The Cougars season is off to a positive start after a nail-biting 83-80 win Sunday. | File Photo/The Cougar

The women’s basketball team got its season of to a momentous start Sunday afternoon with a hard-fought victory over the Southeastern Louisiana University Lions at Hofheinz Pavilion.

The Cougars are now 1-0 after the 83-80 win, which was a back-and-forth contest for all 40 minutes. The Lions made costly mistakes throughout the contest, committing 21 turnovers that resulted in 31 points for the Cougars.

Women’s basketball trailed late in the game before they managed a 7-0 run to seal the victory. The run was fueled by junior guard Chyanne Butler and freshman guard Jasmyne Harris who carried the Cougars’ scoring late in the affair.

Harris nailed a three and a pair of free throws after a Butler make that gave the team a 78-72 lead as time ran down.

The Cougars used the youth to their advantage Sunday as freshman guard Angela Harris led all Houston scorers with 22 points on an impressive 7-for-11 clip including four three pointers. Harris showed her unselfish play by tallying five assists in the game.

Harris becomes the first freshman to score at least 20 points in a game for the Cougars since the 2012-2013 season.

Senior center Jacqueline Blake contributed a career-high 15 points in the win. Blake and Harris came off the bench Sunday and were a driving force in the Cougars, outscoring the Lions 48-13 in bench points.

The Lions accumulated 31 points from Taylin Underwood who capitalized on 9-for-21 from the field.

The Cougars will now head west for games against the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and California State University, Long Beach.

The team will then return to Hofheinz Pavilion next Wednesday for a matchup against the Texas State University Bobcats.

Tipoff against UNLV is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Tuesday.

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“Down to the wire, Cougars come out on top” was originally posted on The Daily Cougar