UH was unable to pull ahead of Oklahoma Saturday night. | Anh Le/The Cougar

Houston kept within striking distance but ultimately fell short, losing to Oklahoma by a score of 71-65 Saturday for the team’s second straight loss in conference play. 

Oklahoma asserted dominance in the first quarter, mounting a 7-0 run. Houston responded with two buckets from senior guard Laila Blair, cutting the Cougars’ deficit to four at the end of the quarter. 

A score on the fast break from junior forward Maliyah Johnson marked Houston’s first lead of the night. However, the Cougars failed to stop Oklahoma and allowed the Sooners to once again pull out in front.  

Houston’s final points of the second quarter came from graduate guard N’Yah Boyd, giving Houston a 32-30 lead. But again, an Oklahoma three gave the Sooners a one-point advantage going into the half. 

The Cougars kept it close but failed to pull ahead in the second half. Despite finding themselves down ten with 4:34 remaining the Cougars once again cut the lead to three. A basket from Blair gave the Cougars a final chance to blow by the Sooners but UH was unsuccessful in getting a stop on the other end of the floor and eventually fell short

Boyd led UH in scoring with 20 points on the night. 

Next up, the Cougars will look to get back in the win column Wednesday when they take on Texas Tech on the road.

sports@thedialycougar.com

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“Women’s basketball falls in close game to Oklahoma” was originally posted on The Cougar