Houston Cougars overpowered by No. 18 USF in women's basketball action

HOUSTON, TEXAS (January 9, 2021) The Houston Cougars women's basketball team was overpowered by 18/19 USF on Saturday evening inside the Yuengling Center, falling to the Bulls in a 80-51 decision. Two Cougars posted double-figure efforts, led by Miya Crump with a season-high 16 points. Daphane White led Houston on the boards with six rebounds. Dymond Gladney paced Houston with three assists, adding in a team-high four steals. 

Julia Blackshell-Fair was second on the team in scoring with 10 points, also racking up four steals. 

Houston forced USF to turn the ball over a season-high 21 times. The Houston bench outscored the Bulls bench 30-29. 

 USF had five players in double-figures, led by Maria Alvarez with 21 points. USF got out to an early lead after hitting 7 of its first 11 shots from the field. Jazmaine Lewis and Julia Blackshell-Fair provided an early spark for the Cougars. Lewis cleaned up the boards and scored two early baskets off second chance opportunities and Blackshell-Fair hit the driving lanes hard in the opening minutes of play. The Cougars found a rhythm late in the frame and embarked on a 9-0 scoring run, highlighted by back-to-back points off USF turnovers and two assists from Laila Blair to take a 21-20 lead at the break. 

Houston continued to force USF to make mistakes, but a Bull scoring surge midway through the second quarter resulted in a 34-34 stalemate with 3:56 left in the half. The Bulls continued to make shots from deep, but the Cougars kept things close with a strong defensive presence. As time winded down Blackshell-Fair remained aggressive and found her way to the free throw line with only seconds remaining. After making her second attempt at the charity stripe, she snagged the Cougars seventh steal of the night. Dymond Gladney capped off the play with a lay-up as the buzzer sound. 

The Bulls stifled the Cougar offense in the third quarter, as Houston was outscored 19-5 in the frame. In the fourth quarter, the Cougars offensive struggles continued as they were outscored 17-8.