University of North Texas
Houston
Cougar Second Half Surge Too Much For Mean Green
11/29/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Box Score
HOUSTON (11/29/08) The North Texas basketball team couldn’t contain a potent Houston second-half explosion, falling to the Cougars 84-51 on Saturday night at Hofheinz Pavilion.
Kelvin Lewis and the Cougars (4-1) quickly turned a Mean Green (4-2) molehill into a mountain when they vaulted a six point halftime lead into an insurmountable margin with a killer 15-5 run out of the break.
Lewis nailed a trio of 3-pointers in a five minute span, and led a Cougar attack that committed just seven turnovers and hit 8-of-19 (42.1 percent) from beyond the arc. Houston, on the other hand, was able to turn 19 NT turnovers into 22 points on the night.
Collin Dennis and Tristan Thompson powered the Mean Green attack with 12 and 11 points, respectively. NT struggled from the floor, hitting just 18-of-60 (30.0 percent) shots on the night, and just 5-of-23 (21.7 percent) from deep.
The Cougars grabbed a couple of late boards to tie North Texas with 44 rebounds apiece, and George Odufuwa’s streak of four consecutive games with double-digit rebounds came to an end. The sophomore had picked up at least 11 rebounds in his last four outings, but was limited to a team-high six against Houston.
A sluggish start hampered North Texas early. The Cougars roared out to a quick 7-0 lead before Collin Dennis settled the Mean Green down. The senior nailed a 22-footer to put NT back into the game.
Dennis hit the Cougars with another dagger from deep at the 5:34 mark that tied the game at 23 apiece. His 3-pointer completed an 8-2 NT run to tie the score, but that was as close as the Mean Green would get to the lead.
The free throw line was NT’s friend in the opening frame. North Texas connected on 10-of-13 attempts from the stripe, but the Cougars played near-flawless basketball to take a 34-28 lead into the break. Houston had just three turnovers in the first half. Josh White had yet to miss a free throw on the road this season, but went 2-of-3 against the Cougars to finish with nine points.
The Mean Green returns to action at the Super Pit with a trio of home games starting on Wednesday, Dec. 3. NT plays host to Sam Houston State, New Mexico State (Dec. 6) and Houston Baptist (Dec. 15) in this homestand.
