Feb. 1, 2007

Box Score

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HOUSTON - The University of Houston women's basketball team saw its six-game home-winning streak snapped by a 71-56 loss to Tulane, Thursday in Conference USA action on Guy V. Lewis Court at Hofheinz Pavilion.

A 12-2 surge in the final three minutes of the first half gave Tulane (18-4, 7-2 C-USA) a lead it would not relinquish as Houston (7-12, 4-5 C-USA) lost on its home court for the first time since Nov. 26.

The Cougars were within nine, 37-28, with 16:30 left in the game, but a 10-0 Tulane run over the next 3:09 had the Green Wave out to a 19-point cushion, 47-28, with 13:21 remaining. Houston missed its first nine shots of the second half did not tally its first field goal until Whitney James (Edmond, Okla./Edmond Memorial HS/North Oklahoma College) knocked down a jumper with 12:31 remaining, a span of 7:29. UH turned the ball over eight times during its cold snap from the floor and hit just eight field goals in the half.

Houston had its worst shooting performance in five games and the third-lowest percentage of the season. UH was 17-60 (.283), 1-12 (.083) from behind the arc and 21-35 (.600) from the charity stripe. The Cougars finished with 22 turnovers which were converted into 26 Tulane points. The Tulane bench accounted for 44 of the team's 71 points.

Tye Jackson (Houston, Texas/Westfield HS/Purdue) nearly had a triple double, closing the night out with 20 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. It was the third-straight double-double for the reigning C-USA Co-Player of the Week.

James was the only other UH player in double figures, tallying 13 points. Sha'Quaylon McKinney (Dallas, Texas/Skyline HS/Trinity Valley CC) continued her strong play, finishing with nine points, nine rebounds and a pair of blocks.

UH was strong on the boards, outrebounding Tulane by a 52-41 margin, including a 20-10 advantage on the offensive glass. Houston did not take advantage, converting just 10 second-chance points.

Nikki Luckhurst scored a season-high 20 points off the bench, including four three-pointers. Alendra Brown finished with 13 and Jennifer Sands added 10. Tulane's Jami Montagnino hit a career milestone on the night, surpassing the 1,000-point plateau for her career. She finished with eight points.

Tulane led 37-26 at the half, courtesy of a 12-2 run over the final 2:44 of the first half. Tulane's Luckhurst tallied 10 of those points, knocking in a total of 12 in only six first-half minutes. UH did not score a field goal in the final 5:33 of the half.

The Cougars complete a four-game homestand Saturday at 2 p.m. CST against UTEP. UH will celebrate National Girls and Women In Sports Day, honoring longtime UH supporter Nikki Drake during a halftime ceremony.