University of Houston
Houston Jaguars
Women's Basketball Defeats Jaguars 82-63 in Exhibition Contest
11/9/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 9, 2009
HOUSTON - Junior guard Brittney Scott scored a game-high 24 points and both Lesslee Mason and Courtney Taylor produced double-doubles Monday as the University of Houston women's basketball team defeated the Houston Jaguars 82-63 in exhibition play at Hofheinz Pavilion.
"I had mixed emotions about this game," said head coach Joe Curl. "The first half we played really hard, but I was a little disappointed in the second half letting them get back in it before we picked back up the intensity. They're a good basketball team with a lot of talent and they showed that by beating Memphis last night. I was very pleased with the overall effort."
During the early moments of Monday's contest Taylor picked up where she left off last season, a year that saw her earn First Team All-Conference honors. The junior from Crockett, Texas, pulled down six rebounds in the game's first four minutes. The early rebounding edge and poor shooting from the Jaguars helped UH build a 7-2 lead at the 17:20 mark of the first half.
Taylor, who kicks off her junior season with 25 career double-doubles, finished with 15 points and 17 rebounds, while Mason contributed 12 points and 12 rebounds to give Houston a potent inside attack.
Junior Jasmine Johnson's pull-up jumper from the middle of the lane with 11:07 on the clock highlighted a 9-2 UH run and gave the Cougars their first double-digit lead of the night at 18-8.
Scott's three-pointer as time expired gave the Cougars their biggest lead of the opening half at 45-27 and sent them to the locker room with the game's momentum.
For the half, UH shot an impressive 51.6 percent from the floor (16-of-31), led by Scott's 12 points and Taylor's 12 rebounds.
Mason's jumper with 17:23 in the second half remaining put the Cougars up 53-31, but the Jaguars got back in the game with a 10-2 run over the next 1:07. A Scott 3-pointer at 15:35 ended the run but another 10-2 run for the Jaguars from the 12:27 to the 8:31 mark left them behind by only single digits, 64-55, with 8:31 to play.
The Cougars, however, responded with a 9-2 run of their own, paced by Scott who contributed seven of the nine points. The spurt was the tip of an 18-8 run by the Cougars to end the game, getting the final dagger on a 3-pointer from freshman Macy Morton as time expired.
Sophomores Roxana Button and Porsche Landry each chipped in eight points for the Cougars, who made 31-of-66 field goal attempts in the game, including a 7-of-16 (43.8 percent) clip from beyond the 3-point arc. Landry also dished out a game-high five assists in just 16 minutes of action.
Houston kicks off its 2009-10 season this Friday when it travels to Boiling Springs, N.C., to face off against Gardner-Webb in an 8 p.m. (CST) contest.
