Lady Coogs turn up defensive
effort in rout
of No. 9 La. Tech
By Crystal J. Doucette
Daily Cougar Staff
Leading 44-37 with more than 13 minutes
left to play in the game, UH senior guard Jessica Shanklin snatched a Louisiana
Tech pass, hurled it to freshman guard/forward Chandi Jones and watched
with the rest of Hofheinz Pavilion as Jones added insult to injury, driving
two under the basket against a hapless Louisiana Tech guard.
"The coaches have been pumping us up, getting
us ready to play a No. 8 -- or No. 9 or whatever number they are -- team,"
Jones said.
The Lady Cougars finished the weekend 4-3
as they fell to Indiana (6-1) and trounced Louisiana Tech (7-2) for the
upset in the Hilton Houston Hobby Airport Classic this weekend.
The Lady Coogs took the lead against La.
Tech on Sunday and never looked back, with a three-pointer from Jones with
two minutes and 40 seconds left to play in the first half. UH defeated
the No. 9 ranked Lady Techsters, 71-52.
Senior guard/forward
Cathy Lida looks to pass during the Lady Cougars' 71-52 victory over No.
9 Louisiana Tech. The UH women's basketball team closed out the weekend
4-3.
Pin Lim/
The Daily Cougar
"It's not only a big win for today, it's
a big win for our program," head coach Joe Curl said.
UH opened the first half with two points
from senior forward/center ShaRonda Lasseter. The lead see-sawed for the
rest of the half, until Jones sank two consecutive three-pointers with
less than six minutes left to play in the half. La. Tech edged back to
tie, but a three-pointer from Jones, then from senior guard Jessica Shanklin
and then from senior forward Cathy Lida in one minute and 10 seconds of
play broke the Lady Techsters.
La. Tech junior center Takeisha Lewis tried
to close the gap with a solid post game, a team-high 16 points and 80 percent
from the free throw line, but UH pulled away to as much as a 21-point lead
before the end.
"It was probably the best post defensive
effort I've ever been introduced to for 40 minutes," Curl said.
Jones put up 32 points with seven-of-eight
free throws and 50 percent from three-point range. Lida hit 15 for the
night with eight rebounds, and Lasseter posted 11 with eight rebounds and
two steals. Shanklin hit two-of-four from the three, passed six assists
and grabbed four steals.
The Lady Cougars' game against Indiana
didn't go quite as well.
UH took the lead early against Indiana
on Friday night, taking the Lady Hoosiers by the nose up until the last
two minutes of the first half. With one minute and 30 seconds left, Indiana
junior forward Erin McGinnis landed a three to give the Lady Hoosiers a
two-point lead. UH entered the locker room down by one.
The second half was slow on both sides,
but not slow enough for the Lady Cougars.
An Indiana foul put Lasseter on the line
to tie with 3.23 seconds left to play, but she missed her first attempt.
Indiana grabbed the intentional rebound and Lasseter fouled junior guard
Heather Cassady as UH tried to regain the last possession. Cassady sank
her free throws with one minute and four seconds left on the clock as the
Lady Hoosiers sealed the win, 81-77.
The Lady Hoosiers were undefeated until
Saturday, when La. Tech handed them their first loss of the season, 54-53.
The Lady Cougars travel to Athens, Ga.,
to play No. 7 Georgia on Sunday.
