.m. CT | Amherst, Mass.
Houston vs. Northeastern | Saturday | 10 a.m. CT | Amherst, Mass.
Notes
Tied 57-57 against Milwaukee with 4:21 remaining, Houston went on a 10-0 run pull away … Sophomore guard Jasmyne Harris led the Cougars with 22 points on 8-of-19 shooting from the field, while sophomore forward Dorian Branch put up a career-high 18 points … Against New Orleans, junior forward Octavia Barnes posted her first career double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds, both career highs … Branch (17 points), sophomore guard Angela Harris (13 points) and freshman guard Julia Blackshell-Fair (10 points) all scored in double figures … Junior guard Serithia Hawkins pulled down a career-high 15 boards.
CROSS COUNTRY
Last Week
Senior distance runner Brian Barraza wrapped arguably one of the top cross country careers in program history with a 30:19.36 time and 61st-place finish at the 2017 NCAA Cross Country Championship on Saturday, in Louisville, Ky.
Notes
With his finish at the 2017 Cross Country National Championships, Barraza became the first Cougar in program history to compete as an individual in the event three times … As a sophomore in 2014, Barraza finished 224th in his first appearance at the championship meet in Terre Haute, Ind., before moving up to finish 60th the following year in Louisville … The 2017 Championships capped an incredible cross country career for Barraza at Houston … In 2015, Barraza became the first Cougar to win an individual regional title when he claimed gold at the NCAA South Central Regional in College Station, Texas … Including the regional, Barraza has claimed five individual titles throughout his cross country career and has finished among the top-10 in 16 separate events … Barraza is a 3-time All-American Athletic Conference honoree … Barraza has excelled in the classroom as well, and was named CoSIDA Academic All-American in 2017, an honor that only one other Cross Country/Track & Field athlete had earned at Houston (Jolanda Jones 1987 and 1989), while also earning All-District and All-Regional academic honors.
FOOTBALL
Last Week
Houston Football fell to 6-4 on the season and 4-3 in The American with a 20-17 loss at Tulane on Saturday.
This Week
Houston vs. Navy | Friday | 11 a.m. | TDECU Stadium | ESPN
Notes
Named a Nagurski Trophy finalist on Wednesday and an Outland Trophy finalist on Monday, Oliver ended Tulane's second drive with a sack to give him 3.5 on the year … The sack was Oliver's 34th career tackle for loss in only 23 career games … he leads the nation with a career average of 1.46 tackles for loss per game … Sophomore quarterback D'Eriq King rushed for two touchdowns and picked up a career-high 141 rushing yards … For full postgame notes, click here … Head Coach Major Applewhite held his annual press conference Monday … For transcribed quotes, click here.
SWIMMING & DIVING
Last Week
The Houston Swimming & Diving team broke nine program records, had 28 NCAA B-Cut times and 25 podium finishes, including nine first-place finishes, en route to winning their second straight Phill Hansel Invitational.
Notes
The Cougars broke records in the 100 Breaststroke, 200 Freestyle, 200 IM, 400 Freestyle Relay, 800 Freestyle Relay, 1650 Freestyle, as Houston totaled 1,749.50 points across the meet … For full results, click here.
VOLLEYBALL
Last Week
Houston Volleyball went 0-2 with 3-2 and 3-0 decisions to ECU on Friday and Cincinnati on Sunday.
This Week
Houston vs. Tulane | Wednesday | 1 p.m. | Athletics/Alumni Center
Houston at Tulane | Friday | 1 p.m. | New Orleans
Notes
Against ECU, the Cougars finished with a conference-record 15 service aces … The previous best was 14, set by Houston in 3-2 loss against USF on Nov. 1, 2015, inside Athletics/Alumni Center … Senior outside hitter Sarah Afflerbaugh finished with a career-high six service aces … Her six aces tie for the third highest recorded in a match in program history, tying Cecilia Blias (vs. Baylor, Oct. 30, 1986), Gretchen Klug (vs. Texas Southern, Sept. 9, 1987) and Nicole Gunsaulus (vs. Texas A&M, Oct. 5, 1990) … Sophomore libero Katie Karbo tallied 25 digs on the back row to eclipse 1,000 career digs with 1,003 … With nine assists, senior setter Keandra McCardell passed the 3,000-career assist plateau with 3,002 … Against Cincinnati, freshman Silvia Pertens led Houston with 11 kills, her first time to lead the team on the season.
Players Mentioned
