Late run lifts Houston over Lady Pirates

The Lady Pirates came up short in their final regular season game on Saturday, losing to Houston, 66-65 on Senior Night. LaCoya Terry, Jasmine Young and Gabriela Husarova all played their final home games at Minges Coliseum.

ECU struggled all day containing Houston guard Brittney Scott, who scored 27 points.

"In the first half we played off of her and she definitely stepped up to the plate," said ECU coach Sharon Baldwin-Tener. "She hit some big shots and we did a little bit of a better job on her in the second half."

The Pirates and Cougars exchanged leads throughout the entire game. ECU led 34-33 at halftime, but its lead was short-lived as the Pirates' shooting woes led to their demise.

ECU center Lauren Cochran's two-point field goal with 8:45 left in regulation would be the Pirates' final field goal of the game.

A pair of free throws from Tiahana Bowens gave the Pirates a 64-63 lead. Houston's Scott regained the lead for the Cougars with 1:41 left to give Houston a one-point advantage. Scott would add one free throw to lengthen the lead to two.

Young went to the free throw line with a chance to tie the game up with 1:06 left, but split the pair of shots. The score would stand after a couple of Pirate turnovers, with Houston escaping Minges with a 66-65 win.

"You try and build from it," Baldwin-Tener said. "They're one of the top four teams in the conference and everybody we have lost to, we have barely lost, so the thing we just have to know is: We can beat anyone on any given day and we will need to do that four days in a row."

Young and Terry led the Pirates with 17 points apiece. The duo has nothing to hang their heads about, with both turning in solid performances in their last game at Minges.

"It's been fun here," said Terry. "I got to meet a lot of people and a different way of life. Being honored, I was hoping to pull off a big win for the fans."

Earlier in the week, ECU picked up a crucial Conference USA win in a 79-54 rout of Rice. The Pirates dominated from the very beginning, easily handling the Owls' squad (7-21, 2-13).

Terry had another big night with 19 points. Both Young and freshman Ashley Clarke added 12 points.

Although not happy with the final result, the Pirates (17-12, 8-8) finished off the season improving on last year's record.

"We need to focus on our goal and our goal is winning a conference championship," Terry said. "And we need to get aggressive defensively and offensively."

No. 8 seed ECU will compete in the C-USA Tournament beginning on March 5 against No. 9 seed UAB in New Orleans.

This writer can be contacted at sports@theeastcarolinian.com.