Student Publications
University of Houston
151C Communications Bldg
Houston, TX 77204-4015
713.743.5350

©1991-2007
Student Publications,
All rights reserved.

Last modified:

Contact:
ktruitt@uh.edu

Sports

UH maintains lead to beat Southern Miss

Last-minute shot assured victory for Cougars after two consecutive losses in conference

by BEN GEGENHEIMER
The Daily Cougar

UH guard Oliver Lafayette's first three-point field goal of the night proved to be the most important for the Cougars. After missing his first 8 shots from beyond the arc, Lafayette drained his final three-pointer with just 55 seconds remaining in the game en route to a 62-58 victory over Southern Miss.

After losing their previous two conference games, the Cougars were looking for their first win in Conference USA as they faced the Golden Eagles. UH began the game with aggressive defense, swatting away loose balls and cutting off the passing lanes. This enabled the Cougars to jump out to an 8-4 lead against a man-to-man defense from Southern Miss. The Golden Eagles switched to a zone defense early in the first half and began to give UH problems. 

Houston could not get into a rhythm offensively, shooting a dismal 33 percent from the field in the first half, including 2-12 from downtown. Forward Ramon Dyer, who had a game-high eight points at halftime, said the Cougars were expecting to see a zone defense.

"We knew they were going to throw a zone at us," Dyer said. "We've been practicing hard against the zone and we make shots in practice, but we have to carry it on to the game. We were getting open looks, we just have to make shots."

Trailing 27-22 at halftime, UH came out firing on all cylinders. They were able to couple their feisty defense with some consistent scoring. Guard Lanny Smith scored four straight points to jump start a 10-1 run, ending with Dyer nailing a three-pointer. Despite their unsuccessful attempts in the first half, the Cougars continued to shoot from the three-point stripe in the second half, connecting on five of 16 shots from downtown. 

"We can't start the conference 0-3," Dyer said. "We were down seven and we just came out with some energy, played hard and made some shots."

The Cougars did not slow down as the Golden Eagles' lead began to shrink. During a timeout, Southern Miss head coach Larry Eustachy picked up a technical foul with 11:18 remaining following a 17-8 Cougar run.

Consecutive three-pointers from Smith ignited the crowd and helped UH build a 51-38 lead by the 7:41 mark.

The Golden Eagles would not go away. Southern Miss guard Courtney Beasley, who finished with a team-high 17 points, knocked down a three-pointer with just over four minutes remaining to make the score 51-47. 

Lafayette came around in the final minute as he got open on the right wing and launched one more three-point attempt. His shot fell through and gave UH a six-point lead, and the Cougars never looked back, winning 62-58.

Despite Lafayette's shooting woes, head coach Tom Penders was happy to see him take the shot in a pressure situation.

"You have to have confidence in your players, and the players have to have confidence," Penders said. "I want to encourage them to keep taking shots. That was a huge shot that he made."

The Cougars were led by Smith, who had a game-high 18 points, including three three-pointers. Dyer pitched in with 16 points and four steals. Penders credited upper-class leadership and help from the bench as keys to the victory and was happy to come away with a win against a tough team.

"We're still struggling offensively, but I was really proud of our kids and how hard they played and scrapped. When you struggle offensively and win, you'll take every one of those. There are not too many teams in the country that win when they shoot under 40 percent."

UH returns to action Saturday when they travel to the University of Alabama-Birmingham to face the 13-3 Blazers. Tip-off is at 5 p.m.

Send comments to dcsports@mail.uh.edu